NO Excuses! Initiative and Referendum has been Introduced in the Virginia General Assembly!

Del. Sam Rasoul has done it again!  Opening up the political system in the Commonwealth!  He introduced a new constitutional amendment governing initiative and referendum and here it is (largely written by yours truly):

ARTICLE IVLEGISLATURE

Section 1-A. Initiatives, referendums, and recalls.

(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 1, the people reserve to themselves the power (1) to propose and enact laws or constitutional amendments by initiative, 2) to approve or reject legislative acts, or parts thereof, by referendum, and (3) to remove certain elected officials by recall.

(b) The General Assembly, subject to subsection c, shall provide by law for the circulation and verification of petitions and all additional provisions necessary for the people to exercise such powers, but in no way shall such provisions limit or restrict the exercise of such powers.

(c) A measure shall qualify to be placed on the ballot only if petitions have been signed by qualified voters equal in number to the following:

(1) To place a proposed law on the ballot by initiative: four percent of the total turnout in the previous election for Governor.

(2) To place a referendum to repeal an existing law on the ballot: five percent of the total turnout in the previous election for Governor.

(3) To place a constitutional amendment on the ballot: ten percent of the total turnout in the previous election for Governor.

 (d) The General Assembly shall provide by law for the recall of all state and local elected officials.

(e) Nothing in this section shall impair the right of the General Assembly to propose a constitutional amendment or call a constitutional convention pursuant to Article XII, Sections 1 and 2.

(f) The legal sufficiency of a proposed law, referendum question, or constitutional amendment shall be approved by the Attorney General prior to being placed on the ballot subject to an interlocutory appeal to the Supreme Court by the petition for review procedure set forth in law by the General Assembly.

Now I am fully aware that a constitutional amendment has to pass twice in consecutive sessions of the legislature with an intervening election.  But there is no rule or law that says it can’t pass three times!  It is time to let your delegates and senators know!  Let’s support initiative and referendum – HJR 34.  It won’t be easy to get 4 percent (That is about 100,000 votes based on 2017) of signatures for even the lowest threshold) but the possibility can be now there.