Colorado's SCR-003: Opportunity to Protect and Defend Your Right of Petition?

By Fred Holden

Is the Colorado Legislature's most popular and recurring endeavor their "hammer the citizen" program in its various forms? It would be hard to argue otherwise. I was honored to testify against Senate Concurrent Resolution SCR-003, designed to further complicate, encumber and inhibit common citizen participation in the initiative and petition process. I use the phrase "common citizen participation" because it will only hurt the little people with limited resources, not the deep pockets that can finance and promote whatever ballot initiatives they may deem best for all.

I opened my testimony relating to my experience dating back to 1986's Amendment 4 that simply sought to require a vote of the people prior to their getting a tax increase. It then and most now are soundly defeated by the always existent Six Bigs: Big Government, Big Business, Big Labor, Big Education, Big Media and Big Everything Else. And now we must add Big DCM's-the Dot.Com Millionaires. I opined that this all by itself is a big enough hurdle to dissuade common citizen petitions.

But 'twas not to be. SCR-003 went way beyond its intended changing current policy that an initiated constitutional amendment required the same number of valid signatures (five percent of votes cast for Secretary of State in the previous election) as an initiated statute. The former, a true legislative inconvenience, can be changed only by a vote of the people; the latter, by the General Assembly. SCR-003 would lower to four percent for statutes, and raise to six percent for constitutional amendments. Also changed was for higher signatures based on the votes for Governor instead of Secretary of State. Further, out of the blue was another puzzling requirement intended to spread signature acquisition all over the state and prevent "disenfranchisement." You figure it out:

" Requires a minimum number of signatures on an initiative petition to amend the state constitution to be gathered from residents in each congressional district in the state, which amount is equal to 70% of the minimum number of the total signatures required for such petition divided by the number of the United States congressional districts in Colorado." Huh?

That means to require signatures to be gathered from all over the state, not in population centers, particularly metro-Denver. Here reside some 3.6 million people, about 74 percent of the state's near five million population. However, probably 95% of the state's population is on the Ft. Collins-to-Pueblo corridor, and all seven congressional districts are on that corridor. What's the point of the 70% rule beyond making it harder to be in compliance and easier to charge out-of-compliance, to stifle and squelch the initiative process?

Bill sponsor, Senator Abel Tapia, Pueblo, District 3, went to great lengths to praise the diligent, excellent, dedicated, hard work done by the blue ribbon committee. The odds of few if any of that committee ever having stood in the rain obtaining petition signatures was remote. Do those of that higher level have no need of actual experience, but only to read about, think about, talk about, conclude and recommend, to do the good they do?

Not surprisingly, Rep Douglas Bruce, El Paso District 15, "father" of the 1992 Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, TABOR, was numero uno in testifying against the bill, and having a most diverse and long-standing experience with the Colorado petition process. And not unexpectedly, his arguments were given little credence and short shrift, as there seems to be a sub rosa movement that whatever he may support should be defeated because he supports it.

Colorado's Constitution is very favorable to citizen power and input, seeking to encourage citizen's right to petitionin three clauses in Article II, Bill of Rights and Article V, Legislative Department. The former include:

Section 1. Vestment of political power. All political power is vested in and derived from the people; all government, of right, originates from the people, is founded upon their will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the whole.

Section 2. People may alter or abolish form of government - proviso. The people of this state have the sole and exclusive right of governing themselves, as a free, sovereign and independent state; and to alter and abolish their constitution and form of government whenever they may deem it necessary to their safety and happiness, provided, such change be not repugnant to the constitution of the United States.

Section 24. Right to assemble and petition. The people have the right peaceably to assemble for the common good, and to apply to those invested with the powers of government for redress of grievances, by petition or remonstrance.

The latter includes:

Section 1. General assembly - initiative and referendum. (1) ... the people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws and amendments to the constitution and to enact or reject the same at the polls independent of the general assembly and also reserve power at their own option to approve or reject at the polls any act or item, section, or part of any act of the general assembly.

(2) The first power hereby reserved by the people is the initiative, ...

As is now stands, SCR-003 passed out of the Senate State Affairs Committee to the Senate Committee of the Whole.

I closed my testimony suggesting the legislature's continuing assault on voter, citizen and taxpayer rights was having a chilling effect on the Colorado people. I harked back to Abraham Lincoln's reference in his "Gettysburg Address" to his profound statement, "a government of the people, by the people and for the people." I suggested we are now getting more "a government of the government, by the government and for the government."

Here are a few thoughts of importance. We have a Constitution, the Constitution has power, and people are empowered by the Constitution (if they know the Constitution). How many Colorado citizens have read the Constitution? Have you seen Article II, Bill of Rights, all 31 of them? If not, how can you protect, defend and support your rights?

View the Colorado Constitution (and SCR-003) on the Colorado.gov website, Legislature. My published Constitution cost $10 from Secretary of State, 1700 Broadway, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80290, 303-894-2200.

I am happy to send you free, a handy shirt pocket-sized copy of the Colorado Constitution Preamble and Bill of Rights, plus America's Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights, for a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Bill of Rights, Box 1900, Arvada, CO 80001.

Let be known your views on SCR-003. Know your rights and protect them.

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Fred Holden is public policy specialist, speaker and author of TOTAL Power of ONE in America. ($25 check or money order to TOTAL Power, address above) He touts America's Freedom Documents and arranged two Constitutional Seminars first quarter 2008, presented by EarlTaylor, Jr., president of the 37-year-old National Center for Constitutional Rights. He is a senior fellow-fiscal policy at Colorado's Independence Institute.