Since the Oklahoma legislature is filled with a bunch of spineless sellouts who don’t like to do their job, the only real way for citizens in Oklahoma to institute any meaningful change or reform is through a ballot initiative petition – a long, time-consuming process littered with a litany of rules, regulations and requirements.
Knowing this path to reform is still semi-accessible to some people, lawmakers like Rep. John Enns, R-Enid are hard at work to make sure that getting a state question put on the ballot will be as difficult as possible.
Via The Tulsa World:
Fear of recreational marijuana legalization apparently prompts move to curb initiative petitions
Apparently, some legislators are so concerned about recreational marijuana becoming legal in Oklahoma that they want to make it harder for initiative petitions to get on statewide ballots.
House Bill 1603, by Rep. John Enns, R-Enid, proposes a constitutional amendment that could increase the number of signatures required for initiative petitions to be placed on the ballot and would require that a minimum number of signatures be obtained in each of the state’s 77 counties.
“A lot of what’s going around in these other states, like legalization of recreational marijuana, has been done through initiative petition,” Enns said in explaining his bill to the House Rules Committee on Tuesday. “And (constituents) are like, ‘We don’t want to see that happen in Oklahoma.’”
They’re doing this because of the threat of recreational marijuana?! Talk about getting ahead of yourself. They first need to focus on gutting and sabotaging the medical marijuana initiative that will be on the June ballot and then worry about blocking recreational weed.
“So really,” asked Rep. Melodye Blancett, D-Tulsa, “the issue here is the fear — this is a pre-emptive strike — regarding a fear that some marijuana bill will come up and become a state question?”
“It’s not a pre-emptive strike,” Enns replied. “It’s an effort to allow the rest of the state to have some say-so in the initiative petition process.”
Yeah, it’s a shame the “rest of the state” – where ever that is – doesn’t have a “say-so” in the initiative process. It’s not like they have a choice to sign or not sign a ballot petition, or vote either for or against the question in an election. These state questions are just forced upon them!
Here are the details of Nichols’ plan:
Currently, initiative petitions seeking a statutory change must gather a number of valid signatures equal to 8 percent of the state’s legal voters at the time of the last gubernatorial election. Constitutional amendments require 15 percent. Referenda, which allow voters to repeal legislative acts, require 5 percent.
Enns’ bill would require that those minimums be achieved in each of the 77 counties. It also would remove the provision that the number of signatures required be based on the number of legal voters in the last gubernatorial election. That would seem to leave open the question of how the baseline for determining the number of required signatures is to be determined.
Listen, I’m not a dorky lawmaker who looks like he has a fine selection of pleated khakis, but maybe instead of spending time trying to make state questions more difficult to put on the ballot, perhaps Enns and his buddies should work harder to defeat state questions they don’t like at the ballot box. That’s what the “rest of the state” did when Derplahomans tried to give corporate farms immunity from laws and regulations, or when David Boren and the education establishment tried to implement a 20% sales tax increase to fund teacher pay raises.
Anyway, you can read more about this at The Tulsa World. In addition to this report, they also released a salty editorial that further explains the stupidity of this plan. Check it out.
Just proves the nitwits who produced the 75% approval requirement for tax increases a generation ago did breed.
That was State Question 640 – a citizen initiative petition.
not sure what your point is. didn’t single out legislators. “nitwits” covers far more territory than that in OK.
Then I’m not sure of your point. The post was defending the current status of the initiative petition process and opposed to making it more difficult for voters to do what state legislators don’t have the balls to do. So are the voters “notwits” and the petition process should be more difficult? Or are they only “nitwits” when the petition process yields results you don’t agree with?
I smell a backdoor effort to thwart an initiative petition raising the GPT to 7%.
That is exactly what I was thinking. The pot-scare rhetoric seems like a smokescreen.
This absurd Tulsa World article argues that the GPT is a red herring. It is a jackass argument saying it will not solve all our problems. Nobody says it will, but it is a first step . I feel raising the GPT will have the least impact on the poor. http://www.tulsaworld.com/opinion/waynegreene/wayne-greene-the-gross-production-tax-fight-concerns-relatively-small/article_9b33e667-1915-585e-9ee7-9d75dcaca6c2.html
Give him credit! It’s not like there is anything more pressing for the legislature. I mean this type of bill, along with the bill on daylight savings time are important and need the time, money and effort of our fearless elected officials. When they get these high priority initiatives completed, then they can turn their attention to those pesky little things like:
Education, Infrastructure, Social services, Prison funding/reform.
