GET BIG MONEY OUT OF OREGON POLITICS

By downloading and signing this Petition, you can help put a Constitutional Amendment to reform political campaign finance in Oregon on the 2010 ballot.

Already a supporter? Scroll down to help.
To help get signatures in Portland this weekend (April 18), contact

Philip Kauffman at 503-250-0327 or pmkauffman@gmail.com or check at www.fairelections.net/now

Oregon once led the nation in progressive reform. In the 1960s and 70s, Oregonians established the nation's first bottle bill, preserved the Oregon coastline by turning our beaches into state parks, and established land-use reforms that protected farm land and forests from development.

But that was before the Oregon Legislature repealed all limits on political expenditures in races for state and local offices. Then, after Oregon voters in 1994 overwhelmingly adopted strict limits on political contributions, the Oregon Supreme Court struck them down in 1997, leaving Oregon as one of only three states with a truly "Wild West" political system. Here, money rules.

Contributions to candidates for state or local office in Oregon have skyrocketed from $4.2 million in 1996 to over $49 million 10 years later. The big money boys are now in charge. For example, among all states Oregon continues to have the second lowest taxes on corporations and nearly the highest income taxes on families living near the poverty line. The corporations have cut their share of Oregon income taxes by 65% since 1975 and their share of Oregon property taxes by 24% since 1990.

Meanwhile, Oregon gives away hundreds of millions of dollars in video poker over-commissions and has allowed private electric utilities to charge ratepayers over $1.2 billion for "income taxes" that the utilities never paid.

The politicians and state bureaucrats have even gone so far as to refuse to enforce the limits on campaign contributions Oregonians voted into law in 2006 by statewide initiative. That leaves Oregon as one of only 3 states without such limits. Even the corrupt cesspool of Illinois politics is being cleaned up with limits on political contributions, effective this year. But not Oregon.

But you can help change this corrupt system

by putting a measure on the ballot to ensure that campaign contribution limits are enforced in Oregon. This can be done by (1) amending the Oregon Constitution to require enforcement of the voter-enacted limits and (2) preventing the Legislature from interfering. We need 1,000 petition signatures to get the ballot title process started.

If you agree, here are 6 easy steps for you to help:

• Click to download the signature sheet.(http://www.fairelections.net/2010/signatures.pdf)
• Click to print out the text of the proposed measure.
  (http://www.fairelections.net/2010/measuretext.pdf)
• Staple the sheet with the measure text behind the signature sheet, using one staple in the upper left corner.
• Fill out one of the numbered lines with your signature, the date, your printed name and address. Get your friends to sign also, on the other numbered lines.
• Fill out the "circulator certification" at the bottom of the sheet; make sure to date your signature on or after the last date upon which a voter signed the sheet. Do not fill in the sheet number at the bottom.

Then mail the completed sheet (with text stapled to it) to:

FairElections Oregon
9220 SW Barbur Blvd
Suite 119-254
Portland, OR 97219

If you would like to get more involved with the campaign, or to make a contribution, please visit www.fairelections.net.

Thanks for your help.

Ralph Nader