11/20/1989 Meeting (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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Ms. Ehrman expressed concern with the practice of tying the percentage of e signatures required for a Charter Amendment or a referendum to the number of registered voters. She added that this being the initial public hearing concerning this issue and, given the fact that the only testimony offered was in opposition, the council should reconsider whether this subject is worth spending further City resources. Mr. Rutan said that part of the initial purpose for reviewing the initiative process was to reconsider some areas of the process that appeared to need modification. Public testimony reveals that the council has not done an adequate job of processing this issue. He felt that the council should not abandon this issue and offered support for forwarding the alternative petition to the vote of Eugene Citizens. Ms. Bascom said her perception of widespread public opinion regarding the proposed ordinance is that such a change will be damaging to the initiative process. If the council is going to pursue the idea of public review, review should not be limited to the NL. Ms. Bascom noted that the entire initiative process allows for healthy public participation in local government and, speaking on behalf of the entire council, feels that the initiative process should not be lost. For these reasons, she wanted to table this decision. Mr. Green said the council has the information required to make a decision at present. In light of public testimony against this ordinance, there is no need to forward this information to community groups. Mr. Boles agreed that the council should make a decision quickly. He added that the two issues of e signature percentage requirements and ballot title wording need to be dealt with separately. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Mr. Bennett, to proceed with consideration of the ordinance as it is drafted. Ms. Schue moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, to amend this motion, to reflect the adoption of an alternative measure whereby the required number of signatures is tied to the electorate at 8.5 for the referendum petition and 12.5 percent for the charter amendment and initiative petition. Mr. Boles commented that public testimony clearly reflects that Eugene citizens do not want to change the number of signatures required for either the Charter Amendment or the referendum. The amendment to the motion changes the number of signatures by moving it to a base of registered electors. He encourage council members to vote against both the main motion and the motion amending it. Roll call vote; the amended motion failed, 2:6, with councilors Rutan and Schue voting in favor; and councilors Boles, Holmer, Bennet, Bascom, Green, and Ehrman voting against. . MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 20, 19~9 Page 5