SEVEN MEASURES ON OREGON'S FALL BALLOT

Anti-Crime and Property Tax Issues Will Be Decided by Voters

Three citizen initiatives and four measures referred by the
Legislature have already qualified for the Nov. 4 general election
ballot, and state officials expect more to come.

One of the initiatives, sponsored by Republican activist Kevin
Mannix, would impose mandatory prison sentences for certain drug
offenses, car theft and burglary. That will compete with a measure
referred to voters by the Legislature that would impose less
stringent minimum sentences and beef up treatment programs for drug offenders.

If voters approve both measures, the one that receives the most votes
will go into effect.

The state Elections Division has approved 38 initiatives for
circulation to gather voter signatures, but 10 of those have been
withdrawn by their sponsors. The deadline for submitting enough valid
signatures to place an initiative on the ballot is July 3.
Initiatives that would change state law require 82,769 valid
signatures; constitutional amendments require 110,358 signatures.

Measures referred to the ballot by the Legislature don't require
voter signatures to qualify.

In addition to the Mannix anti-crime measure, the two other
initiatives that have qualified for the ballot are sponsored by Bill
Sizemore, the veteran tax activist. One would exempt property owners
from state and local building permit requirements for improvements
valued at $35,000 or less.

The other Sizemore initiative would prohibit the use of money for a
"political purpose" if it was collected with a "public resource" such
as the work time of public employees. The measure is part of
Sizemore's continuing campaign against the state's public employees unions.

Much attention during the fall is expected to be focused on the
competing anti-crime measures. But another referral by the
Legislature also could set off a heated debate. It would effectively
make it easier for local governments such as school districts to
raise property taxes by exempting tax measures voted on in May or
November elections of any year from the "double majority" requirement
of the Oregon Constitution.

Under that provision, a proposal such as a bond issue that would
raise property taxes requires not only a majority vote but a turnout
of at least 50 percent of registered voters to be approved, unless
it's a general election in an even-numbered year.

Another legislative referral to voters would remove obsolete language
from the constitution that sets minimum standards for voting in
school elections. The final referral would change the operative date
for implementing a legislative redistricting plan and allow lawmakers
to serve out their terms representing their old districts following
redistricting.