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Measure No. 26

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ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

The payment-per-signature business has gotten out of control.

Measure 26, the Initiative Integrity Act, will bring some welcome accountability to Oregon's initiative petition signature gathering "industry." That's right -- industry. Because with the advent of paid signature gatherers a decade or so ago, gathering signatures has become big business in our state, and now it's a business run amok.

This most recent election cycle saw convictions on a variety of forgery, fraud and identity theft counts, charges pending against others and allegations of dozens more.

What's the answer?

Measure 26.
Measure 26 takes the incentive for fraud out of the system with one simple step -- it mandates that signature gatherers be paid by the hour, not by the signature. No more signature "bounty hunters." Signature gatherers would be paid just like everyone else: an honest day's wage for an honest day's work.

If Measure 26 passes, there will be no reason to cheat. A person can work 8, 10, 12 hours a day gathering signatures and be paid accordingly ­ without the incentive to copy signatures from one petition to another.

The Supreme Court has ruled that states cannot ban the use of paid signature gatherers. Measure 26 protects that right, while properly regulating the method of payment. The Initiative Integrity Act is a "win-win" measure for all parties involved EXCEPT for those wishing to defraud the system for their own gain.

(This information furnished by Don Loving, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

When an industry has no accountability, it is ripe for fraud and abuse. The signature gathering business is no different. It should be held to minimum standards for honesty and integrity.

It's time to ensure accountability in our initiative system.

• Do we really want our signatures to be bought and sold like commodities? Under the current system, our signatures have a street value that rises as petitioners compete for names on their petition sheets. But this "marketplace" has little oversight and no accountability.

• Do we feel safe with a system that rewards forgery and fraud? It is simple economics. When paid by the signature, petitioners have every incentive to lie and cheat to get the highest return. The more signatures a circulator turns in, the more cash he is paid. It's no wonder that hundreds of people report their signatures were forged this election, and that's only the tip of the iceberg.

• Is this any way to conduct the public's business? One chief petitioner says, "When a petitioner leaves my office and goes to collect signatures, I have no idea where they go...frankly they're completely outside my control." (Bill Sizemore, KATU news May 13, 2002) During the past year, two of his petitioners were convicted of forgery, and complaints are pending on more than a dozen others.

(This information furnished by Tim Nesbitt, President, Oregon AFL-CIO; Lynn Lundquist, President, Oregon Business Association.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

Fifty years ago as a young Republican and a young Democrat we worked together on a successful citizen initiative to grant every Oregonian an equal vote in our representative democracy.

We didn't agree on much, but we did acknowledge the necessity to use the initiative process to achieve election fairness.

We were part of a long history of citizen activism through the ballot box. These important reforms happened because of ballot measures:

But now, the initiative system is losing its citizen center.

The Oregon initiative process has been almost completely taken over by signature gatherers who care only about making a quick buck. Stories of forgery and fraud filled the newspapers this summer.

Paying by the bounty system has corrupted the initiative process.
It has to stop.

That's why we are joining forces once again. We have co-sponsored Measure 26, the Initiative Integrity Act.

• Eliminates the incentive for fraud and abuse.
• Protects the initiative system from being corrupted by those who see it only as a money-making machine.
• Restores voter confidence so we all feel safe when we sign a petition that our names won't be copied onto something else.
• Returns accountability to the process

Ellen C. Lowe, Chief Petitioner
Robert D. Davis, Chief Petitioner

(This information furnished by Ellen Lowe, chief petitioner; Robert D. Davis, chief petitioner.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

(This information furnished by Chip Terhune, Oregonians for Initiative Integrity.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

The courts have agreed. Pervasive fraud and forgery requires action.

That's why the US Appeals Court upheld a North Dakota law with the same effect as Measure 26.

The court concluded that banning payment per signature was "necessary to insure the integrity of the initiative process."

• Measure 26 is narrow in scope. It targets the corrupting influence of money on the political process. It specifically prohibits the buying and selling of signatures, which has been proven to be an incentive for fraudulent content by some circulators.

• Measure 26 is necessary. The current system has become irreparably corrupt. It rewards illegal activities.

• Measure 26 will not hinder the initiative process. It affirms the right of chief petitioners to circulate measures using volunteers or circulators who are paid hourly.

• Measure 26 will preserve the systems integrity. When petitioners are paid per hour the inducement to commit fraud and forgery to make more money isn't there.

