1981 ballot measures
This page provides a list of statewide ballot measures that appeared before voters in 1981.
In the United States, a ballot measure is a law, issue, or question that appears on a statewide or local ballot for voters of that jurisdiction to decide.
- HBM Factbooks
- List of ballot measures by state
- Other years
Historical Ballot Measure Factbooks
The inventory of statewide ballot measures is part of Ballotpedia's Historical Ballot Measure Factbooks, which document nearly 200 years of direct democracy in the United States. This ongoing research effort will provide an unparalleled resource for researchers, reporters, and voters on how ballot measures have evolved, the issues they've covered, and the role they have played in our civic life. Click here to access the state historical ballot measure factbooks.
List of ballot measures by state
Kentucky
See also: Kentucky 1981 ballot measures
November 5
| Type | Title | Subject | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amendment 1 | Local official term limits; Executive official term limits |  | 213,988 (36%) | 381,362 (64%) |
May 26
| Type | Title | Subject | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amendment 2 | Taxes; Property |
| 254,065 (51%) | 247,939 (49%) |
Maine
See also: Maine 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Create an Energy Commission Measure | Administration of government; Utility policy | Establish the Maine Energy Commission | | 90,333 (38%) | 144,647 (62%) | |
| Proposed Constitutional Amendment No. 1 | Initiative and referendum process | Require all signatures for initiated measures to be dated and require signatures to expire after one year |
| 141,975 (65%) | 77,170 (35%) | |
| Proposed Constitutional Amendment No. 2 | State legislative elections | Remove requirement that members of the state House must continue to reside in the same town after elected |
| 193,862 (84%) | 37,257 (16%) | |
| Proposed Constitutional Amendment No. 3 | Bond issues; Public education funding | Decrease the bonding limit of the Maine School Building Authority from $10 million to $6 million |
| 143,962 (64%) | 80,300 (36%) | |
| Question 4 | Parks, land, and natural area conservation; Bond issues | Issue $1.5 million in bonds to fund the development of state park facilities | | 113,118 (49%) | 119,900 (51%) | |
| Question 6 | Bond issues; Telecommunications infrastructure | Issue $600,000 in bonds to fund equipment replacement for the Maine Public Broadcasting Network | | 111,575 (48%) | 119,603 (52%) | |
| Referendum Question No. 1 | Public economic investment policy; Agriculture policy; Transportation; Bond issues | Issue $33.3 million in bonds for agricultural and economic development, including airport improvements, port facilities, feed grain terminal facilities, and potato storage and centralized packing facilities |
| 134,261 (57%) | 100,840 (43%) | |
| Referendum Question No. 2 | Bond issues; Transportation | Issue $12.3 million for bridge and highway improvements |
| 163,180 (69%) | 72,251 (31%) | |
| Referendum Question No. 3 | Environment; Energy conservation and efficiency; Bond issues | Issue $2 million for energy conservation improvements to state-owned buildings |
| 133,514 (57%) | 99,251 (43%) | |
| Referendum Question No. 5 | Bond issues; Pollution, waste, and recycling policy | Issue $1 million in bonds to help municipalities with solid waste for resource conservation and recovery systems |
| 139,255 (60%) | 92,060 (40%) |
Michigan
See also: Michigan 1981 ballot measures
May 19
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proposal A | Revenue and spending limits; Property tax exemptions; Income taxes; Public education funding; Property taxes; Sales taxes; Revenue allocation | Reduce certain taxes, raise the sales tax with additional funds going to local governments and schools, and direct lottery profits to the school aid fund | | 560,924 (28%) | 1,451,305 (72%) |
New Jersey
See also: New Jersey 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Question No. 1 | Bond issues | The Water Supply Bond Act of 1981 authorized $350 million in bonds for improvements to and construction of water supply facilities. |
| 1,154,854 (65%) | 634,834 (35%) | |
| Public Question No. 2 | Bond issues | The Hazardous Discharge Bond Act authorized $100 million in bonds for the cleanup and removal of hazardous waste. |
| 1,109,070 (63%) | 647,557 (37%) | |
