Plethora of initiatives concerns legislators

Plethora of initiatives concerns legislators

Oct. 24, 2000

By STEVEN K. PAULSON
Associated Press Writer

DENVER — Saying they are concerned about the influence of out-of-state money, several legislators said Monday they have started an educational campaign to tell voters about the initiative process.

The group called Respect Our Constitution refused to disclose donors, saying they had been promised anonymity.

Republican Reps. Don Lee of Littleton and Mark Paschall of Arvada said the dozen initiatives on the November ballot in addition to the long list of candidates and local issues are too much for most voters.

They urged voters to be careful what they sign and to be cautious about anything they are not certain belongs in the state Constitution.

They also criticized the process as dominated by special interests, especially from out of state.

"These well-heeled groups have a stronger voice in Colorado than average residents under the current system. That is not the intent of the initiative system," Lee said.

Lee cited an initiative that would would allow the medical use of marijuana in Colorado for those seriously or chronically ill if approved by a doctor, saying most of its support came from other states.

Lee’s group plans regional advertising campaigns, town meetings and an advertising campaign around "Olivia the Ostrich" proclaiming that trying to figure out all the ballot initiatives "is for the birds."

Lee said the initiative process was set up in the early part of the century because timber and railroad barons had too much influence on the legislative process.

He said the same thing is occurring now in the initiative process.

"Our organization is going to work hard to make sure our voters understand the process and aren’t going to be easily swayed by glitzy ad campaigns," Paschall said.

Lee said some of the more complicated issues are best left to legislators and the deliberative process.

He rejected claims from supporters of initiatives on this year’s ballot, including one that would require background checks on all firearm sales at gun shows, that they had to take action because the Legislature failed to act on those issues in the last session.

Supporters of Amendment 24, a measure to control growth in Colorado, also have said they were forced to act because the Legislature for years has failed to manage growth in any meaningful way.

Initiatives that have passed in recent years in Colorado, including one to regulate giant hog farms and one to restrict the use of leghold traps on wild animals, also were prompted in part by the failure of the Legislature to address those problems, many legislative observers have said.

But Lee disagreed.

"The Legislature did act, it just didn’t act to the full compliance of special interests," Lee said. "I think the public needs to have more awareness about how initiatives get on the ballot."

Legislators tried and failed during the last session to make it tougher to get initiatives to get on the ballot.

One measure would have required signatures from every area of the state, making it almost impossible to get on the ballot.

Anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce, who was criticized for trying 186 times before getting his tax-cut measure on the November ballot, also said he wants to change the system to protect the initiative process and will make that his next campaign.