On May 15, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter signed HB 1326 into law. It does not outlaw paying initiative petitioners per signature, but it provides that no more than 20% of any circulator’s compensation may be based on how many signatures that circulator collected.
The bill also contains a creative idea concerning out-of-state initiative circulators. The bill says that out-of-state circulators tend to immediately leave Colorado after they have finished work on any particular initiative petition. Therefore, it requires that such circulators must agree to make themselves available for an interview, if their work is challenged, although “available” includes via a telephone call. If the circulator refuses, his or her work is disqualified. However, the bill says that if the circulator had died or become incapacitated, and therefore is not available to answer questions, that circulator’s work does not get automatically disqualified.
If the politicians and bureaucrats really want to end … whatever it is they want to end (do they see corruption? or is it simply democracy they want to end?), then the easiest and smartest thing to do is this: Lower the number of signatures required to put a candidate on the ballot, and require the candidate himself to collect them.
Of course it would be only just to make the requirement the same for all candidates, old-party as well as independent or new-party candidates.
As to ballot measures, again, lower the number of signatures and find a simple formula, such as a certain minimal number per voting precinct, as one example.
“Colorado Bill Signed Into Law, Discourages Paying Initiative Circulators Per Signature
May 17th, 2009
On May 15, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter signed HB 1326 into law. It does not outlaw paying initiative petitioners per signature, but it provides that no more than 20% of any circulator’s compensation may be based on how many signatures that circulator collect.”
This is retarded. If only 20% of a petitioner’s pay is to be determined by how many signatures they collect, then how in the hell is the other 80% to be determined? The ONLY method of paying petitioners that makes any sense and is effective and efficient is to pay them per signature.
How petitioners get paid should NOT be any of the politicians business.
It does not take much reading between the lines to see this transparent attempt to prevent citizen ballot inititives qualifying for the Ballot.
Oregon tried this and still does pay horly wage. The catch is when I work there I make $85 per hour because I do collect lots of signatures and my valididty is good. The hardship occurrs on the companies who carry the contract requiring them to pay tax on employees and costs of state employment compensation. Adll this is to muddy the waters and make it easier to challenge these initiatives in court. Simply Put the polititions responsible for this do not want you to be able to exorcise your constitutional right. If they do not like this process they should change the Cfolorado constitution via constitutional ammendment not nibble away at the edges of our rights. But that would be a much to honest approach that wouldn’tr work anyway and they know it.
These polititions should MAN UP and cut to the chase, stating I DO NOT LIKE TE BALLOT INITIVE PROCESS I think We should do away with it. This of course would be political suicide so they shake in there boots and pull off these underhanded manipulations.