Oregon 2008 ballot measures

From Ballotpedia

1 Key facts
2 National overview
3 Background on Oregon ballot measures
4 Qualified for November ballot
5 Newspaper endorsements
6 Didn't make November ballot
7 On the May 20 statewide ballot
8 Finding further information
9 See Also
10 External links
11 References
12 Additional reading

Eight ballot initiatives are certified to appear on the November 4, 2008 ballot in Oregon, according to an announcement from Bill Bradbury, Oregon Secretary of State in early August. Seven of the initiatives are for statutory changes, while one is a proposed amendment to the Oregon Constitution.^[1]

The eight initiated measures join four legislative referrals voted onto the ballot earlier in the year by the state legislature. Three of the referred measures are for statutes, one is for a new constitutional amendment.

Three statewide ballot measures (all legislative referrals) were on the May 20, 2008 primary election ballot.

Fifteen ballot measures in total, including those on the May ballot, will make up the complete number for Oregon ballot measures in 2008.

See endorsements of Oregon ballot measures

Key facts

Through 2006 the total of initiatives that made the ballot in Oregon since 1904, when the process began, was 342.

In 2008, 8 initiatives qualified for the November ballot, which will bring Oregon's historical total to 350.

Initiative petitions were required to be submitted by July 3, 2008. Secretary of State Bill Bradbury needed to have all signatures verified, in order to approve or reject the validity and qualify the initiative, by August 1, 2008.

National overview

2008 ballot measures

Ballot Initiative Report, 2008

State-by-state chart

2008 ballot measure lawsuits

Background on Oregon ballot measures

There are three types of ballot measures that may appear on statewide ballots: initiatives, referenda, and referrals. Initiatives and referenda may be placed on the ballot if their supporters gather enough signatures from Oregon voters; the number of signatures required is a percentage based on the number of voters casting ballots in the most recent election for the Governor of Oregon.

Initiative: Any issue may be placed before the voters, either amending the Constitution or revising or adding to the Oregon Revised Statutes. Constitutional initiatives require the signature of 8% of recent voters to qualify for the ballot; statutory reforms require 6%. See Oregon signature requirements.
Referendum: The public may act to undo any bill passed by the Oregon Legislative Assembly, by putting a referendum on the ballot. A referendum requires 4% of recent voters to qualify for the ballot.
Referral: The Legislative Assembly may refer any bill it passes to the public for approval, and must do so for any amendment to the Constitution. Additionally, the Legislative Assembly may refer revisions to the Constitution; a revision differs from an amendment in that it may alter multiple provisions of the Constitution.

Qualified for November ballot

In the tables below, CICA stands for Citizen-initiated constitutional amendment; CISS stands for Citizen-Initiated State Statute; VR stands for Veto referendum and LR stands for Legislative referral.

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Status
LR	Measure 54	Elections	Standardizes voting eligibility for school board elections with other state and local elections	Approved
LR	Measure 55	Legislatures	Change operative date of redistricting plans to allow affected legislators to finish term in original district	Approved
LR	Measure 56	HJR 15	May And November property tax elections are to be decided by majority of voters voting in the relevant election (removes supermajority requirement established by Measure 47 in 1996.	Approved
LR	Measure 57	Law enforcement	Increases sentences for drug trafficking, theft against elderly, and specific repeat property and identity theft crimes, more.	Approved
CISS	Measure 58	Education	Requires english immersion for non-english speaking students	Defeated
CISS	Measure 59	Tax reform	Makes federal income taxes fully deductible on state return	Defeated
CISS	Measure 60	Education	"Teacher compensation must be based on classroom performance"	Defeated
CISS	Measure 61	Judicial reform	"Mandatory sentences for drug dealers, identity thieves, burglars and car thieves"	Defeated (And superseded by Measure 57)
CICA	Measure 62	State budget	"15% of lottery profits for crime prevention, investigation and prosecution"	Defeated
CISS	Measure 63	Property Rights	Allows minor improvements To property without building permit	Defeated
CISS	Measure 64	Payroll Deductions	Prohibits using taxpayer-funded resources to collect political funds	Defeated
CISS	Measure 65	Conduct of elections	The "top-two" measure; creates open primaries. All voters would be able to vote in all state and local partisan elections, regardless of party affiliation.	Defeated

Newspaper endorsements

See also: Oregon 2008 statewide measures, newspaper endorsements

Measure number	54	55	56	57	58	59	60	61	62	63	64	65
Oregonian	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Portland Tribune (also see [1] and [2])	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	?	no	yes
Willamette Week	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Eugene Register Guard	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Salem Statesman Journal	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	yes	no	no	no
Bend Bulletin	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Daily Astorian	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Cascade Business News	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Corvallis Gazette Times	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Yamhill Valley News Register	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes
Southern Oregon Mail Tribune	yes	yes	yes	yes	no	no	no	no	no	no	no	yes

