Request to Speak on bill endangering washes and Citizens Initiatives

The State Legislature is back in session. Among the bills being proposed is one that makes it more difficult to advocate with citizens’ initiatives and another that puts our desert washes in jeopardy.

Please, make sure you are registered on the Request to Speak system so you can weigh in on bills while they are still in committee. Here is a link for signing up. 

NOTE: It may take a couple of days since someone has to go to the capitol to sign you up. 

Once you’re signed up, you can sign onto the Request to Speak system on the State Legislature website and select for or against a bill and write a short one or two sentence comment explaining your response. This becomes a part of public record. I have seen committee members ask to see RTS responses before voting on a bill. Sometimes it gives them courage to do the right thing when they know their constituents support that. Advocates like us stopped some bad water bills from going through in the past.

You can weigh in anytime before the bill is heard in committee. For example, you can do RTS on SCR1002 any time before it is heard at 2 p.m. on Monday. I suggest you get them all done at once while you’re on the site.

Here’s the written directions:

http://desktopactivisttucson.blogspot.com/2018/03/request-to-speak-time.html

To learn more about how to use the Request to Speak System, you can sign up for one of the trainings sponsored by Civic Engagement Beyond Voting. Here is their sign up link.

It can be a little confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s pretty quick and easy. Copy the bill number so you're ready to paste it into the Search Phrase box. (Example: SCR1002) 

Ready? If you've registered for Request to Speak sign in here:
https://apps.azleg.gov/account/signon


Monday, January 23rd, Senate Committee on Elections at 2:00 PM 

SCR1002 constitutional amendments; sixty percent approval (Kern) continues the legislature’s attack on citizen ballot initiatives after they successfully got a ballot measure passed in the last election that would require any initiative that imposes a new tax to pass by a super-majority vote (60%). This, of course, is nearly impossible in the current political environment in Arizona. This bill would extend the supermajority requirement to ALL ballot initiatives – effectively killing the citizen initiative process. OPPOSE.

Tuesday, January 24th, House Committee on Natural Resources, Energy, and Water at 2:00 PM

HB2056 dry washes; permit program exemption (Diaz: Carbone, Dunn, et al.) says that "dry washes" on private property are exempt from the Clean Water Act and state permitting. This is a bad idea as desert washes provide important benefits to our rivers and streams, recharge groundwater, provide flood protection, and limit sediments downstream. Besides, state law cannot exempt waters from federal law. OPPOSE

 
HB2442 temporary non-expansion area (Griffin) allows for establishment of temporary non-expansion areas that would limit new irrigated agriculture, but that would expire after five years. We don't need temporary measures that create the illusion that we are really doing something to address the serious groundwater issues we have. OPPOSE

Wednesday, January 25th

House Committee on Government at 9:00 AM

HCR2004 legislators; minimum age of eighteen (Gress: Aguilar, Austin, et al.) refers to the ballot a measure to change the minimum age to be a legislator from 25 to 18. This seems like a fine idea to get more young people engaged at the legislature. SUPPORT

House Committee on Municipal Oversight & Elections at 2:00 PM

HB2305 ballots; signature verification; observers (McGarr: Biasiucci, Carter, et al) requires county recorders to allow representatives of the two largest parties to have observers for every stage of the signature verification process. So unnecessary. OPPOSE

HB2308 secretary of state; election; recusal (Jones: Harris, McGarr, et al) limits the secretary of state from administering the election portion for which they are a candidate. OPPOSE

Urge Legislators: Oppose bills making Citizens' Initiative process more difficult

Uphill battle for Citizens' Initiative to become a law

This week in the state legislature there are bills being heard in the House and Senate floors making it even harder to pass citizens initiatives. HCR2014 AND SCR1025. Please, take a minute to reach out to your Senator and Representatives using the two Sierra Club forms included below. If you are signed up for the Request to Speak system you can also weigh in on SB1094 by Wednesday morning. 

The Arizona House is proposing to pass HCR2014 initiative; referendum; signatures; legislative districts (Dunn). It refers to the ballot a measure to require an initiative petition to be signed by 10 percent of the qualified electors for an initiative measure or 15 percent for a constitutional amendment in each Legislative District, rather than just statewide. This would make it more cumbersome and expensive to do ballot measures.

