Nebraska Legislative Bill 39

From Ballotpedia

Ballot law
State laws
Initiative law Recall law 2009 lawsuits Statutory changes
Court cases
Lawsuit news Ballot access rulings Recent court cases Petitioner access Ballot title challenges Superseding initiatives Signature challenges

Nebraska Legislative Bill 39 (LB 39), sponsored by state legislator DiAnna Schimek, was approved by the state's unicameral legislature Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2008 by a vote of 31-14 with four senators not voting. Gov. Dave Heineman then vetoed the bill on February 13, saying that in his view it encroached on the rights of citizens to launch petition drives.^[1],^[2] After threatening to do so,^[3],^[4] on Tuesday, February 19, Sen. Schimek led a successful effort to overturn Gov. Heineman's veto.^[5] It was overturned by just one vote.

LB 39 institutes a residency requirement for petition gatherers and bans compensation for petition circulators based on the number of signatures they collect. It also requires that petition circulators be at least 18. Violating the new law is a Class III misdemeanor punishable with a $500 fine and three months in jail.

Paul Schumacher of Columbus, Nebraska, a sponsor of the 2008 Use Public Power Initiative whose volunteer petition drive failed, said he expects the new law to be challenged in court.^[6]

Opponents

Opponents of the measure call the bill a violation of free speech and a threat to the initiative process. Opponents argue that since most ordinary voters are busy with their own lives and responsibilities, professional petition-gathering efforts are often the only way to collect enough signatures to get a measure on the ballot. They say such efforts offer ordinary citizens the oportunity to sign petitions for measures that they want to be able to vote on but don't have the time or resources to pursue otherwise.

See also

• Changes in 2008 to laws governing the initiative process
• Laws governing petition circulators
• Missouri House Bill 1763 (2008)
• Washington House Bill 2601 (2008)
• Montana Senate Bill 96 (2007)
• Petition blocking
• History of restrictions on paid circulators

External links

• Legislative history of LB 39
• Text of the bill
• Petition circulators could be limited to residents
• History of restrictions to initiative rights in Nebraska
• A modern slingshot for voters

References

1. ↑ Nebraska governor vetoes bill that crimped petitioning February 13, 2008, Ballot Access News.
2. ↑ Nebraska governor vetoes bill requiring petition circulators to be 18
3. ↑ North Platte Bulletin: Gov. Heineman vetoes petition changes
4. ↑ Neb. governor vetoes bill to restrict petition circulators First Amendment Center, February 14, 2008
5. ↑ Legislature overrides veto on petitioning
6. ↑ Organizers expect petition drives to fail