| Public Question No. 3 | Bond issues | The Farmland Preservation Bond Act authorized $50 million in bonds for grants to cover up to 50 percent of the cost of acquiring development easements and carrying out soil and water conservation projects. |
| 1,065,996 (61%) | 668,172 (39%) | |
| Public Question No. 4 | Bond issues | The Water Conservation Bond Interest Rate Ceiling Elimination Act removed the 6 percent interest rate ceiling from water conservation bonds passed in 1969. |
| 929,033 (57%) | 697,424 (43%) | |
| Public Question No. 5 | Gambling policy | The amendment to Article VI, Section 7, paragraph 2 of the New Jersey Constitution authorized the use of revenues from gambling as funding for expanded or additional health and transportation services for the elderly and disabled. |
| 1,105,957 (68%) | 524,496 (32%) | |
| Public Question No. 6 | State executive official measures | The amendment to Article V, Section 1, paragraph 14 of the New Jersey Constitution required the Governor to consider all bills passed by the legislature prior to 10 days before the end of a legislative term. Previously, the Governor would request that passed legislation be presented, allowing for pocket vetoes by requesting them late in a legislative term and declining further action. The amendment also extended the time window for the Governor to consider a bill to 45 days and allowed for a special legislative session at the end of a term to work on bills sent back by the Governor. |
| 1,114,269 (68%) | 523,895 (32%) | |
| Public Question No. 7 | Property | The proposed amendment to Article VIII of the New Jersey Constitution added a fifth section allowing land tidal flowed within the previous 40 years to be claimed by the state; claims to land tidal flowed more than 40 years prior not presented by the state within one year were barred. Revenues from the sale of tidal flowed land were directed toward a public education fund. |
| 864,445 (53%) | 756,220 (47%) | |
| Public Question No. 8 | Gambling policy | The Amusement Games Licensing Law was amended to allow a state commissioner to set entry fees and prize values of amusement games, subject to a public hearing and legislative review. |
| 927,680 (58%) | 668,679 (42%) |
New York
See also: New York 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amendment 1 | Bond issues; Public economic investment policy | Increase the state's bond guarantee limit from $150 million to $300 million for financing facilities that improve employment opportunities. |
| 1,488,529 (60%) | 973,704 (40%) | |
| Proposal 1 | Bond issues; Prison and jail funding | Authorize $500 million in state debt to fund acquiring, constructing, rehabilitating, and equipping correctional facilities in New York. | | 1,272,672 (50%) | 1,286,371 (50%) |
Ohio
See also: Ohio 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Establishment of Reapportionment and Redistricting Commission Initiative | Redistricting policy | Establish new methods for establishing general assembly and congressional districts | | 1,093,485 (42%) | 1,513,502 (58%) | |
| Private Worker's Compensation Insurance Initiative | Insurance policy; Workers' compensation laws | Authorize the sale of workers compensation insurance coverage by private insurance companies | | 572,227 (21%) | 2,164,395 (79%) |
Pennsylvania
See also: Pennsylvania 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Question 1 | Bond issues; Water storage; Flood infrastructure and management; Ports and harbors; Drinking water systems | use loans to repair, construct, reconstruct, rehabilitate, extend and improve water supply systems |
| 1,054,329 (64%) | 588,669 (36%) | |
| Question 2 | Bond issues | use loans for volunteer companies to establish or modernize facilities and equipment |
| 1,188,191 (72%) | 462,950 (28%) | |
| Question 3 | Redistricting policy | amend the state constitution to establish a Legislative Reapportionment Commission after each decennial census |
| 823,948 (57%) | 625,700 (43%) | |
| Question 4 | Public employee retirement funds | amend the state constitution to authorize the legislature to extend increased pension benefits to the spouse of the pensioner | | 618,857 (40%) | 928,699 (60%) | |
| Question 5 | Taxes | Require proceeds from aviation fuel excise taxes only be appropriated for purposes related to air navigation, such as construction, operation and maintenance of air navigational facilities, and property tax reimbursement |
