There are couple of more citizens' ballot initiative stories this morning in the northern Utah press which are well worthy of note. From this morning's Salt Lake Tribune:
As ethics-initiative backers scramble to gather enough signatures to place their measure on November's ballot, opponents hope to make it easier for some of those names to disappear.Read all about it here:
In a statement last week, Utah's conservative Sutherland Institute labeled the measure put forward by Utahns for Ethical Government "dangerous" and asked lawmakers to streamline the name-removal process for folks who signed but changed their minds.
On Saturday's Red Meat Radio show on 630 AM, Sen. Howard Stephenson said he would file a bill today to do just that.
• Ethics initiative battle heats upAnd that's not the only SL-Trib story reporting on the efforts of the forces of the status quo to thwart citizen efforts to impose real ethics reform upon our Utah legislature. The Trib also reports on a second proposed measure which could create a potentially serious roadblock to citizen initiative efforts in Utah:
A bill that would remove the time constraints under which the Utah Supreme Court must act when dealing with citizen initiatives and referendums is on its way to the House floor after unanimously clearing the House Judiciary Committee last week.Read the full story here:
HB112, sponsored by Rep. Brad Dee, R-Ogden, would allow Utah's high court to set its own timetable when reviewing citizen-led legislation.
"It leaves the initiative process in place," Dee said, "but gives the court the opportunity to deliberate and it does not require, based on any statutorial time limit, that they must make that decision and curtail their deliberations."
Dee says the bill would affirm the Legislature's commitment to separation of powers between the branches of government.
But citizen-led legislation fans see it differently.
• Initiative efforts may face obstacleWhat's painfully obvious is that opponents of serious, citizen-driven ethics reform in Utah are sweating bullets, and pulling out all the stops in order to prevent the angry lumpencitizens from finally having their way with our out-of-touch legislature. And in that connection, here's a new development that's likely to ratchet up the tension of the powerful and privileged at least a few more notches:
We're pleased to announce this morning that the Utahns For Ethical Government's (UEG) ethics reform petition is NOW AVAILABLE FOR SIGNATURE ONLINE!
• Sign the UEG Ethics Petition electronically right hereYou know what to do, gentle readers. If you haven't already signed the petition... do it NOW... and do it online.
(Links to the full complement of active Utah online initiative petitions are also available here, and in our WCF right sidebar, btw.)
9 comments:
Rudi, lots of Ogden Republicans have told me over the years that Rep. Dee is a sound, sensible Conservative Republican, not at all like those Utah County Neo-Cons. Have to tell you, the evidence of the last few years suggests that Mr. Dee has ambitions for higher office, and he's decided that to get there, he must shove his probiscus as far up the hindermost parts of the Utah County crowd as he can get it. School vouchers. Opposing ethics reform until it became so stinky he had to pretend to do something. Now not only looking for, but sponsoring, more ways to cripple Utah's already anemic initiative/referendum process. He's becoming a right little Bramble-gaggle clone, isn't he.
And he's offered as an example of sane, sensible, principled Utah conservatism? Yeah. Right. So far as I can see, he's just more evidence that "sane, sensible, principled Utah conservative" has become an oxymoron. Several times over.
ethics! We don't need no stinking ethics. We are honest and true to all things that come our way. just ask us and we will tell you.
Off subject here, but rumors are flying about the Salt Lake Media circles that the SL Tribune may very well cease to exist in the near future. I have no idea how accurate this story is, but I have checked several sources in the SL market and the rumor seems to be wide spread. The Trib's parent company did go into bankruptcy protection a week or so ago at which time we were assured the Tribune would not be effected.
Hope not. Hate to have to depend on the Deseret Holy News for SL and Utah news of more importance than sports. [SE's focus is properly largely local.]
Ouch, that would be a painful blow to Utah if the Trib ceased to exist!
Brad Dee, sensible? Who've you been talkin' to Curm? Dee's always fit right in w/ the Utah Co. Neo-Cons.
Cheesy:
When I first moved here, Mr. Dee was offered up by several people, some of whom post on this very site, as an example of sane and sensible Utah Republican Conservatism. [The names of the guilty I am not free in good conscience to reveal.] Not so much lately.
To hell with the SLTrib. This morning's SE [Wed] is dangerously thin. Two very small sections. They've shrunk down so much [a reflection of lost ad pages] that this morning, the op ed page is the comics page. This is not good.
The on-line process designed for use by Fair Boundaries and Utahns for Ethical Government is in full compliance with Utah law and today’s Attorney General’s opinion. While the government could be provided with electronic records and electronic signatures, if they are not willing to accept it in an electronic form then the petitions will be provided in the paper format as required by today’s opinion. The government will not be a party to the electronic transaction. Registered voters of Utah should still be encouraged to go to http://fairboundaries.utahpetitions.org and http://ueg.utahpetitions.org to sign the petitions.
Brad Dee just wants to line his pockets with pension money from those that actually work for a living!
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