Damn people– give them a break they’ve got your (and by your, I mean Oil, Alt right, themselves) best interests at heart.
The only thing more stupid than these elected Mudder Truckers, is the GotDayum Dipsticks who voted for them. Hope is fleeting.
He reminds me of Vizzini from The Princess Bride. INCONCEIVABLE.
Gerrymandering. Suggestions to disfranchise people for misdemeanor offenses. THIS suggestion which makes it mostly impossible for Oklahoman’s to petition for new laws.
Okie Republicans hate democracy.
Of course he’s my town’s representative. *hides under her voter registration card*
Since you’re a constituent, maybe you ought to call him up and tell him what you think.
Thanks I’m advance.
Thanks, but I’m trying to cut down how much bullshit I’m fed this year. My pants are starting to fit better…
I’d run against him, but I kinda like having a soul.
Understand. Maybe a drunk from under a poorly constructed Ok bridge will do it. He’d do a better job no dought.
Sounds like he is the biggest weed dealer in Enid and just doesn’t want the competition or to have to start paying taxes. I mean if I were a weed dealing lawmaker that’s what I would do..
It sounds like Rep. Enns does not like it when the people get uppity and try to govern themselves rather than relying on the group that is supposed to have a monopoly on all those decisions, our Legislature. Let’s make the state question process so difficult that they will never happen again, like requiring a minimum number of signatures from each county.
While this might make sense for a national question, as there is such a thing as state’s rights, however the thought of county rights like this could only be concocted by someone who should be removed from office. Perhaps Rep. Enns is hoping this will then require court cases to further delay any State Question as to whether or not the public could invoke the county-option like they did for liquor by the drink.
The State Question is a check and balance for the people to change, repeal, or enact a law that the public believes in, and our corrupt Legislators do not. This appears to be a power grab by Rep. Enns from the people and back to the Legislature, who seem to believe they have a monopoly on the people’s business.
I see Rep. Enns didn’t have any problem with the Step-Up Oklahoma Tax Bill which he voted in favor. I guess a special interest group can propose a bill and they will immediately bring it to the floor. With your way of thinking, shouldn’t the Step Up group have members from every county, not just people and groups that contribute money to the campaigns of those voting on the bill?
Rep. Enns you are a public servant, and how the state is governed is up to the people, and hopefully people who elected you will elect someone else who will work for and not against them as this appears. This one-party state is starting to make the elected officials act like unelected officials in single party countries such as North Korea.
Why is he wasting valuable legislative currency with this when there is important theocratic fuckery to be done!
https://www.rawstory.com/2018/02/oklahoma-gop-lawmaker-finds-sneaky-way-bar-jews-muslims-delivering-state-house-prayers/
This state is hopeless. Again, these idiots know better than us (Right, Ralph Shorty?), so if this passes, what happens when any other petition that doesn’t involve weed doesn’t get enough signatures? Now, the entire state is held hostage by a panhandle county? That sounds fair. Besides, if the rural folks feel like they’re not being represented, isn’t that why petitions get signatures–SO THE PEOPLE CAN VOTE? If there are so many disenfranchised residents, where are they when it’s time to vote? It seems as if these poor, disenfranchised voters are doing just fine because look where this shithole of a state is today. The infrastructure, the schools, the budget, and on and on and on are full-blown crises, yet recent polling suggest that these “left out” voters still blame everyone but the super majority Republicans that are destroying this state, one stupid idea (or lack of) at a time.
Time to start planning to get out of this dump before we’re judged, Salem Witch Trial style.
Just get a petition started to remove all legislators due to refusing to do their job, abd refusing do the will of the people. We can throw in the budget hole if nessasary. I’m in.
This guy is owned by Harold Hamm. We know what this is about. Oil & production tax.
Of course
Ben Franklin said Democracy is when 51% of the people impose their will on the other 49%. I guess in Oklahoma all it takes is one useless legislator to attempt to circumvent the will of the people. We pass laws and the State Legislature spends its time to figure out a way to change it to what they want instead.
They can’t govern so they waste time grandstanding on issues already resolved. Typical Oklahoma.
Lets petition them out
From what I’ve heard our initiative petition process here in OK is already one of the most difficult in the country.
I think Rep. Hoss Biscuit from Enid knows his voters will probably vote for this and it won’t please the real bosses.
S.K.