Two Bad Initiative Bills–One Call–Contact the Governor for a Veto
In the waning days of the session, legislators passed two onerous bills undermining the initiative process. Call Governor Daugaard’s office at (605) 773-3212 or email at the following link: http://sd.gov/governor/contact/contact.aspx and ask him to VETO HB 1177 & 1196!!!
HB 1177 is a clear violation of privacy. It requires petition circulators to provide personal information (name, email, telephone) to complete strangers while gathering signatures. Petition sponsors are already required to provide contact info–circulators (especially volunteers) should not be forced to share their information with people they don’t know.
HB 1196 requires petition circulators to provide a laundry list of personal information to the Secretary of State’s office to “prove” their residency, though the bill specifically indicates that none of the items on the list are actually determinative of residency. It also adds a penalty for violating provisions of circulation of up to a $5000 fine and being barred from doing any work on any ballot question committee for four years.
These bills are designed to chill the initiative process and allow opponents of the process or of particular measures to block participation from individuals and institutions they disagree with.