July 8, 2008 - 4:12pm
Close, but no cigar for I-1016
By Bryan Bissell
Category: LocalTags: 1-1000, I-1029, I-985, I-1016, ballot initiatives, smoking ban, death with dignity, assisted suicide
A proposed initiative to allow smoking in certain businesses, notably private clubs and cigar bars, has fallen painfully short of the 224,800 signatures required to gain a place on the November ballot. The Olympian has a story on the ill-fated Initiative 1016, which collected more than 213,000 signatures, just over 10,000 short of the necessary amount.
The other prominent ballot initiatives to hit the magic mark were I-1000, which would permit doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication to terminally ill patients, I-985, which would change some of the priorities of the Department of Transportation in accordance with an audit completed last year, and I-1029, which would require more training for home care workers.
On the heels of the failed ballot initiative, I-1016 sponsor Joe Arundel says he will instead look to lobby the legislature next session to grant exceptions to the state's smoking ban.
"We need to do something about this," he said. "The exemptions we were looking for are relatively small."
Arundel also owns a cigar bar in Seattle.
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Syndicate
yep
I agree. It's never about reducing congestion. If that were the case they would implement a mass transit system like they have in the bigger cities - which always helps reduce congestion, fuel consumption, and pollution.
I-985 dedicates funds to build more roads
Hidden away in the Initiative 985 fine print that most petition signers never read is the true intent of Eymans's latest initiative gimmick.
Initiative 985 creates a $290 million dollar biannual dedicted fund to build more roads, while opposing any use of the tax dollars for bike paths, park and ride lots or any form of public transit.
Eyman has sold the initiative to petition signers as a measure to reduce traffic congestion but only talks about opening car pool lanes, synchronizing traffic lights and adding emergency tow vehicles to roads.
Once that is completed the remainder of the money is to go for "expanding road capacity" and "to improve traffic flow for all vehicles"
He then excludes any use of the money for "creating, maintaining or operating bike paths or lanes, wildlife crossings, landscaping, park and ride lots, ferries, trollies, buses, monorail, light rail or heavy rail."
Initiative 985 isn't about reducing congestion, it's really about building more roads. With escalating gas prices and increasing global warming, we need to reduce single car occupancy vehicles, not put more on the roads.
Taxpayers should vote no on I-985 and not add another $290 million to our projected $2.7 billion dollar state deficit in the next biennium.
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