Cut Pay of ‘Bounty Hunters’

California’s initiative petition system is increasingly out of control. One reason is that the people who collect petition signatures can make as much as $5 for every John Hancock they gather.

The initiative system, designed to allow citizens to write their own laws, is riddled with problems. It is, for instance, far too easy for a wealthy special interest to write a law that is good for the special interest and lousy for the public. The process begs for reform, but citizens are reluctant to tinker with it. And reforms often run into constitutional obstacles because courts have found they limit citizen access to this democratic process.

Assemblywoman Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills) offers one small solution in her AB 980, which goes before the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee on Wednesday. The bill would require that “bounty hunters” who collect signatures be paid by the hour rather than by the number of names they collect. The measure would also apply to those signing up new members of state political parties.

The bill is supported by both the secretary of state’s office and county elections officials who say it would eliminate a source of election fraud in California. North Dakota and Wyoming now have similar laws. The North Dakota law was challenged but upheld by a federal appeals court, which ruled that the hourly pay requirement would not inhibit the ability to collect signatures.

Paying collectors by the signature invites them to commit fraud by making up names and addresses or simply copying them from voter rolls or other lists. Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks) has a task force working on initiative reform. It too should explore ways to rid the system of this “bounty hunter” temptation to pad lists with phony names.

In the meantime, the Assembly committee should approve the Pavley measure to keep this proposed reform moving along the legislative process.