Bill's Involvement in Oregon Politics
In political science, the initiative (also known as popular or citizen's initiative) provides a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote on a proposed statute, constitutional amendment, charter amendment or ordinance. It is a form of direct democracy.
In the United States the initiative is in use, at the level of state government, in 24 states and the District of Columbia, and is also in common use at the local and city government level. The initiative has been recognised in the US since at least 1777 when provision was made for it by the first constitution of Georgia.
However, the modern U.S. system of initiative and referendum originated in the state of Oregon in 1902, when the state's legislators adopted it by an overwhelming majority. The "Oregon System", as it was at first known, subsequently spread to many other states. Well known U.S. initiatives include various measures adopted by voters in states such as Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska.
Oregon holds the record for the most statewide initiatives (there were 318 between 1904 and 2000), the highest average initiative use (6.6 per general election), and the most statewide initiatives on the ballot in a single year - 27 in 1912. Historians identify one man as the driving force behind I&R: William Simon U'Ren known as early as 1898 as "Referendum U'Ren" for his single-minded devotion to the cause.
U'Ren, with the financial support of the Lewellings, took it upon himself to forge the tools of democracy: initiative, referendum, and recall. He brought together representatives of the state Farmer's Alliance and labor unions to form the Oregon Direct Legislation League, of which he was named secretary. In 1894 U'Ren was elected chairman of the state's Populist Party convention, and won approval of an I&R platform plank. That same year the League published a pamphletexplaining I&R and distributed it throughout the state: 50,000 copies in English and 15,000 in German.
In 1896 U'Ren won a seat in the state's lower house and in 1897 worked the legislature -without success - to gain approval for I&R. Warned that he might go to purgatory for his wheeling and dealing, U'Ren replied thunderously: "I'd go to hell for the people of Oregon!"
Following the 1897 defeat, U'Ren reorganized the League to broaden the base of I&R support. In addition to farmers and labor unionists, the new 17-member executive committee included bankers, the president of the state bar association (such attorneys'associations were notorious during the Progressive era for opposing I&R), and Portland Oregonian editor Harvey W. Scott.
U'Ren ran for the state senate in 1898 and lost, but nevertheless won passage of his I&R amendment the following year. Under Oregon's constitution, amendments had to be approved by two successive sessions of the legislature. In 1901 I&R passed with a single dissenting vote, and a year later voters ratified it by an eleven to one margin. U'Ren joined other reformers in sponsoring dozens of initiatives during the next two decades.
U'Ren is perhaps the only person to be honored by a monument commemorating his initiative work. The monument can be found in front of the Clackamas County Courthouse, on Main Street in Oregon City. The bronze plaque reads; "In honor of William Simon U'Ren, author of Oregon's constitutional provisions for initiative,referendum, and recall, giving the people control of law making and lawmakers and known in his lifetime as father of Oregon's enlightened system of government.
The 1990s saw the rise of an initiative proponent by the name of Bill Sizemore. Sizemore became known as Mr. Initiative. He drew the ire of the progressives (liberals) because all of the initiatives he sponsored (literally dozens) were all aimed at them – taxcuts, paycheck protection, labor reform and term limits. His success rate at the ballot box wasn’t stellar, but his impact on the initiative scene is indisputable.
Unfortunately, his success has also led to a backlash against the initiative process. His opponents, primarily labor unions, have sponsored initiatives themselves to try and make the initiative process more difficult – with limited success. However, they were successful in getting the state legislature to place on the ballot a constitutional amendment that would have drastically increased the number of signatures required for aconstitutional amendment. It was defeated handily. But undeterred by this defeat, the labor unions were eventually successful in placing an initiative on the 2002 ballot that would ban paying signature gatherers by the signature. It was adopted by the voters but a court challenge was being planned.
What has Bill accomplished for Oregonians?
In 1980, Bill ran for the Oregon State Senate as a conservative Republican in Multnomah County. Predictably, he lost. In 1982, he was the petition coordinator for an initiative drive to reinstate the death penalty in Oregon.
Since 1993, Bill Sizemore has been working in Oregon politics full-time, running a statewide taxpayer organization and placing various pro-taxpayer measures on the Oregon ballot. He has made a lot of friends and enemies by placing on the ballot measures that reduce taxes, preserve private property rights, and rein in the power of public employee unions. Currently, Bill Sizemore is the executive director of the Oregon Taxpayers Union, which has thousands of contributing members from every part of Oregon.
In 1998, Bill Sizemore was the Republican candidate for governor in Oregon. His campaign was unsuccessful, and incumbent John Kitzhaber was re-elected to a second term.
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