R-71 petitions: Super-size it!
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One of the little-noticed requirements of a referendum measure is that the petitions have to include every single word of the state legislation that is being referred to the voters. In the case of the new domestic partnership "everything but marriage" law, Senate Bill 5688, that runs to 114 pages! (The measure, which was about 2,400 pages in one early draft, amends many sections of state law and the bill has to list both the existing language and the changes the Legislature is making. )
And did we mention that state law (RCW29A.72.100) says the petitions, the ones with 114 pages worth of bill text, a ballot title and summary and 20 lines for voters to sign, must be:
- One sheet
- Readable
That means no multiple page stapled petitions, and no teeny, tiny type font that nobody could actually read.
So what to do? Well, the law doesn't say how BIG the single sheet can be, nor how many times it can be folded. So a large double-truck size newspaper broadsheet, folded several times might work, especially if you use a fairly small type font, like 6 point.
Sponsors of the R-71, on the Faith and Freedom Foundation website, say only that the petition is "under design at the moment. Our printing costs will be unusually expensive."
If you're dying to read the full text early, it's on the SecState's initiative and referendum site, all 114 pages or on the Legislature's site . I'll wait for the movie.
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Secretary of State
Steve Hobbs
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