Initiative For Texas Information Bulletin # 7

This report from Dane Waters at the I&R Institute

No state has adopted the initiative process since Mississippi readopted it
in 1992.  State legislators haven't been overly anxious to give the citizens
the opportunity to vote on this important issue.  However, activity is
heating up in two states - Minnesota and New York. 

On Tuesday of this week I spoke at a press conference in Albany where the
Governor announced the details of his I&R legislation.  Governor Pataki has
taken a very strong stance in favor of I&R.  At the press conference he also
had the Chairs of the State Republican Party, Independence Party and
Conservative Party.  All three spoke in favor of establishing the I&R
process in the state.  Pataki's actions, along with the strong party support
for the issue, represents the best opportunity the citizens of the state
have had to get the I&R process.

A) New York Times
Pataki Pushes Amendment to Allow Referendums
By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
New York Times  March 13, 2002

ALBANY, March 12 - Gov. George E. Pataki cast himself today as a political
outsider combating an ossified Legislature as he proposed a constitutional
amendment that would let citizens bypass their elected leaders and put
initiatives directly on the ballot.

Mr. Pataki said the Legislature lagged far behind popular opinion on issues
like revamping campaign finance laws and streamlining the state's cumbersome
school-aid formulas.  He said the proposed amendment would let him take his 
case on such specific issues directly to the voters. It would also allow citizens 
advocating a single issue, like outlawing abortion, to put their position before 
the people.

"I have always had confidence in the people of this state," Mr. Pataki said.
"I believe if you lay out the case and make the case to the people, they are
going to do the right thing."

The constitutional amendment is of paramount importance to the leaders of
the Independence Party, who said the governor's stance gave him a large
advantage in competing for their nomination in May.  That endorsement would
give the Republican governor, who is seeking a third term, three
of the first four lines on the ballot: Republican, Independence and
Conservative.

When he first ran for governor in 1994, Mr. Pataki campaigned on a promise
to amend the New York Constitution to allow citizens to put initiatives on the 
ballot through petitions.  In 1995, he introduced such an amendment in the 
Legislature, but it died there.  Until today, the governor has let the proposal rest.

He faces a tough fight in the Legislature.  Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver,
a Manhattan Democrat, said elected officials were capable of representing
the voters.  He added that laws enacted through referendums often
contradicted one another or were struck down in court.  "In California,
it's led to full employment for lawyers," he said.

Senator Joseph L. Bruno, the Republican majority leader, said the Senate
would study the governor's proposal, but he pointed out that in some states,
such laws "have had some disastrous results."

Amendments to the State Constitution must be passed by two separately
elected Legislatures and then by a majority of voters.  The earliest it could
appear on the ballot would be in November 2003.

Citizens have the authority to put a proposal on the ballot in 24 states,
including California, Florida and Ohio. In the last century, about 800 state
laws were adopted through referendums, from women's suffrage to the
abolition of poll taxes.

Referendums have led to some policy debacles.  Colorado voters, for instance,
passed a constitutional amendment limiting state spending and taxes, but
later voted to guarantee annual increases in school spending.  Washington
State citizens voted to cut taxes and then later to spend more on teachers'
raises, without offering a way to pay for the increase.

Proposing the amendment now is a shrewd political move for the governor,
even if it never passes.  It shores up his relationship with the Conservative
Party, which has long wanted ballot initiatives.  It also makes him the
front-runner for the Independence Party nomination.  That would prevent 
an Independence candidate from siphoning away votes from Mr. Pataki, 
as B. Thomas Golisano did in 1994 and 1998.

Mr. Pataki's proposed amendment would allow citizens to put an issue on the
ballot if they can collect signatures equal to 5 percent of the votes cast
in the last election for governor, or about 250,000.  The petitions would
have to include at least 5,000 signatures in three-fifths of the state's
congressional districts, making it hard for a strictly local issue to be
approved for the ballot.  Citizens could also amend the Constitution under
the proposal, but the measure would have to be passed in two consecutive
statewide elections.

Mr. Pataki said he would like to see several of his own proposals that the
Legislature has rejected put on the ballot.  He specifically mentioned
limiting campaign contributions, reducing sentences for drug offenses and
doing away with the Board of Regents. Democrats in the
Assembly have objections to all three proposals.

Even if the amendment's chances of passage are slim, the governor's proposal
is likely to become a campaign issue.  State Comptroller H. Carl McCall, a
Democrat running for governor, vehemently opposes the kind of ballot
initiatives the governor wants.

"The comptroller has long opposed this for fear that extremist positions can
find themselves before the voters of New York," Mr. McCall's spokesman,
Steven Greenberg, said.

B) Associated Press
Pataki unveils initiative and referendum amendment
By MARC HUMBERT
AP Political Writer
March 12, 2002, 1:09 PM EST

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Saying he has "always had confidence in the people," Gov.
George Pataki on Tuesday unveiled proposed state constitutional amendment
that would allow voters to bypass the Legislature and create state laws on
their own.