Please ask your representatives to oppose HCR2014!

https://act.sierraclub.org/actions/Arizona?actionId=AR0353601

Please ask your Senator to oppose SCR1025 initiative; referendum; legislative districts; signatures (Leach). It refers to the ballot a measure to require an initiative petition to be signed by 10 percent of the qualified electors for an initiative measure or 15 percent for a constitutional amendment in each Legislative District, rather than statewide. This would make it more cumbersome and expensive to do ballot measures.

Please send a message to your senator today to opposed SCR1025!

https://act.sierraclub.org/actions/Arizona?actionId=AR0353602

There is another bill making more difficult to enact a Citizens Initiative being heard in the House Committee on Government and Elections at 9:00 AM Wednesday, March 2nd. Log onto the Request to Speak system to weigh in on SB1094. 

• SB1094 petition signatures; description; invalidity (Mesnard: Leach) voids the signature of anyone who signs an initiative or referendum petition without either hearing or reading the initiative or referendum description printed on the petition. What if the person had previously read or knew about the measure and specifically went to sign the petition? Why would they need to read a short description? We don’t require anyone to read about or know anything about an elected official before signing their petition, why for a ballot measure? When you sign a petition, you are merely saying you think it should be considered by the voters and not that you fully endorse it. This bill will result in more signatures being tossed and again make it more difficult and more expensive to put a measure on the ballot. OPPOSE

MORE INFORMATION:

For decades, Arizona legislators have run measures aimed at decimating our state’s initiative and referendum process that allow voters to make law directly. These bills from the Legislature not only dismantle our rights, harm education and workers, but they can potentially harm animals, including wildlife, parks and natural areas on a large scale.

Arizona’s ballot measure process is a constitutional right enacted at statehood in 1912. One of our founders’ biggest concerns was the right to pass laws through initiatives. The first initiative passed in Arizona recognized women’s right to vote.

Thanks to grassroots ballot measures, the Arizona Heritage Fund to provide dollars for parks and wildlife was passed in 1990, and leghold traps, snares, and poisons were banned on public lands in 1994. Cockfighting was outlawed in 1998. In 2006, voters prohibited the cruel confinement of pregnant pigs and calves raised for veal in industrial agriculture operations. All of these measures failed in the Legislature, yet were passed by Arizona voters, most by large margins. Voters have also approved increases to minimum wage and funding for healthcare and education.

Unfortunately, HCR2015 initiatives; supermajority vote; requirement (Dunn) passed out of the House 31-28-1. It refers to the ballot a measure that would require a super-majority (60%) approval rather than simple majority approval for all ballot measures. This is a high threshold and will limit opportunities to address important environmental, animal, and social justice issues via the initiative process. This bill will go through the committee process in the Senate.

REQUEST TO SPEAK ACTION: save citizens initiative and stop voter suppression

Coming up at the Arizona Legislature this week are more than 100 bills associated with voting and elections, and most of those bills are erecting impediments or continuing the big lie with odd and unnecessary requirements. Please, weigh in on some of these bills before they go to a vote in committee.

The GOP, with a small majority, is passing these bills to make it difficult to vote because they know they don’t represent most Arizonans. The one recourse we have is to get bills that represent our interests on the ballot through the initiative process. That right is protected in the Arizona constitution, but that won’t stop the GOP trying to make it harder with HCR2014 and HCR2015. Please, weigh in on the Request to Speak system before they go to a vote at 8 a.m. on Wednesday.

HCR2014 initiative; referendum; signatures; legislative districts (Dunn) refers to the ballot a measure that would require collection of signatures from each legislative district proportionately. This would make it very difficult to get a measure on the ballot. OPPOSE
HCR2015 initiatives; supermajority vote; requirement (Dunn: Biasiucci, Bolick et al.) refers to the ballot a measure to require 60 percent approval for any ballot measure. This is a high bar and would limit this important constitutional right. OPPOSE

If you don’t have time to leave comments, just show your opposition with a thumbs down.