"Because these...regulations are designed to protect the integrity of signature gathering, do not unduly hinder the circulation of petitions, and comport with the recent Supreme Court decision in Buckley v. American Constitutional Law Foundation, Inc., 525 U.S. 182 (1999), we affirm."

Hans Linde, Former Oregon Supreme Court Justice
Betty Roberts, Former Oregon Supreme Court Justice
Former Oregon Governor Victor Atiyeh

(This information furnished by Hans Linde, Former Oregon State Supreme Court Justice; Former Governor Victor Atiyeh; Betty Roberts, Former Oregon State Supreme Court Justice.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Oregon initiative system. For one century Oregon history has been formed by citizens exercising their right to direct democracy.

But now the initiative system needs our help.
The evidence of forgery and fraud is piling up. Investigating signa-ture gathering crime is taking up more and more time for state elections officials. Meanwhile, initiatives are failing to qualify for the ballot because of the massive numbers of forged and invalid signatures.

It shouldn't be this way
Signatures on initiative petitions are as important as signatures on ballots in our elections. In both cases they represent the will of the voters. But paid signature gatherers are abusing this process. There is widespread evidence that they trick people into signing initiatives they do not support or forge names from one petition to another just so they can make more money.

We should not allow the buying and selling of signatures on petitions any more than we should allow the buying and selling of ballots in our elections.

Measure 26 will cut the fraud and make the initiative process more accountable to voters.

Measure 26 says that if petitioners are paid, it should be by the hour, not by the signature. It is a simple fix of the system that can be implemented immediately.

Former Secretary of State Mark O. Hatfield
Former Secretary of State Clay Myers
Former Secretary of State Norma Paulus
Former Secretary of State Barbara Roberts
Former Secretary of State Phil Keisling
Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury

(This information furnished by Former Secretary of State Mark O. Hatfield; Former Secretary of State Clay Myers; Former Secretary of State Norma Paulus; Former Secretary of State Barbara Roberts; Former Secretary of State Phil Keisling; Bill Bradbury, Oregon Secretary of State.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

The Voter Education Project spent months this summer gathering information about signature gathering for ballot measures in Oregon.

This is what we learned and why we support Measure 26:

• Two petitioners were convicted of forgery. They had conned more than 10,000 Oregonians to sign a phony "gas tax" petition then copied their names onto real petitions.
• The Portland Police reported on a 14-year old runaway who says he was part of a crew earning $50.00 a day gathering signatures for one of the top signature dealers in the state. The boy told police he was paid cash on the spot out of a seedy downtown hotel room.
• One petitioner scammed people into signing a petition to help disadvantaged children. Later, their names showed up on petitions that the do not support.
• Another petitioner turned in petitions that were falsely dated. Turns out he was actually being held in a county jail on those dates.
• During the Rose Festival another petitioner lured people to her table by giving away candy bars and pitching a fake petition to "stop child abuse." Videotapes of her clipboard show strong evidence of forgery.

Measure 26 is the single most effective thing we can do to return accountability and eliminate the incentive for forgery. It bans payment per signature while affirming the right to recruit volunteers or pay signature gatherers per hour.

The Oregon initiative system has served us well for 100 years. Measure 26 will take it back from the rogues and forgers who are destroying it.

Voter Education Project

(This information furnished by Jeannie Berg, Executive Director, Voter Education Project.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

And we are not alone. Hundreds of people report that their signatures were forged on initiatives this year...there are probably thousands more.

We want to trust the initiative system again. Measure 26 is the best way for all of us to be more secure when we sign petitions. The initiative system is too important to leave in the hands of forgers. When petitioners are paid cash for our signatures, some will say anything, do anything to earn more money.

Patricia Moreno of Gervais, Oregon:
I support the initiative system, which is why I always sign the measures I want to see on the ballot. So last winter, I signed a measure I believe in.

Later, I was shocked to discover my signature was used as a sample to forge my name on at least two different measures that I had never seen. The frightening thing is there may be even more forgeries of my signature out there.

I have no way of knowing how many different times my name was forged and I no longer feel safe signing petitions.

I'm voting YES on Measure 26.

Rebecca Geis of Portland:
I am not sure how the person who forged my name got a copy of my signature. I am angry that my name showed up on a petition that I am steadfastly against.

I think most people are not aware of what a big business signature gathering has become. I didn't know until my signature was forged. It is outrageous that the Oregon initiative system has come down to how much money our signatures are worth.

We have to do something to clean things up before it's too late.
I'm voting YES on Measure 26.

