R-71

Sometimes it just burns me that we have to deal with such ungodly issues in modern society. I just looked at the News Headlines on my Yahoo home page and it is enough to turn your stomach. A Tacoma Judge is going to trial for alleged sex crimes. The political battle over so-called gay rights rolls on with controversy over a Referendum by the people to reject a law passed in Washington State legislators to give all rights and benefits of marriage to "domestic partners". At the same time the Washington courts have upheld a BAN on a Christian Hymn being used in a school graduation ceremony. Go figure.

I received "The Perogative" the other day. It is a newsletter from a two year old political action group called "Family Policy Institute of Washington". They have a website. click here They stand for traditional family values. Washington State is one of only about 24 States that have the Initiative and Referendum political tools and there was a helpful clip in the newsletter that explains the difference between the two. You might be wondering. Here is a brief civics lesson.

A Referendum, as in the case of R-71, asks the voters to accept or reject a law that was created by their legislators, such as SB5688 which puts homosexual partners in the same status as a legally married man and wife. A Referendum can be presented to the people by the legislature or by collecting signatures on petitions. R-71 is an attempt of the people to say "NO, we do not want SB5688 to be the law in our State."

An Initiative on the other hand is not an attempt to approve or reject legislation but rather it is an attempt by the people to "initiate" a law that our legislature will not initiate. Most laws are drafted and passed by legislature but an Initiative, which is put on the ballot by collecting signatures on petitions, is a law that is drafted and passed by the voters. It has some legal limitations but the subject of an Initiative is not limited.