Idaho Group Wins Permission To Collect Online Signatures For School Funding Initiative
Listen
A federal appeals court has ruled an Idaho initiative campaign can move ahead with collecting online signatures for its school funding measure.
Reclaim Idaho hopes to put its initiative on the November ballot. It would require the state to raise state income taxes for corporations and people who make more than $250,000 a year. The money would be routed to public schools.
The group had asked the state for extra time to circulate petitions after signature gathering was interrupted in March due to the coronavirus. The state refused the request, so the group sued and won in federal court in Boise.
Judge Lynn Winmill said Reclaim Idaho is on track to gather enough signatures and should be allowed another 48 days to collect signatures online. Thursday’s ruling clears the way for that to begin.
Reclaim Idaho’s Luke Mayville says the group fought hard for the right to get its measure on the ballot this year.
“The governor has just proposed cutting $99 million out of our K-12 system. In fact he ordered that cut just earlier this week and we cannot afford to cut any more dollars out of our system when we’re already dead last out of 50 states,” Mayville said
He says the group hopes to begin collecting signatures online by Monday. He says it needs the signatures of about 30-thousand voters by late August to qualify the measure for the ballot.
Copyright 2020 Spokane Public Radio. To see more, visit spokanepublicradio.org
Related Stories:
Reclaim Idaho Nears Signature Goal To Increase Education Funding In Gem State
Mayville was the driving force behind the Medicaid Expansion initiative that Idaho voters approved in 2018. Now, he’s back with what he calls the Quality Education Act.
Idaho Legislature Passes Bill Aimed At Making Citizen Initiatives Harder To Get On Ballot
Legislation making it more difficult to get initiatives or referendums on ballots is heading to the governor, who has hinted of a possible veto. The House voted 51-18 on Wednesday to approve the measure backers said is needed because the current process favors urban voters. It passed the Senate 26-9 last month. Those numbers are enough to overcome a veto.
Idaho Lawmakers Move Closer To Making It Harder To Get Initiatives On The Ballot
An Idaho House panel approved legislation Monday making it more difficult to get initiatives or referendums on ballots in what is widely seen as a rural vs. urban issue.