(This information furnished by Patricia Moreno; Rebecca Geis.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

No one cares more about the Oregon initiative system than we do.
We are signature gatherers who have years of experience in the business. We have worked in five states carrying petitions for initiatives on issues ranging from medical marijuana to tax reform.

We are fed up with the corruption that payment-per-signature encourages. The current system makes signature gathering about money, not conviction. The news stories about fraud that came out this summer were no surprise to us. We have seen other petitioners lie, cheat and forge while bragging about how much cash they're earning for every signature.

Signatures have become nothing but cash on a clipboard
When petitioners are paid on the bounty system, corruption becomes pervasive. We have seen it time and time again. Petitioners start caring only about getting the valuable signatures and will try every trick in the book to get the name on the page.

Elections should have accountability, oversight and structure
Instead, we have a free-for-all where signature gatherers know there is easy money to be had in Oregon.

Payment per signature has made it more difficult for grass-roots organizations
When greed-driven mercenary petitioners control the streets it is nearly impossible for activist petitioners to successfully gather signatures.

When signature gatherers are paid per hour, they don't turn in as many bad signatures.
Two campaigns paid per hour this signature gathering season and they had the highest validity rate of all the initiatives.

Tracy D. Lincoln
Wendy Alexander
Noah Wilkinson
Dustin Krueger
Chad McNeill

(This information furnished by Noah Wilkinson, Dustin Krueger, Tracy D. Lincoln, Wendy Alexander, Chad McNeill.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

The non-partisan League of Women Voters of Oregon, supports the Oregon initiative system. We also support accountability and good government practices. That is why the League has a long-standing position against per-signature payments for ballot initiative circulators. We strongly endorse Measure 26.

• Measure 26 makes the initiative process more accountable. Signature gatherers will be paid by the hour instead of per signature. That means more oversight and more control by the campaigns.

• Measure 26 reduces the temptation for fraud and forgery. Fraud in the signature gathering process is a growing problem in Oregon. The lure of cash for every signature is a huge incentive to copy signatures or scam voters into signing something they do not support.

• Measure 26 restores confidence in the initiative system. Voters should not have to worry about what happens when they sign a petition. They should not have to wonder if their names will be forged onto another measure.

• Measure 26 restores integrity to the initiative system. Whether to sign an initiative is an important decision with long-lasting implications. With per-signature payments, too often petitioners rush people into signing initiatives they may not understand.

(This information furnished by Beth Burczak, League of Women Voters of Oregon.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

* Measure 26 Is A Lesson In Fairnes
In Oregon's public schools we teach our students that our initiative process is a system of direct legislation by the people. To place an issue on the ballot, supporters of an issue must gather a specified number of signatures from registered voters via initiative petitions. For decades, volunteers committed to an issue gathered signatures. Today, however, many signature gatherers carry initiative petitions for multiple issues and receive money for each signature they get. Recent events prove that this system provides too much incentive for fraud and forgery to occur. Measure 26 eliminates this incentive, making Oregon's initiative process fair again. Measure 26 allows supporters of an issue to gather signatures either through the use of volunteers who are committed to it, or paying others on an hourly rate or a salary. Vote YES on Measure 26.

* Measure 26 Restores Integrity To The Process
The Oregon Education Association seeks to protect the right of individuals and organizations to place issues on the ballot. Unfortunately some wish to circumvent the system through illegal tactics ­ through signature forgery. Measure 26 restores integrity to the process and returns the initiative system to the people. Vote YES on Measure 26.

* Measure 26 Is A Workable Solution
This measure practices what it preaches. Signatures for this measure were obtained through volunteers or by individuals who were paid on an hourly basis. That's a good lesson for all of us. Vote YES on Measure 26.

Kris Kain, president
Oregon Education Association

(This information furnished by Kris Kain, President, Oregon Education Association.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

It's simple. When there is a problem, you solve it. And right now, Oregon has a problem. Forgery and other election law violations have infected the state initiative system. Fraud is common place.

The evidence of fraud committed by signature gatherers is piling up. For example, two were caught on videotape forging. They were ultimately convicted after admitting that less than 30 percent of the signatures they turned in were valid.

When voters sign an initiative petition, they should not have to worry about what someone is going to do with their personal information like their home address. They should not have to worry about having their names signed to other petitions.

We have to do something to get a handle on this. It seems pretty clear that the money-per-signature system is encouraging people to break the law.

Measure 26 is the way to go. It takes away the promise of money for every signature; that takes away the incentive to break the rules.

