Governor Evers Wants Citizen Referenda. Representative Vos Says No. De...

On January 6, Governor Tony Evers announced that he would include legislation in his executive budget that would allow for binding citizen referenda in Wisconsin.  While Wisconsinites vote on advisory referenda, on funding initiatives proposed by local government, or on constitutional amendments proposed by the legislature, the state has no legal path for citizen-proposed initiatives to go to a binding vote.

For his part, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos declared the governor’s proposal “dead on arrival,” a stance the governor called “breathtaking” in its dismissiveness.

Are citizen initiatives a panacea for what ails state democracy?  Derek Clinger, staff attorney with the State Democracy Research Initiative of the University of Wisconsin Law School spoke with Monday Eight o’Clock Buzz host Brian Standing to talk about how referenda work in various places around the country.

Featured image courtesy of Derek Clinger

Web posting by WORT producer Nicholas Wootton

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