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Tag: Tim Eyman

Wyman: Zero-tolerance for petition fraud

Wyman: Zero-tolerance for petition fraud

Secretary Wyman, whose office oversees “direct democracy” through ballot measures, says she’s gratified that a jail term has been ordered for a Snohomish County woman who was convicted of initiative fraud. The jail term, believed to be the first such sentence for this type of fraud, underscores that Washington has “zero tolerance” for petition fraud, Secretary Wyman said. The six-month jail/work-release sentence was imposed by Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Anita Farris on Julie Klein, 54, Marysville, The Herald of…

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Initiative season opens with an Eyman blockbuster

Initiative season opens with an Eyman blockbuster

Washington’s initiative season is open, and much of the early attention is on an attempt by initiative activist Tim Eyman to use a heavy hammer to persuade lawmakers to submit a constitutional amendment to require a two-thirds supermajority for all taxes passed in Olympia. The hammer? If his Initiative 1325 qualifies for the ballot and passes this fall, it would impose an annual $1 billion cut in the state sales tax if legislators refuse to put the constitutional amendment on…

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Eyman files ‘Super Bowl’ of anti-tax initiatives

Eyman files ‘Super Bowl’ of anti-tax initiatives

UPDATE: Note that last paragraph recasts the original language… Initiative activist Tim Eyman has filed what he called the “Super Bowl” version of his long line of ballot propositions aimed at blocking taxes and requiring a supermajority to pass tax hikes in Olympia. It will have to be a hurry-up offense for Eyman, since there is little more than two months before his July 5 deadline to submit well over 300,000 petition signatures to secure a place on the fall…

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High court overturns supermajority for taxes

High court overturns supermajority for taxes

The Washington Supreme Court, in a bombshell decision handed down just days before Gov. Jay Inslee and lawmakers tackle a multibillion-dollar budget gap, invalidated a popular voter-approved requirement of a two-thirds supermajority for taxes raised in Olympia. The court, in a decisive 6-3 ruling, said the state Constitution clearly says a bill becomes a law by gaining a majority in each house. The justices noted that this is the first time the court directly answers the question of whether the…

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I-517 signature check completed

I-517 signature check completed

The first of two initiatives to the Legislature has cleared a key hurdle after a signature check showed it has a sufficient number of signatures to advance to the Legislature for consideration. The Secretary of State’s Election Division finished the review of Tim Eyman’s latest initiative, I-517, Wednesday. Dubbed the “Protect the Initiative Act,” Eyman’s ballot offering would set penalties for interfering with or retaliating against signature-gatherers and petition-signers; require that all measures receiving sufficient signatures appear on the ballot;…

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Signature check underway for Eyman’s I-517

Signature check underway for Eyman’s I-517

An Elections Division worker counts I-517 signatures in advance of Tuesday’s start of its signature check.  Signature checking begins soon for the two initiatives to the Legislature that were submitted to the state Elections Division by the Jan. 4 deadline. Signature checking for Initiative 517 starts Tuesday, and the signature check for I-522 is expected to commence around Friday. Initiative activist Tim Eyman is championing I-517, dubbed the “Protect the Initiative Act.” Eyman’s latest ballot offering would set penalties for…

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WA initiative season opens with Eyman & GMO labeling

WA initiative season opens with Eyman & GMO labeling

Washington’s second century of “direct democracy” has opened. Sponsors of two initiatives to the Legislature submitted boxloads of petitions Thursday in support of measures dealing with the initiative process itself and requiring labeling of genetically engineered foodstuffs. Sponsors of both measures submitted what they described as 340,000 or more signatures, and thus appear virtually assured of validation during the random sampling process that begins after the petitions are imaged for safekeeping and potential public records release by the State Archives….

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WA voters: Yes to gay marriage, Obama & Democrats …

WA voters: Yes to gay marriage, Obama & Democrats …

But the governor’s race, the marquee state contest in the General Election, remains very close.  Democrat Jay Inslee, who gave up a safe congressional seat to run for the office being vacated by two-term Gov. Chris Gregoire, led Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna 51.32 percent to 48.68 percent, or about 50,000 votes out of nearly 1.9 million counted.  Inslee told cheering supporters it looked like victory, but didn’t declare himself the winner in so many words.  McKenna, still seeing a…

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Secretary Reed: YOUR vote is your voice

Secretary Reed: YOUR vote is your voice

Secretary of State Sam Reed is urging voters to take part in “one of the most significant and interesting elections in modern times.”  He said enthusiasm is “sky-high” in Washington, which regularly enjoys one of the best voter participation rates in the country. Reed noted that more than 8 out of 10 voters are expected to cast ballots, with some counties forecasting turnout even higher than the 81 percent he has predicted statewide.  He said he would be delighted, of…

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Judge: Voters’ Pamphlet language on I-1185 can stay

Judge: Voters’ Pamphlet language on I-1185 can stay

No changes will need to be made to the Initiative 1185 language in the upcoming state Voters’ Pamphlet for this fall’s General Election after a judge Friday morning dismissed a lawsuit brought by I-1185 sponsor Tim Eyman. Thurston County Superior Court Judge James Dixon denied Eyman’s challenge to the Office of Financial Management’s fiscal impact statement on I-1185 and his attempt to prohibit the Office of Secretary of State from publishing it in the Voters’ Pamphlet.  Judge Dixon denied Eyman’s…

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