Initiative

When we talk about initiatives and referenda, we're usually talking about states and localities. But other governments use ballot measures as well. Large universities and their student governments often permit initiatives and referenda. And then there's Indian country.

As they gain wealth and political power, Native American tribes are putting more and more questions up for a vote of their members. Here's an account of a referendum held by the Pawnee Nation to determine whether the tribe should establish its own separate judiciary.

This week, petition circulators all over the country are working around the clock to collect signatures to meet turn-in deadlines. Six states require that signatures be handed in between July 3 and July 7: Arkansas, Arizona, Michigan, Nebraska, Oregon and Washington. Many of these professional gatherers are Californians who move to one of these states for the signature season. Hurry home, guys!

Already turned in this week: an initiative barring unmarried couples from adopting or serving as foster parents in Arkansas; an initiative that would reduce some of Arizona's harsher penalties for businesses that hire unauthorized immigrants; and an anti-traffic initiative in Washington state; (Hat tip, ballotpedia).

IF YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW TO RUN A BALLOT MEASURE CAMPAIGN.... Read this post from Wayne Pacelle, of the Humane Society of the United States, at California Majority Report. 

ANOTHER CALIFORNIA PARCEL TAX: One of the handful of taxes California cities can raise is the parcel tax. With the state budget in crisis, more and more city governments are asking the voters to endorse parcel tax hikes to pay for police officers. The latest city to make the ask is Oakland.

SICK IN OHIO? An Ohio ballot initiative, currently on the street, would require companies to provide seven days of paid sick leave. But Gov. Ted Strickland may be trying to forge a compromise before the initiative reaches the ballot, according to a leading legislator.

THE DOGS HAVE IT: A measure to ban greyhound racing in Massachusetts appears to have enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot.

California's non-partisan Legislative Analyst's Office, which advises lawmakers of both parties, is used to getting some attention for its reports. But they may not be ready for the scrutiny their report on same-sex marriage's fiscal impact may have nationwide.

Under the category of "here's a story you don't see every day," The Advocate offers a preview of the LAO's report and suggests -- correctly, I believe -- that undecided voters could be convinced to oppose November's anti-gay marriage initiative if clear evidence emerges of same-sex marriage's economic benefits to the state.

Ted Costa, the Sacramento anti-tax activist best known as the original proponent of the 2003 recall of California Gov. Gray Davis, once told me that the recall was his second choice. He wanted to pass an initiative to strip California's state legislators of the power to draw their own districts. But the courts knocked a measure he drafted off the ballot. With the money he had raised for redistricting, he decided to launch the recall effort.

In 2006, looking back at all the political change his recall had produced, Costa looked back and said, "I would trade it all for a fair redistricting." Well, another redistricting initiative is headed to the ballot in California this November. And Costa doesn't like it at all.

If this new statewide ballot initiative passes in Washington state, look for copy cat measures to show up in a state near you. Initiative 985 is a package of measures, including a requirement that traffic lights be synchronized and funding for a new anti-congestion fund. The initiative appears to have enough signatures to make the ballot.

Denver Post columnist Al Lewis, looking at a right-to-work initiative on the November ballot in Colorado, asks where the victims are of union abuses. It's an interesting question, given the low rates of unionization in the private sector in his state and nationwide. But let me be the first to predict that Lewis will be deluged from complaints from public sector workers -- particularly teachers -- angry about being forced to give part of their paycheck to powerful organizations who practice politics they don't agree with.

In the Los Angeles Times, friend of the blog Robert Greene looks at the billionaire anti-crime initiative sponsor who now faces two big federal indictments.

Dan Weintraub at the Sacramento Bee provides a great summary of what Prop 13 did, and didn't do.

Here's another reason for state authorities and the Fair Political Practices Commission to take a look at the Broadcom billionaire's political donations: an initiative to establish a crime victims' bill of rights, sponsored by Nicholas, qualified for the November ballot today, according to the Secretary of State's office.