This Measure would not prohibit paying signature-gatherers. It would only prohibit a particular method of paying them. This is wrong in principle, since according to Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2, the civil magistrate's job is to punish criminals, not to set wages or how these wages are paid. God has given us the freedom of the marketplace to determine the most effective means of getting any legitimate job done. The parable of the workers in the vineyard asserts the right of the owner to set the sort of wages he will pay (Matthew 20:4).
Punish Forgers, Not Workers
The State clearly has a compelling interest in punishing those who would forge signatures on government documents. But this measure does not increase penalties for forgery.
The passage of Measure 26 will not result in less forged signatures, but less freedom!
We believe the gathering of signatures for initiatives lies properly in the private sector. The free market will be the most effective means to accomplish the goals of the initiative process. We see no compelling reason for the State to mandate to the marketplace which methods to collect signatures.
Protect Our Checks and Balances Vote No on 26
Lying behind this Measure, we think we see a desire to diminish or eliminate the citizen initiative in Oregon, an outcome with which we do not concur. We think the initiative process is providing a sort of check and balance that is needed in our time of collectivism in both conservative and liberal circles. We think its time to move towards a more Biblical analysis of public policy issues. The initiative process gives us a venue for that discussion. We therefore ask you to vote No on this Measure
Prepared by the Parents Education Association, a family-based
biblical alternative to the
National Education Association
See all our Ballot Measure recommendations at www.peapac.org
(This information furnished by Dennis R. Tuuri, Parents Education Association.)
First, Measure 26 is probably unconstitutional. In 1988, the United States Supreme Court struck down laws prohibiting payment for signatures. Since 1994, most federal courts have struck down "payment per signature" bans as violations of Freedom of Speech under the First Amendment. Measure 26 would certainly be challenged in the courts, with taxpayer money wasted on defending it.
Second, even if valid, Measure 26 would have no practical effect. According to the official Explanatory Statement, it "does not prohibit establishing minimum signature production requirements for signature collectors," such as 10 signatures per hour. Chief petitioners would hire a signature collector to be paid "by the hour" but who would be terminated if not producing 10 signatures every hour. The result is no real change.
Third, if Measure 26 were somehow interpreted to require all paid collectors to be "employees," it would vastly increase costs for grassroots initiative efforts. Large, well-funded corporations and unions can easily hire employees to gather signatures. But grassroots groups are founded on volunteerism, not commercialism. We prefer to remove monied interests from politics, insuring the opportunity for citizen involvement.
Grassroots groups sometimes pay a small incentive per signature to supplement their volunteer efforts. If everyone who is paid must be an "employee," then grassroots groups will need accountants to file literally dozens of governmental forms for each "employee."
There is no proof that paying petition circulators by the hour will bestow integrity. There are already criminal penalties for submitting false signatures.
Measure 26 is not needed, unconstitutional, and either ineffective or harmful by reserving the initiative process only for corporations and unions who can easily put signature gatherers on their payrolls.
Please vote no on Measure 26.
(This information furnished by Hope Marston, Pacific Green Party of Oregon.)