Monday, February 7th

Senate Committee on Government at 2:00 PM

SB1058 drive- up voting; prohibition (Rogers) prohibits allowing voters to vote from a vehicle or using a ballot drop box outside of a polling place, voting center or county recorder or elections department office OPPOSE.
SB1298 government mask mandate; prohibition (Rogers) prohibits government entities from requiring masks to prevent spread of COVID. OPPOSE
SB1358 hand counts; precincts; procedures manual (Townsend: Livingston, Rogers, et al.) requires ballots in counties using voting centers to be separated and grouped by precinct for the purpose of a hand count audit. This is more of the same nonsense to unnecessarily question ballots from voting centers. OPPOSE
SB1404 eligibility; early voting; list (Gowan) severely restricts eligibility to vote an early ballot. Repeals the Active Early Voting List and the authorization for a county recorder to establish on-site early voting locations. OPPOSE
SB1457 voting machines; hardware; software; access (Borrelli: Barto, Fann, et al.) requires the Secretary of State to ensure that certified vote recording and tabulating machines and devices meet certain security standards, don't have internet connectivity, support the tracking of users based on unique credentials. Again, this is a bill to further the big lie narrative. OPPOSE
SB1474 voting; election day only; holiday (Townsend: Burges, Fillmore) establishes the primary and general election days as legal holidays. The catch is that early voting locations or voting centers are repealed. OPPOSE

Wednesday, February 9th

House Committee on Judiciary at 8:00 a.m.

HB2253 asbestos claims; required information; liability (Grantham) seeks to limit asbestos claims. That is just wrong. OPPOSE

House Committee on Government & Elections at 9:00 AM

HB2389 rulemaking review; time frame (Dunn) eliminates the requirement that agencies certify that they provided the public with an opportunity to comment when they submit a rulemaking package. OPPOSE
HB2492 voter registration; verification; citizenship (Hoffman: Blackman, Carter, et al.) requires proof of citizenship, location, etc. for registering to vote. OPPOSE
HB2602 polling places; emergency voting centers (Bolick: Biasiucci, Blackman, et al.) limits a county's ability to establish emergency voting centers. To do so, there must be a huge emergency such as war or civil unrest. This is ridiculous. OPPOSE
HB2617 voter registration; cancellations; causes (Chaplik: Barton, Biasiucci, et al.) lays out additional requirements for cancelling voter registration, including finding out someone has a driver's license in another state. That seems weak as people sometimes take longer to change their licenses. OPPOSE
HCR2014 initiative; referendum; signatures; legislative districts (Dunn) refers to the ballot a measure that would require collection of signatures from each legislative district proportionately. This would make it very difficult to get a measure on the ballot. (Listed above too) OPPOSE
HCR2015 initiatives; supermajority vote; requirement (Dunn: Biasiucci, Bolick et al.) refers to the ballot a measure to require 60 percent approval for any ballot measure. This is a high bar and would limit this important constitutional right. (Listed above) OPPOSE

Senate Committee on Natural Resources, Energy, & Water at 2:00 PM

SCM1003 Grand Canyon; monuments; rename (Boyer: Borrelli, Bowie, et al.) asks the Board on Geographic Names to rename geographic features in Grand Canyon with traditional Native American names. SUPPORT

DIRECTIONS FOR REQUEST TO SPEAK ACTIONS

Sign on to your Request to Speak account, click the blue Request to Speak button, click on New Request in the nav bar (left column), then simply cut and paste the bill number into Search Phrase (for example: HCR2014). Push blue Add Request button, weigh in FOR or AGAINST, click No on Do you wish to speak? (in person), leave a short Comment, and click on SUBMIT. For another submission, click on the New Request link in the nav bar on the left and follow the directions above.

If you had an account with RTS previously, it is still active. If you do not have an account, go ahead and set one up, but someone will have to help you activate it as it requires going to the Capitol. Reach out to Civic Engagement Beyond Voting.

Democracy Threatened at the State Capitol: Request to Speak and Phone Call Actions

I hate to say it but some of our "Representatives" in the State Legislature have been busy trying to weaken our democracy. You can weigh in on their bills being heard in committee this week. (See committee hearing schedule below.)  

If you are signed up for the Request to Speak, login in here.  

Click on the blue Request to Speak button and then New Requests in the right column. Then paste the bill number. 

If you are not signed up, find the directions for signing up and navigating the system here.  Then you'll be prepared for future Request to Speak actions in the coming weeks.. 

