The Humane Society doesn't just protect animals. They're the leading defender of the initiative process. And as the blog Animals & Politics, by Humane Society Legislative Fund president Michael Markarian (above) makes clear, Arizona is about to feel the full weight of the society. Specifically, the Humane Society is exercised about Prop 105, the newest in a series of super-majority requirement for ballot initiatives that is sweeping the nation. Florida implemented a requirement that 60 percent of voters approve a ballot initiative. And Utah, trying to fight off the Humane Society, implemented one that only covers measures on wildlife protection.

But the Arizona ballot initiative goes further, by requiring that a majority of ALL REGISTERED VOTERS approve an initiative before it takes effect. Just winning among people who show up would not be enough.

The initiative process tends to be popular, and attempts to restrict it tend to be unpopular. But an Arizona ballot initiative to restrict the power of the initiative might have appeared at the right time. Signature gathering in that state is an ongoing scandal, with several measures being knocked off the ballot because so many signatures turned out to be invalid.

The initiative, which qualified for the ballot late last week, would require that any initiative that requires new spending or taxes would have to receive not just a majority of all people voting but a majority of all registered voters before taking effect. That sets a high bar. But it may be a good idea. As my New America colleague Mark Paul has noted, voter-approved spending via initiative has become a major factor in California's budget troubles.