Didn't make November ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Status
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 5 (2008)	Campaign Finance Reform	Prohibits Campaign Contributions Creating Conflict Of Interest	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 6 (2008)	Campaign Finance Reform	Prohibits Using Public Resources To Collect Political Funds	Approved for circulation
Part 1:CISS Part 2: ICA	Oregon Ballot Measure 35 (2008)	Oregon Revenue Enhancement And Protection Act of 2008, Part l or II	Establishes Privately-Owned Casino Near Portland; Creates Gaming Commission Oversight; Allocates Portion Of Casino Revenues	Prohibited from obtaining further signatures until accounts are produced
Part 1:CISS Part 2: ICA	Oregon Ballot Measure 37 (2008)	The Oregon Lottery Revenue Enhancement And Protection Act Of 2008, Part I or II	Establishes Single Privately-Owned Casino Near Portland; Allocates Percentage Of Casino Revenue To Lottery Commission	Prohibited from obtaining further signatures until accounts are produced
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 44 (2008)	Judicial reform	Limits sentencing powers of the Juvenile Court of Oregon	Prohibited from attaining more signatures until accounts are produced
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 51 (2008)	Judicial reform	Caps on attorney fees	Not enough valid signatures to qualify
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 53 (2008)	Judicial reform	Make lawyers accountable for lawsuit abuses	Not enough valid signatures to qualify
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 61 (2008)	Property taxes	$100,000 plus incremental senior citizen homestead exemption act	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 67 (2008)	Business regulations	Collision Repair Quality Assurance Act	Prohibited from attaining more signatures until accounts are produced
CICA	Oregon Ballot Measure 78 (2008)	Administration of Government	Requires Legislative Super-Majority to declare Emergency	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 84 (2008)	Environment	Forest restoration	Prohibited from attaining more signatures until accounts are produced
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 99 (2008)	Administration of Government	Eliminates legislators conflict of interest in public employee retirement benefits	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 105 (2008)	County ownership of land	Revokes State Consent To Federal Land Ownership In Oregon, With Exceptions; Counties To Own Instead	Approved for circulation
CICA	Oregon Ballot Measure 108 (2008)	Health / Medical	Monetary consideration for taking of human life prohibited	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 112 (2008)	Illegal Immigration	Would allow local police to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport people who are in the country illegally	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 124 (2008)	Drug Policy	License and regulated medical marijuana supply system	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 134 (2008)	Initiative & Referendum	Oregon Initiative Restorative Act	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 135 (2008)	Renewable Energy Development Act of 2008	Creates Commission Authorized To: Develop, Generate, Sell, Buy, Distribute Electricity And Renewable Energy; Issue Bonds	Approved for circulation
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 144 (2008)	Repeal HB 2007- 2007 Legislature domestic partnership law	Retroactively Repeals Laws Granting State Privileges, Immunities, Rights, Benefits, Responsibilities Of Marriage To Domestic Partners	Withdrawn
CISS	Oregon Ballot Measure 145 (2008)	Repeal Of SB 2- 2007 Leg. Session anti-discrimination law	Removes Sexual Orientation From Statutes Listing Impermissible Discrimination Grounds; Deletes Other Sexual-Orientation-Related Provisions	Withdrawn

For information on other citizen initiatives that attempted but failed to make the ballot, see Oregon 2008 citizen initiatives.

On the May 20 statewide ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Status
LR	Oregon Ballot Measure 51/Originally 402	HJR 49	Enable crime victims to enforce existing constitutional rights in prosecutions, delinquency proceedings	Passed
LR	Oregon Ballot Measure 52/Originally 403	HJR 50	Enable Crime Victims To Enforce Existing Constitutional Rights In Prosecutions, Delinquency Proceedings; Authorizes Implementing Legislation	Passed
LR	Oregon Ballot Measure 53/Originally 404	SJR 18	Modify provisions governing civil forfeitures related to crimes; permits use of proceeds by law enforcement	Passed

Finding further information

The Oregon Secretary of State maintains an ongoing, current file of initiatives, referendum and legislatively referred potential ballot measures.

Oregon Initiative, Referendum and Referral Search

Their search function allows you to search under the categories of active, withdrawn, qualified, citizen initiative, veto referendum, legislative referral, approved to circulate, and whether the measure's proponents have indicated to the Secretary of State that they intend to pay circulators.