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OLYMPIA, Washington: An anti-initiative bill, also known as SJR 8202, has been refiled with the Washington Legislature. Proposed by Sen. Ken Jacobsen, the bill calls for a constitutional amendment that eliminates initiative and referendum from the Washington Constitution. Initiative and referendum powers allotted by the state constitution include: a statute that prevents the legislature from limiting initiative and referendum, a statute that allows for creation of new lotteries with affirmative vote of the legislature or referendum or initiative, a statute that prevents the amendment of bills approved by majority vote, and a statute that subjects legislature approved-laws to referendum petition by the people. However, the proposed Senate bill does not affect powers of initiative and referendum for local governments.[1][2] Sen. Jacobsen, during a 2009 hearing on the bill, argued, "Initiative and referendum restricts the system during a crisis. The process used to involve individuals donating their time to collect signatures, where now it has become a professional venture."[3] The bill was first presented during the 2009 legislative session.[4]
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