| 762,491 (52%) | 714,434 (48%) |
Rhode Island
See also: Rhode Island 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proposal 1 | Bond issues | The measure would have authorized $25 million in bonds for mass transit and highways. | | 28,847 (40%) | 43,442 (60%) |
Texas
See also: Texas 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proposition 1 | Bond issue requirements; Local government finance and taxes | Authorize localities to offer tax incentives and issue bonds for investment and redevelopment of designated areas |
| 473,087 (58%) | 339,020 (42%) | |
| Proposition 2 | Property | Grant legal title to individuals who mistakenly purchased and paid taxes on land designated for the public free school fund through a patent from the general land office |
| 632,438 (79%) | 170,666 (21%) | |
| Proposition 3 | State and local government budgets, spending, and finance | Permit the legislature to grant a state finance management committee the power to manage the spending of certain funds | | 293,478 (38%) | 473,886 (62%) | |
| Proposition 4 | Bond issue requirements | Authorize water infrastructure development through surplus state revenue, higher interest rates on unused state bonds, and a bond retirement program | | 339,816 (43%) | 458,721 (57%) | |
| Proposition 5 | Taxes; Agriculture policy | Exempt livestock and poultry from taxation |
| 534,078 (67%) | 261,315 (33%) | |
| Proposition 6 | Taxes | Allow localities to provide property taxation relief to residential homesteads |
| 553,960 (67%) | 278,306 (33%) | |
| Proposition 7 | Bond issues; Veterans policy | Authorize sale of an additional $250 million in bonds for veteran's land fund, raising maximum interest rate from 6 to 10 percent |
| 511,371 (65%) | 278,306 (35%) |
Washington
See also: Washington 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HJR 7 | Public economic investment policy; Bond issues | Authorize state and local governments to issue industrial development bond to be repaid by such developments and not by public funds. |
| 450,580 (56%) | 357,944 (44%) | |
| Initiative 394 | Energy market regulations; Ballot measure process; Bond issue requirements | Require that the state must obtain approval from voters before selling bonds to finance a major public energy project. |
| 532,178 (58%) | 384,419 (42%) | |
| Initiative 402 | Income taxes; Tax and revenue administration | Provide for the abolition of inheritance and gift taxes and substitute with taxes on net estate transfers. |
| 610,507 (67%) | 297,445 (33%) | |
| SJR 107 | State judicial authority | Remove constitutional limitations on the numbers and powers of superior court commissioners | | 385,796 (47%) | 439,542 (53%) | |
| SJR 133 | Initiative and referendum process | Make changes to the signature submission and verification timelines for Initiatives to the Legislature |
| 581,724 (74%) | 199,516 (26%) |
West Virginia
See also: West Virginia 1981 ballot measures
November 3
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amendment 1 | Highways and bridges; Bond issues | The amendment proposed issuing a $750 million highway construction bond. | | 125,582 (38%) | 201,327 (62%) |
Wisconsin
See also: Wisconsin 1981 ballot measures
April 7
| Type | Title | Subject | Description | Result | Yes Votes | No Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Question 1 | Primary election systems; Recall process | Require primary elections if there is more than one political party nomination for partisan office and more than two candidates for a nonpartisan office in a recall election |
| 366,635 (59%) | 259,820 (41%) | |
| Question 2 | Bond issues | Allow sewage districts and counties to issue bonds of up to 50 years in length |
| 386,792 (61%) | 250,866 (39%) | |
| Question 3 | Bail policy; Criminal trials | Authorize judges to consider certain circumstances when imposing and setting cash bail |
| 505,092 (73%) | 185,405 (27%) | |
| Question 4 | Business regulations; Constitutional wording changes | Remove a provision about a special act of the legislature creating corporations |
| 418,997 (69%) | 186,898 (31%) | |
| Question 5 | Banking policy; State legislative vote requirements | Remove a provision requiring a two-thirds majority to pass banking laws |
| 336,142 (54%) | 290,035 (46%) |
Other years
Click on a year in the following table to view that year’s state ballot measures.
See also
Footnotes
