Los Angeles herald., 1908-09-22

ments to the charter be submitted to
the voters for approval was presented
to the legislative authority of the city,
the legislative authority thereof Chat
is the city counciD must submit the
same. 1t seems to me that If these
words mean anything they mean that
the council must submit the exact
amendment. proposed by the voters
petition. If, then, the council in SUBJ
mitting the amendment proposed by
the voters, would be complying with
the plain duty enjoined by the con-
stitution, would it also be complying
with the constitution if 1t submitted
such amendment as proposed but with
an alternative proposition appended
thereto at its own instance?
Element of Doubt
81 am aware of the fact that this
view affords certain element of doubt
and room for discussion. and that it
involves the seeming contradiction of
placing a practical restriction or limit
alton upon the right Of petitioning
voters to have amendments proposed
by them submitted to the voters with
out the interposition of any contrary
or inconsistent amendments proposed
by the council. We have seen that
when an amendment is proposed by
the voters the council must submit the
same. Now, If the council may propose
an alternative thereto it is in sense
as If the council should say, Yes, we
will submit your amendment, but upon
the condition that another contrary
proposal on our part is submitted, so
that in voting upon your amendment
the electors must also vote upon ours
and choose between them. The voters
then, in order to adopt the first prop
osition, must also vote upon the sec-f
ond and reject the contrary or alter
native proposal. If the amendment as
proposed We're submitted without the
coupling with it of an alternative, it
could be accepted or rejected as a sim
gle proposition, but as submitted with
an alternative it can only be adopted
upon the condition that the alternative
be rejected. In other words, the ques-
ton as proposed by the voters is not
the same as that actually submitted,
at the election, and the question re-
mains, Why should the voters be re-
quired to reject a contrary proposal in
order to adopt the one proposed by the
petition?
"There is a practical difficulty. in
submitting. alternatives which should
be carefully provided against. Under
the election laws Of the state, when
ever any proposition is to be submit
ted to the vote of the people there
shall be printed on the ballot opposite
such proposition to be voted on, in
separate lines, the words Yes and
NO If the elector stamps cross (X)
in the voting square after the printed
word Yes his vote is counted in favor
of the adoption of the proposition, and
if he stamps a cross (X) after the
printed word NO his vote is to be
counted against the adoption of the
same.
1.-THE constitution declares with ref
erence to alternatives that any alter
native article or proposition may be
presented for the choice of the voters,
and may be voted on separately with
out prejudice to others. This Ian
guage is not clear, and there is room
for a very serious diversity of opinion
as to its meaning and effect as ap-
piled to the submission of alternatives.
It seems to me obvious, however, that
the words Yes and No must be print
ed on the ballot containing the alter
native propositions after each PROPOSE
ton, and the voter must be given an
opportunity to vote for or against
either proposition. While a voter can
not vote Yes on both propositions. ap-
parently he may vote upon one without
voting upon the other at all; he may
vote No upon both and he may vote
Yes upon one and not upon the other.
The result Is conceivable, therefore,
since the propositions are voted upon
separately, that more votes might be
cast in favor of the original PROPOSE
ton than against 1t, and more in favor
of the alternative than against 1t.
such a result would present legal
complication that would be unfortu-
nate from every standpoint. for In a
matter affecting the changing of so
vital thing as the organic law of the
city there should be no accident pos
sible that would make such change the
subject of litigation. But here again
I think reliance must be placed upon
the common sense of the voters.
Another Resolution
"At the same meeting at which the
resolution requesting this opinion was
adopted another resolution was adopt
ed regarding the opinion of the city
attorney upon the question whether the
council was obliged to call a special
election for the purpose of submit
ting the amendments proposed by the
petition now before you or whether
YOU could exercise your discretion In
the matter and defer the submission OF
the amendments to the next general
CITY election to be held in December,
1909 Stated in general terms, as
bald legal proposition, the decision or
the supreme court has been given to
the effect that under the provision OF