Signature fraud will be reduced and integrity will be restored to the initiative process.

Oregon United Sporting Dogs Association
Oregon Trappers Association

(This information furnished by Rod Klawitter, Oregon United Sporting Dogs Association; Joe Colver, Oregon Trappers Association.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

The Oregon initiative system is critically important to grassroots environmental and land use groups. For example: four years ago Oregon voters dedicated funding for Oregon's parks and salmon.

We must protect the Oregon initiative system for the future.
The right of citizens to directly legislate is at risk. The initiative system has become about money, not conviction. Initiatives are starting to look like the rest of politics, where it all comes down to the dollar.

Special interests are leaving little room for the rest of us.
Deep-pocketed donors can afford to pay the street price for signatures, no matter how high it goes. People who are deeply committed to a cause cannot compete with professional mercenaries. Aggressive and illegal tactics have become commonplace by out-of-state signature hunters.

People are getting turned off to the initiative system.
Thanks to our current payment scheme that encourages fraud and forgery, Oregonians are starting to be suspicious of signature gatherers. This hurts the volunteers and dedicated activists who truly believe in the petitions they carry.

The Oregon initiative system is for all of us. That's why we must stand up and protect it from the special interests and mercenary petitioners who are using it just to help themselves.

(This information furnished by Evan Manvel, 1000 Friends of Oregon.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

We believe that ALL government should be accountable to the people of Oregon. That's why we strongly support Measure 26.

• The current system has no accountability.

• The current system encourages petitioners to prey on voters.

• The current system isn't working for Oregon.

We are tired of being uncertain about what will happen with our names when we sign a ballot initiative. Measure 26 will make signing petitions safe again.

We believe our signatures are worth more than just a quick buck. Measure 26 will restore meaning to the initiative system.

We know that fraud has no place in government. Measure 26 will take away the incentive for forgery and abuse.

It is time for all of us to stand up and protect the citizen initiative system. Oregon's direct democracy is worth saving.

Oregon State Council of Senior Citizens

(This information furnished by Jim Davis, Oregon State Council of Senior Citizens.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

We have learned some hard lessons about the Oregon initiative system this year:

• Money strongly influences signature gatherers. For petitioners who are paid for every signature, it's basic math: more signatures = more money.

• When the initiative system becomes more about money than conviction in an issue, forgery and fraud enter the picture

• In Oregon today, signatures have become commodities to be bought and sold.

• In 2002, hundreds of people came forth to say their signatures were forged on petitions.

• Oregonians simply do not feel safe signing initiatives anymore.

History teaches us that the right of citizens to pass laws through the initiative system is fundamental to Oregon. Civics teaches us that democracy should be accountable to the people.

Now, the research is clear ­ the initiative system favors those who have the money to pay for signatures and is no longer accountable to the people.

That is why Oregon educators strongly endorse Measure 26. It gives campaigns the flexibility to pay petitioners on an hourly basis or use volunteers.

Tony Crawford, Canby
Jo Cooper, Rockaway
Dan Domenigoni, North Clackamas
Ed Curtin, Corvallis
Judy Richards, Jackson County

(This information furnished by Dan Domenigoni, North Clackamas; Tony Crawford, Canby; Ed Curtin, Corvallis; Judy Richards, Jackson County; Jo Cooper, Rockaway.)

ARGUMENT IN FAVOR

"We support the initiative system, but not how it is being used. Out-of-state signature gatherers are hired and paid for every name they collect. It shouldn't surprise us that fraud often is committed to get these names.

Until Oregon voters do something to fix this law, our system will be corrupted by some greedy folks. It's up to us to change and it can be done. It just requires citizens to realize that even the best systems need updated and protected from people who would exploit it."

 "If you are paid a dollar a name, say, it must be tempting to augment your income by adding a few otherwise legitimate signatures to the petitions you are circulating."

 "Voters warned of illicit tactics. Some people are using illegal means to get signatures, officials say"

 "The scandal surrounding signature gathering for ballot initiatives is raising concerns that there are a large number of invalid signatures"

 "Safeguard your signature. The autograph hunters are out in force, and they're looking for you"

 "It appears there is a direct correlation between the rise in the number of bounties paid for signatures and the number of forged and duplicated signatures."

 'We took in 30,000 signatures that we paid for before we realized' none of the sheets could be used because most of the signatures on them were forgeries."

(This information furnished by Chip Terhune, Oregonians for Initiative Integrity.)

Explanatory Statement

Arguments in Opposition

Statewide Measures

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