POT, MINIMUM WAGE INITIATIVES PASS

Measure to curb certain abortions headed for defeat

SEATTLE -- Washington voters on Tuesday approved ballot measures legalizing
the medical use of marijuana and raising the minimum wage, but they
rejected a proposal to restrict certain late-term abortions.

Initiative 692 sought to legalize the medical use of marijuana for people
with certain terminal and debilitating illnesses. It was a much tighter
version of the broad measure soundly defeated at the polls last year.

With 43 percent of 7,315 precincts reporting, I-692 was being approved 57
percent to 43 percent.

Initiative 694, backed by a network of Christian conservatives, marked a
change in strategy by critics of a procedure they call "partial-birth
abortion" -- ending the life of a fetus after it enters the birth canal.
The measure was failing 57 percent to 43 percent.

Initiative 688, sponsored by the state's labor unions, would increase
Washington state's minimum wage from $4.90 an hour to $5.70 in 1999 and
$6.50 in 2000. Critics were concerned about a provision that linked future
increases to the inflation rate.

It was leading 66 percent to 34 percent in early returns.

Final results won't be available for days, since nearly half of Washington
voters were expected to cast their ballots by mail.

I-694 marked the fourth vote on abortion in Washington since 1970.

Twenty-eight states have passed laws banning procedures that kill a fetus
in the birth canal, but courts have blocked 19 of them, according to the
New York-based Center for Reproductive Law and Policy. So abortion foes in
Washington tried new language that shifted the focus from the surgical
procedure to the physical state of the mother when the pregnancy is
terminated.

The initiative, sponsored by Poulsbo family physician Bob Bethel, sought to
make it a felony to kill an infant "in the process of birth" and used a new
term: "partial-birth infanticide."

Abortion rights advocates called the new wording a ruse, the first step in
a national plan to outlaw all abortions.

The marijuana initiative was much different from the measure defeated by 60
percent of the voters in 1997. Last year's version left open the
possibility of legalizing other drugs and would have changed prison
sentencing policies for drug crimes. This year's version included none of
that.

Under I-692, patients with certain illnesses, or their designated
caregivers, could grow and possess a 60-day supply of marijuana, although
the exact amount wasn't specified. Physicians who advised qualifying
patients about the risks and benefits of marijuana use were protected from
prosecution.

Similar measures were on the ballots in Oregon and Alaska and were approved
in Nevada and Arizona. I-692's sponsor, Seattle family physician Rob
Killian, said the federal government might feel more pressure to loosen
restrictions on marijuana if enough measures passed around the country.

Foes agreed I-692 marked a significant improvement, but they said it still
lacked important controls over dosage, potency, quality or quantity. And
they continued to question the motives of the three wealthy out-of-state
backers who funded the campaign.

I-688, dubbed the "Paycheck Protection Act," would benefit some 275,000 of
Washington's 2.3 million workers who earn the minimum wage, according to
state statistics. The last state increase was in 1994.

Sponsored by the Washington State Labor Council, I-688 sought to make
Washington the first state to automatically raise its minimum wage with the
Consumer Price Index.

Critics from the Washington Restaurant Association and the National
Federation of Independent Businesses said a sudden jump in inflation could
drive up the minimum wage unreasonably and put the state at a competitive
disadvantage.

Washington has the lowest minimum wage on the West Coast. California pays
$5.75 an hour and Oregon requires $6 and raises it to $6.50 next year.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan