The Newport miner. [volume] (Newport, Wash.) 1899-current, 1912-08-01
Proposed Amendment to State Con.
StitutiOn.


State of Washington.
Office of the Secretary of State
| 10 whom 1t may concern: In obedi enr.
to an act of the legislature approved Msrcb
III, 1911, entitled as follows: IAN Act te
amend section l of article II of the Con
stltutlon OF the State of Washington, relat
ing TO legislative powers, providing for the
ton 81 of said article H. relating to the
time when laws take effect there is, hereby
published for the consideration of the voters
OF tne state OF Washington sathes following
proposed amendment to the constitution OF
said state "a
That at the general election to be held in
TINS state on the Tuesday next succeeding
the first Monday in November 1912 there
shall be submitted to the qualified electors
OF the state for adoption and approval
or rejection an amendment to article II
OF the Constitution of the State of Wash
lngton, relating to legislative powers, by
striking from article II all of sections / and
81, and inserting in lieu thereof as section
l the following, so that the same shall read
as follows:
Article II, section l. The legislative au-
thority of the State of Washington shall be
vested in the legislature, consisting of l.
senate and house of representatives, which
shall be called the legislature of the State
of Washington, but the people reserve to
themselves the power to propose bills, laws,
and to enact or reject the same at the polls
independent of the legislature, and also re-
serve power, at their own option, to approve
or reject at the polls any act, item, section
or part of any bill, act or law passed by the
| legislature.
(a) Initiatives: The first power reserved
by the people is the initiative. Ten per-
centum, but in no case more than fifty thou
sand, of the legal voters shall be required
to propose any measure by such petition,
and every such petition shall include the
| full text of the measure so proposed. Initia-
| tive petitions shall be filed with the Sec
rotary of state not less than four months
| before the election at which they are to be
voted upon, or not less than ten days before
| any regular session of the legislature. If
| filed at least four months before the election
! at which they are to be voted upon, he shall
| submit the to the vote of the people at
| the said election. If such petitions are filed
not less than ten days before any regular
| session of the legislature, he shall transmit
| the same to the legislature as soon as it
| convenes and organizes. Such initiative
measure shall take precedence over all other
measures in the legislature except appropria
ton bills and shall be either enacted or
| ected without change or amendment by the
| legislature before the end of such regular
session. If any. such initiative measure shall
| be enacted by the legislature it shall be sub
Ject to the referendum petition, it may
be enacted and referred by the legislature
| to the people for APPROVAL or rejection at the
next regular election If it is rejected or if
no action is taken upon it by the legislature
before the end of such regular session, the
secretary of state shall submit it to the peo-
pie for approval or rejection at the next en-
suing regular general election. The legisla-
ture NAV reject any measure so proposed by
initiative petition and propose different one
dealing with the subject, and in such
| event both measures shall be submitted by
the secretary of state to the people for ap-
proval or rejection at the next ensuino regu-
lar general election. When conflicting meas
ures are submitted to the people the ballots
shall be printed that voter can express
separately by making cross (X) for each
two preferences, first as between either
measure and neither, and secondly, be-
tween one and the other If the majority of
| those voting the first issue is for neither
both fail, but in that case the votes on the
second issue shall nevertheless be carefully
counted and made public. If majority
voting on the first issue is for either then
the measure receiving majority of the
votes on the second issue shall be law
CD Referendum. The second power re-
served by the people is the referendum, and
1t may be ordered any act, bill, law, or
any part thereof passed by the legislature,
except such laws as may be necessary for
the immediate preservation of the public
peace, health or safety, support of the state
government and its existing public institu-
,, tions, either by petition signed by the re-
quired percentage of the legal voters or by
the legislature as other bills enacted. Six
per centum, but in no case more than thirty
thousand of the legal voters shall be re-
quired to sign and make a valid referendum
petition.
(c) No act, law, OF bill subject to refer
endum shall take effect until ninety days
after the adjournment of the session at which
is enacted. No act, law, or bill ap
proved by a majority of the electors voting
thereon shall be amended or repealed by the
legislature within period of two years fol-
lowing such enactment. But such enactment
may be amended or repealed at any general
regular or special election by direct vote of
the people thereon.
(d) The filing of a referendum petition
against one or more items sections or parts
of any act, law or bill shall not delay the
remainder of the measure from becoming OPP
erative. Referendum petitions against meas
ures passed by the legislature shall be filed
with the secretary of state not later than
ninety days after the final adjournment of the
session of the legislature which passed the
measure which the referendum is de-
manded. The veto power of the governor
shall not extend to measures initiated by or
referred to the people. All elections on
measures referred to the people of the state
| shall be had at the biennial regular elections,
except when the legislature shall order
special election. Any measure initiated by
the people or referred to the people as herein
provided shall take effect and become the
law if it is approved by majority OF the
votes cast thereon; Provided, That the vote
cast upon such question or measure shall
equal one-third of the total vote cast at such
election and not otherwise. Such measure
shall be in operation on and after the thlr-
tieth day after the election at which 1t IS
approved. The style of all bills proposed
by initiative petition shall be: BE it en-
acted by the people of the State of Wash.
ington.' This section shall not be construed
to deprive any member of the legislature OF
the right to introduce any measure. The
whole number of electors who voted for gov
/ ernor at the regular gubernatorial election
last preceding the filing of any petition for
the initiative or for the referendum shall be
the basis on which the number of legal voters
necessary to sign such petition shall be
counted All such petitions shall be filed
with the secretary of state, who shall be
guided by the general laws in submitting the
same to the people until additional legislation y:
ton is self executing but legislation may be
ENACTED especially to facilitate its oerato of
publicity of all laws or parts of laws, and
amendments to the constitution referred to
the people with arguments for and against
the laws and amendments referred. so that
each voter of the state shall receive the pub
location at least fifty days before the election
at which they to be voted upon.
There shall be printed on all ballots pro-
vided for the said election, the words:
For the proposed amendment of section
1 of article II of the constitution of the State