Does the initiative process get abused? Yes, it does. A frequently cited example is California 1990 (analyzed below). The abuse was by elected officials who put 19 of the 28 propositions on the ballot. Voters knew what to do with this misuse of the initiative. They voted for the 6 props they understood and liked. They voted the other 22 down. Misuse of the initiative is a non-problem.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 124 | Legislature | ||||
| 125 | Legislature | ||||
| 126 | Legislature | ||||
| 127 | Legislature | Y | earthquake safety | ||
| 128 | Attorney General | ||||
| 129 | Attorney General | ||||
| 130 | Environmentalists | ||||
| 131 | Attorney General | ||||
| 132 | Environmentalists | Y | marine resources | ||
| 133 | Police | ||||
| 134 | Anti-alcohol | ||||
| 135 | Environmentalists | ||||
| 136 | Taxpayers | ||||
| 137 | Taxpayers | ||||
| 138 | Forest Industry | ||||
| 139 | Governor | Y | prison inmate labor | ||
| 140 | Taxpayers | Y | terms of office | ||
| 141 | Legislature | ||||
| 142 | Legislature | Y | veterans bond act | ||
| 143 | Legislature | ||||
| 144 | Legislature | ||||
| 145 | Legislature | ||||
| 146 | Legislature | Y | school facilities bond act | ||
| 147 | Legislature | ||||
| 148 | Legislature | ||||
| 149 | Legislature | ||||
| 150 | Legislature | ||||
| 151 | Legislature | ||||
| 28 | 15 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
Y means this proposition was approved by the voters.
This data compiled from 1990 California state voter pamphlets by Initiative for Texas.