Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Ballot initiative plan gets mixed reviews
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: A plan to expose contributors to state initiative efforts at the signature-gathering stage received a mixed reception Monday. The bill, H.B. 36, sponsored by Rep. Kyle Johansen, R-Ketchikan, would make groups, individuals and corporations who contribute to initiatives during the signature-gathering stages report to the state. The rules would generally mirror reporting requirements already in place for political races and contributions to initiatives after they’ve cleared the state lieutenant governor’s review.
Democrats in the House Finance Committee raised a number of questions about the plan’s scope and practical implications. Rep. Les Gara, D-Anchorage, said he worried the clause could be tough to enforce. Gara also asked Johansen whether the change would make it harder for residents to place initiatives on the ballot. “I think that’s an important constitutional right,” Gara said of the public initiative process. “I think we all do.”
The bill would ban groups from paying contractors and residents a rate of $1 per name to collect signatures. It would allow paid signature gathering under other payment scenarios. Johansen said he’s heard other arguments in other states that $1 per-signature contractors have shown little care for the substance of their bill, inadvertently warping the aim of the initiative process. “It’s trying to weed out the people who will do anything for a buck, basically,” he said.
Bill Thomas, D-Haines, questioned whether state laws regulate out-of-state contributions behind initiative petition processes. Johansen answered that his bill seeks to address a more basic issue. Currently, Johansen said, no one even knows if any outside money is being used to finance the signature-collection process.
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