Voters can have impact on Legislature if they try
In April of 2005, I spoke before a committee of the Alabama House of Representatives in favor of a bill that, if passed, would have helped restore trust in our Legislature, saying, in part:
“I support Initiative and Referendum, especially in the form House Bill 276 would provide, for one basic, reason: It would be good for me, good for all Alabamians, and good for our state government -especially this legislature.
"The enactment of this bill would be a contributing factor toward restoring public trust and confidence in our government, because it would send a message to your constituents that you trust them enough to give them an opportunity to have more of a voice in how the government they own operates than they have now with their only voice, now, being through the two legislators that they send here to work in their behalf – just two out of the 140 members of the Alabama Legislature.
"This bill, as written, is no more than an insurance policy that will insure that if the legislature fails to work for the benefit the majority of the voters, then those voters will have a means of doing it for themselves.”
Rep. Mike Ball authored that bill, and he has continued to introduce it in each regular session of the legislature since then. I’m confident that he will introduce it again in 2910.
The only way his bill will ever be passed by the Legislature is for enough voters to apply pressure on the two legislators who represent them to make a majority of legislators fear being voted out of office if they don’t vote for it. Voters can help bring better government to Alabama if they want it badly enough to do just that.
Don Seibold
Wetumpka
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