‘Cleaning Up the Ballot’

I was pleased to read in The Times Dec. 26 editorial “Cleaning Up the Ballot” that you support initiative reform in California. The Times printed my initiative reform proposal “Keep the Initiatives but Reinvolve Legislators” on Nov. 27 (Op-Ed Page).

While the indirect initiative process proposed by the League of Women Voters and supported by The Times sounds similar to my idea, there are some differences. According to the editorial, the League’s proposal would allow initiative proponents to avoid the legislative process by requiring the signature gatherers to meet a higher signature quota than if they submitted it to review. This seems to me to subvert the very idea of indirect initiatives, i.e., to involve the governor and the Legislature in the process.

My initiative reform solution would require the involvement of the governor and Legislature on any ballot initiative for which at least half the required signatures had been gathered. The governor would be required to appoint a three-member commission to make recommendations to him within 60 days. The Legislature would then have 90 days to deal with the governor’s recommendations.

We have had a plethora of initiatives lately because the governor and the Legislature have failed to deal with pressing problems facing California residents. My proposal would involve them in the process. That’s what they are paid to do.

As The Times points out, the initiative process provides an important “safety value” for the people of California, but as important as this process is, it can and should be improved.

EDMUND D. EDELMAN

Chairman

Board of Supervisors

County of Los Angeles