Another resolution to make it more difficult to put measures on the ballot -- HCR2039 -- passed out of the House along party lines. In order to propose an initiative, this bill requires that every legislative district must contribute their 1/30 share of the percentage of voters needed to place an initiative on the ballot or amend the constitution. In other words, if enough voters in Tucson and Phoenix support an initiative to get it put on the ballot, but not enough voters in King County support the initiative, then it can't be put on the ballot. Essentially, petitions will have to be circulated statewide and, if you fail to get enough signatures in one district, the initiative will fail to make the ballot - even if 90% of voters in the rest of the state signed the petition. This will make an initiative or constitutional amendment impossible to get on the ballot. 

If your legislators are Republicans, you may want to express your disappointment and tell them you support direct democracy. 

You can find out who your state legislators are here. 

You can find their contact information here. 

Weigh in on the following bills before they are voted on in committee: 

Monday, March 9th

Senate Committee on Government at 2:00 P.M. 

• HB2054 GRRC; petition to request review (Biasiucci: Bolick) allows a person to petition the Governor's Regulatory Review Council (GRRC) to review Citizens Clean Elections Commission's (CCEC) existing practices, policies, and rules, if they think it doesn't meet certain requirements. This is an effort to rein in the CCEC from doing its job. OPPOSE.

Tuesday, March 10th

House Committee on Elections at 2:00 P.M. 

• SB1032 early voting; signature required; notice (Ugenti-Rita) limits the amount of time the County Recorders have to contact a voter about a missing signature on their early ballot and allow them the opportunity to sign it. Under this bill they would have until 7:00PM Election Day, which likely would not allow the county recorders enough time to reach everyone who inadvertently left off their signature. OPPOSE.
• SB1434 recall petitions and elections; revisions (Gowan) makes it more difficult to recall elected officials. Rules they are adding for petitions to recall elected officials - including rules on who is circulating the petition, and ten conditions that allow them to disqualify signatures.  OPPOSE.

Thursday, March 12th

Senate Committee on Judiciary at 9:30 A.M. 

• HCR2032 initiative; single subject; title (Kern: Allen J, Barto, et al.) refers to the ballot a measure that narrows what can be included in a ballot measure and requires every subject to be in the title. This would make it impossible to place something on the ballot that is comprehensive, including environmental protection measures, and would mean a series of ballot measures. Considering how expensive it is already to propose a measure, this proposal would put the initiative process even further in the hands of only those with the deepest pockets. OPPOSE .

Tell legislators: Protect Citizen's Initiatives and Voting Advocates

Tomorrow both chambers are really amping up their wars on democracy. 

The Arizona Legislature is about to vote on a series of extreme measures that would make grassroots ballot initiatives almost impossible.   It's all expected to happen at 10 am tomorrow. 

These bills, SB1451 and SCR1023/HCR2005, would hugely increase the cost & difficulty of the initiative process, and would essentially give the residents of any legislative district in Arizona the ability to veto an initiative before it even got to the ballot.

Minimum wage initiatives? Gone. Pro-education initiatives? Gone. Anti-corruption initiatives? Gone.

Politicians may not always agree with voters. But that doesn't mean they should attack our constitutional right to participate in direct democracy and make our voices heard.

Protect your rights! Make a quick call to your state legislators now and tell them to vote NO on any bills that interfere with the ballot initiative process. 

SCR1023 and HCR2005, the bills requiring initiatives to get a certain number of signatures from EVERY legislative district, will be debated on the Senate & House floor tomorrow. These bills would be referred to the ballot for voter’s approval in 2020 – and would be the ballot measure to end all ballot measures. The requirements laid out in both bills represent the MOST EXTREME HURDLE of its kind anywhere in the country. By doing so, this would make it easier to get something on the ballot in Scottsdale than in Maryvale – rather than treating voters equally.

SB1451, stricter requirements for initiatives, is ALSO going to be debated on the House floor.

And as if that wasn’t enough – so is HB2616, the bill that would criminalize voter registration volunteers.

IF YOU CAN DRIVE CALLS TO YOUR LEGISLATORS, PLEASE DO and ask them to VOTE NO on ALL of the above bills. Find your legislator and a convenient call script HERE.

Script: 

My name is [your name] and I am a voter in your district. I am calling to ask you to vote NO on SB1451 and SCR1023/HCR2005, which would make grassroots ballot initiatives almost impossible.

- Arizona Advocacy Network and Foundation
http://www.azadvocacy.org/