Improper initiatives should be voted down

Letter to the editor, Oct. 4, 2006

I wrote in August to alert you to the dangers in Initiative CI-97. Since then, Montana has been handed two major victories in the fight against CI-97. First, Judge Sandefur of Great Falls ruled that due to “specific and widespread instances of deceptive practices” in the signature gathering process CI-97, CI-98 and 1-154 are decertified.

Second, Judge Thomas Honzel of Helena ruled that “CI-97 contains at least two amendments to the Constitution” and violates the single subject amendment of the Montana Constitution. Honzel ruled that the secretary of state was not to count any votes on CI-97.

Now, that would certainly indicate that CI-97 was a dead issue. However, CI-97 will appear on the ballot and both of these cases have been appealed to the Montana Supreme Court.

So, it is still important that you vote “no” on CI-97 because if the Supreme Court should overthrow these cases every vote will count and it is imperative that we defeat CI-97 “So Vote Like It Counts” and urge your friends to vote “no” on CI-97. In addition, I would encourage you to vote “no” on all three of these out of state sponsored initiatives: CI-97, CI-98 and 1- 154. We really don’t need to have out of state folks, with too much money, tell us how to change our Constitution or run our state.

Verner Bertelsen, Helena