While Republican Pataki has been pushing voter initiative and referendum
since before he became governor in 1995, with varying levels of commitment,
he said the time may be right for action on the plan.  He said the reaction
of New Yorkers in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks might help.

"The people came together in a way that inspired not only our state, but the
entire nation," Pataki said.  While past calls for initiative and referendum
have generally gotten the cold shoulder from legislative leaders _ it would
tend to limit their almost total control over legislation _ a spokesman for
state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said that might not necessarily be
the case this time around.

"We're very open on the issue," said Republican Bruno's spokesman, John
McArdle.  "We'll take a look at the experience of other states."  Currently,
two dozen states have some form of initiative and referendum.  Bruno's
possible move on initiative and referendum could put pressure on state
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Manhattan Democrat, to also act.

It's an election year and all seats in the Legislature as well as the
governorship are going to the voters.

Silver didn't seem open Tuesday to taking the bait, at least not
immediately.

"The speaker is firmly convinced the members from both sides of the aisle
are fully capable of representing the views of their constituents," said
Silver spokesman Charles Carrier.  In fact, there appeared to be plenty of
politics in play on Tuesday at the governor's state Capitol news conference.
He was flanked by the state chairmen of the Republican and Conservative
parties, which support him, and of the Ross Perot-inspired Independence
Party, whose support Pataki would like in a possibly tough re-election battle.

This year, Pataki is expected to face either former federal Housing
Secretary Andrew Cuomo or state Comptroller H. Carl McCall from the
Democratic side in the governor's race.

Independence Party Chairman Frank McKay, asked about the possibility his
party might endorse Pataki's candidacy, said, "I imagine this doesn't hurt
the governor's chances."  After initially pushing the initiative and
referendum notion early on as governor, Pataki largely ignored it until this
year.  Even if the Legislature were to give first passage to Pataki's
proposed constitutional amendment this year, it would have to gain a second
passage next year before it could go to voters statewide for final approval
in November of next year, at the earliest.  That lengthy timetable gives
legislative leaders the possibility of approving the plan this year, and
reaping any election year political benefit, and then killing it off next
year if they really don't want it.

Under Pataki's plan, voters could put proposed laws on the statewide ballot
by collecting the signatures of registered voters that equal at least 5
percent of the vote in the most recent gubernatorial election, or about
250,000 signatures.  At least 5,000 of the signatures would have to come from
each of at least 60 percent of the state's congressional districts.

Pataki said that would protect against one area of the state dominating the
process.  Once a proposed law was on the statewide ballot, a simple majority
would be needed for approval.  The Pataki proposal would also allow for local
ballot initiative and referendum.

C) Albany Times Union

Voter initiative plan promoted
Albany-- Governor solicits lawmakers for constitutional change

By JAMES M. ODATO, Capitol bureau
First published: Wednesday, March 13, 2002

Gov. George Pataki Tuesday urged the Legislature to join him and a new
coalition he's formed to allow New Yorkers to directly create laws and
change the state constitution without using lawmakers.

But the very state legislators whose role would be diminished must first
agree to the constitutional change.  It would have to pass two successive,
separately elected Legislatures before going to the public for a vote.

The proposal for initiative and referendum would give citizens the power to
propose statutes, constitutional changes and other measures and get them
voted on in general elections.

Such provisions in other states have led to referendums on issues such as
legalizing medical marijuana, setting term limits, banning funding of
abortions and abolishing the death penalty.  Pataki and Assembly Minority
Leader John Faso, R-Kinderhook, also mentioned reforms to campaign finance
laws and the budget process.

"What I want to do is to make the case that this is in the interest of the
public, in the interest of our democratic system of government,'' Pataki
said.

Already 24 states, including California and Florida, have such a law.

Under Pataki's bill, citizens would need to secure enough signatures on a
petition -- at least 5 percent of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial
race and at least 5,000 from three-fifths or more of the congressional
districts.

Legislative leaders have historically rejected the idea, but Senate Majority
Leader Joseph Bruno, R-Brunswick, didn't rule it out Tuesday.  A spokesman
said Bruno is "very open to the proposal, and he's going to take a serious
look at it and see what the experience has been in other states.''

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver showed no interest.  "The public's will is
best expressed through the individuals they elect and send to Albany to
represent their views, a process that is in accordance with our constitution
and the intention of the founding fathers,'' said Silver, D-Manhattan.

Pataki was joined by leaders of the Conservative and Independence parties,
Republicans and one member of the Democrat majority of the Assembly, Steve
Levy of Suffolk County, which allows local initiatives.  The New York Public
Interest Research Group also joined the coalition.

Some predict that legislators, all facing reelection this year, will
hesitate to ignore the proposal because of potential voter backlash.

"If the issue gets taken seriously this year, it will because of the
election,'' said Blair Horner, NYPIRG's legislative director.