Initiative & Referendum to be considered this week

Dan at Between the Links has the details (his links):

A bill sponsored by Mike Ball (R-Madison), HB263, is a constitutional amendment to allow for an initiatives process to the state. Randy Hinshaw tells the world that the bill is going to be taken up by the the House Constitution and Elections Committee on Wednesday.

(Be sure to read the comments at Dan's post for a good question and answer about potential ballot overload due to I&R)

For more information check Dan's I&R page.  He has a list of each lawmaker in Montgomery and his position (if known) on Initiative and Referendum.  He and Dr. IQ have done a lot of work getting the word out on this and if you have any questions about I&R you can find the answers at their sites. 

If we're serious about reforming our state government, Initiative & Referendum is the place to start.  Let your representatives know you expect them to support it.  It will be an uphill battle, getting legislators to give more power to the people, at the expense of their own power, is never easy.  (Talk about stating the obvious).  There is some support in Montgomery, however and it's start.

Comments

[Don]

It’s progress if the House C&E committee recommends that HB263 be sent to the floor for open debate because when a bill is debated there it generates media attention which helps create public awareness. Once approved by committee, the next hurdle will be to get the Rules Committee to place the bill on the calendar. Representative Ken Guin is chair of the committee and as Representative Cam Ward says @ http://www.politicalparlor.net/wp/2007/04/20/bills-on-the-house-special-order-calendar-for-tuesday/#comments: “Now I can tell you that the chairman can make a lot of decisions by himself that he does not have to consult the committee. This is similar to the Rules Committee in the Senate. The Rules chairman is allowed to do a lot of things with bills like put them in the order he wants or block them without a committee meeting. Just part of the process.”

“Uphill battle” may be an understatement. The fight to make Alabama the 25th Initiative and Referendum state won’t just be uphill because it cuts against the grain of legislators who have the power and don’t want to give up even a fraction of it to the people who own and finance (including paying legislators’ salaries) government, it will also be lengthier than I would like.

Legislators, however, are influenced by lobbyists.
BCA, the trial lawyers, ALFA, and AEA all lobby legislators. Potentially, which is the most powerful lobby in the state? None of those mentioned. They all have money to throw at legislators to finance their campaigns, but votes are what determines who is elected to office, and it’s the VOTERS OF ALABAMA who have those votes which makes THEM potentially the most powerful lobby if they will become actively involved, unite and use their votes as a tool to obtain I&R.

Just letting those who represent us in the legislature know that we expect them to vote for I&R isn’t enough to obtain it as far as many legislators are concerned. It isn’t forceful enough, and it’s time to play hard ball with them by convincing them that if they don’t actively work to give us I&R we will use our influence with everyone we know in their district to insure their defeat if they ever run for another public office in Alabama. Starting now, if enough voters in enough House and Senate Districts do that, and if they repeat the message periodically between now and the campaigns of 2010, then and only then do I expect us to finally have a state government that is truly one of, by, and for the people.

[mad_cow]

This issue is the litmus test for me. My Senator (Dist 14) Hank Erwin supports I&R, my Rep. (43) Mary Sue McClurkin's position is unknown. I would have already contacted her but for some reason I thought she was a supporter. I've got a lot of catching up to do.

Having Ken Guin as chairman of the rules committee is not a good sign, but a boat-load of pressure might get to him. Do you think? He's had plenty of bad press lately (I doubt it bothers him much, but he can't love it) The Reps in Montgomery who say they support I&R should make some noise, too.

We must organize in some fashion. Time to get started. I'll email you a little later today......

[The Senior Gadfly over at redneckin]

Personally, I'm totally against an Initiative bill. It becomes the tyranny of majority with the unholy triad of Montgomery, Birmingham, and Mobile ruling what goes on in my little part of Alabama.

Don't like hunting with dogs? Heck, don't like hunting at all? Most city dwellers give it little thought beyond the knee jerk that is set in motion by cute and cuddly pictures that don't reflect the real world. California is a prime example.
Democracies don't last
Our government is a republic and a republic it should remain.

[mad_cow]

Alabama's bill is nothing like California's. Please check out the comments at the Between the Links link. Unfortunately our state is not controlled by the voters. Special interests have a stranglehold on our state and I&R will give the voice back to the people where it belongs. I've stated in the past that we should not need I&R, the polling booth should be sufficient. It just doesn't work that way. I would trust the voters to respect your corner of Alabama more than I would the Business Council of Alabama, Paul Hubbert, trial lawyers, etc. as Don mentioned in his comment.

[The Senior Gadfly over at redneckin]

I have little to no use for the teacher's union and other special interests, What I've learned is that your "special interest" is my "advocacy group". And vice versa
But that being said, I think that they understand turf.
The people?
I'm sorry but I don't trust my fellow Alabamians. Heck, I'm scared to death of what they will do getting a new state Constitution, especially when egged on by the media. To many of them want to do good, mainly with my money, not to mention my "lifestyle"

[mad_cow]

Well, just look at it this way, I&R will give you a chance to have a say as well. I certainly understand your skepticism about your fellow Alabamians, but I'm willing to go with the voters over the lawmakers.

As for the Constitution, I'm skeptical about that myself. I have not researched the pros and cons on that, but it would be a huge undertaking to rewrite it and my biggest concern is just who would do the rewriting. (And how it would be communicated to the public. Our legislature has a way with words, just check out how they word the little excerpts on the ballot when there's an amendment.)