Have you looked at the publicity pamphlet the Arizona Election Office has mailed out to all voters? It’s as big as an old big city phonebook. There are 8 initiatives and 5 referendums in there. To get them on the ballot, the initiative proponents had to come up with 15% of qualified Arizona voters to sign their petition for initiatives and 10% for referendums. The problem is, the proponents of these initiatives, who mostly are out-of-state single cause PACs, can get them anywhere in the state. So, they go to the zip codes where they think they can get the potential voters that are friendliest to their cause and get them all there. Those zip codes are all in our big cities. It’s quick and cheap.
Under Proposition 134 proponents will still have to get 15% and 10% but they will have to get them proportionally from each Legislative District to get on the ballot. This will give rural Arizonans a say in what goes on the ballot. It will also tend to eliminate those petitions that are extreme on both sides.
Arizona’s initiative process is designed to allow citizens who are unhappy with the laws passed by our Legislature to take it upon themselves to push laws they think are important. It still will be so. Only it will have to be sensible enough that 15% of the people across the state will have to agree for it to be on the ballot. Not just those in one or two zip codes.
Arizona Farm Bureau is in favor of this Initiative because, representing agriculture, their members are scattered across rural Arizona. Also, agriculture seems to be in the crosshairs of many single-cause organizations, from egg producers to dairymen and public land ranchers. With Initiative 134 on the books, those organizations will have to come out to the boondocks to fill their petitions,
We hope you will vote YES on 134.
/s/ Bill and Becky Dunn