Federal court says Oregon law regulating initiatives does not violate First Amendment

In an attempt to cut down on initiative fraud, the Legislature in 2007 passed a sweeping bill that prohibits paid canvassers who have been convicted of fraud, forgery or identity theft. Canvassers also had to register with the state and petition sponsors had to provide payroll records to demonstrate they were not paying canvassers by the signature – a practice banned by a voter-passed initiative in 2002.

The law was challenged by two conservative activists, Russ Walker and Glenn Pelikan, who have been involved in a number of initiative campaigns. Their attempt to invalidate the 2007 law had already met a dead end in state court.

U.S. District Judge Michael Hogan ruled that the state’s reforms did not prohibit petitioners from engaging in “core political speech” and that the additional burdens were valid to ensure the “integrity of the petition process.”

Secretary of State Kate Brown, who worked on the reforms as a state legislator, lauded the decision, saying the laws “were absolutely necessary in restoring public confidence in the system.”

Ross Day, one of the attorneys for the petitioners, said he saw the decision as just another step in his legal fight against the law. “It was always going to be appealed,” no matter who won at the district court level, he said.

Day, who also runs Common Sense for Oregon, which is backing several proposed initiatives, argued that the state should not be allowed to in essence license petitioners. He also said that the bookkeeping regulations are overly burdensome.

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