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Ballot Initiatives Flourishing as Way to Bypass Politicians
Governor Woodrow Wilson once proclaimed, "we
are cleaning house and in order to clean house the one thing we need
is a good broom. Initiative and Referendum are good brooms".
In 1898, the voters in South Dakota approved
statewide Initiative and Referendum - the first state to do so. 100
years later, 24 states have this process. The voters in 26 states are
still waiting.
Initiative - defined as the people's ability to
initiate legislation or amendments - and Referendum - defined as the
people's ability to refer newly enacted law, by petition, from the
legislature to the ballot for final approval, has wide public
support. A recent poll by Rasmussen Research for the Initiative &
Referendum Institute shows that voters by a 3-to-1 margin support
Initiative and Referendum. Ever since Thomas Jefferson proposed a
requirement in the 1775 Virginia state constitution that Virginia's
constitution and any subsequent amendments be approved by statewide
referendum, the people have fought for the right of Initiative and
Referendum. Great leaders from Thomas Jefferson to Woodrow Wilson
have supported Initiative and Referendum as a way to hold government
more accountable, increase voter participation and serve as a tool to
better inform the electorate on important issues of the day.
In a recent article in The New York Times by Tim
Purdum, he attempts to make the case that this process is out of
control and is not consistent with its original intent. He is wrong.
The Initiative and Referendum process was never
intended as a replacement for our current form of government. It is
simply a tool for the people to use when the current process isn't
working. Look at the issues that have placed before the voters
utilizing Initiative and Referendum. In most cases these reforms were
proposed because the legislature refused to act or acted in a manner
that was not consistent with the views of their constituency - term
limits, tax limits, campaign finance reform, environmental reform,
affirmative action reform, bilingual education, paycheck protection
and educational reform. These reforms were proposed by the people
because legislators were unwilling to do the job that they had been
elected to do. Legislators were afraid to take a position and act on
these issues because they didn't want to jeopardize their re-election
chances or anger the special interest that provided the bulk of their
campaign funds.
In his article, Purdum incorrectly implies that
Initiative and Referendum is only being used to further a
conservative agenda. The process is being used by all different
groups - conservatives, liberals and moderates alike. The process is
simply a mechanism for the people to use when an out of touch
legislature ignores them - no matter what party or ideological
affiliation they support.
Every year, hundreds of initiatives are proposed
by the people, but only a handful actually make it to the ballot.
Even then, regardless of the amount of money spent for or against an
initiative, it is difficult to get an issue passed that is not
supported by the people. In most cases special interest groups have
outspent their opposition by 4 or 5 to 1 and still lost. Of all the
initiatives that appeared on state ballots from 1976-1992, only 43.6
percent passed. Three states placed over 50 initiatives on their
state ballots between 1976 and 1992: California (77 initiatives, 42.9
percent passed); Colorado (51 initiatives, 51 percent passed); and
Oregon (58 initiatives, 36.2 percent passed).
But what about the money? Why does it cost so much
to do a petition drive? Quite simply because the people in power -
the state legislators - are afraid of the process. Career politicians
fear that Initiative and Referendum will threaten their stranglehold
on power and have methodically passed laws that have made utilizing
the process more and more difficult. They realize its potential when
utilized by the people and they want it stopped. In almost every
state where the process exists, the legislature has either enacted or
is in the process of enacting legislation that hinders or outright
abolishes the process. It is unfortunate that a petition drive in
California costs over a million dollars. If the elected officials in
California believe that this much money shouldn't be spent on
collecting signatures, then make the process more accessible and
useable to the people.
The Initiative and Referendum process is a
valuable tool for the people to utilize. It has existed for 100 years
and has not lead to the enactment of any laws or amendments that have
adversely affected the people or their system of government. It is a
compliment to the form of government that our states and nation were
founded on - not a replacement. As Thomas Jefferson said, "I
know of no safe repository of the ultimate powers of the society but
the people themselves". |
