February 1, 2008

Initiative/Referendum Abuse: Prop. 91

A new electoral cycle is upon us again.   And yet again it has come with the same load of vexatious baggage that accompanies nearly all statewide elections these days--initiatives and  referendums.   You know, those damnable laws written for the most part by lobbyists who are  intent on putting the interests of their clients (in most cases) before the public interest.

The California initiative/referendum process was set up to override the corrupt state political establishment of the turn of the century and put lawmaking in the hands of voters.  The voters themselves would write legislation and get it approved without going through the state legislature. 

This was a laudable reform at the time, but it now become something far different from what was intended.    It's now simply  another mechanism for lobbyists to advance the cause of their clients. Usually at the expense of other interest groups.  And sometimes at the expense of the public good.  Today, lobbyists simply write-up draft legislation that will benefit a client or clients, hire enough signature gatherers to glean enough voters to put the matter on the ballot and then by pushing campaigns of outright lies and distortion, attempt to get it approved by the voters.

A good example of this is Proposition 91.  This is an initiative measure put out by the transportation lobby (more accurately, the roads, bridges and freeway lobby).    It basically says that proceeds from fuel taxes  loaned to the general fund  cannot be retained but must be paid back, and paid back in a manner that benefits, you guessed it, roads, bridges and freeways and those who plan and build them.  Fuel taxes payments are  thus prioritized with public transit funds given second place. 

While everyone will agree that fuel taxes should be dedicated to transit uses, most people would also agree that  no transit use should be given priority over another.  But this is exactly what the transportation lobby in Sacramento is attempting to do with Prop. 91.

For this reason alone, Prop. 91 deserves to be defeated.  And hopefully it will be.