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             Fraudulent CA Initiative Petition - Did You Sign?

Between January and April of 1996, a group calling themselves "Californians 
Against Political Corruption" circulated petitions to place an initiative 
entitled "The Anti-Corruption Act of 1996" on the California ballot.  
Potential signers of this initiative were told that it would limit campaign 
contributions and spending and "get special interest money out of politics."  
Enough signatures were collected to qualify this initiative for the November 
1996 ballot.

On June 17, the California Fair Political Practices Commission informed 
interested parties of a key provision which they had discovered in the so-
called "Anti-Corruption Act."  According to the FPPC, this initiative would 
repeal major portions of the ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT ACT OF 1990.  This act, 
passed by voters in the wake of an FBI sting, placed limits on gifts, 
honoraria, and travel that could be given to California elected and appointed 
government officials.  

The "Anti-Corruption Act" would eliminate the ban on honoraria for all 
candidates, local government officials, and members of State boards and 
commissions.  It would also allow state and local elected officials and 
candidates to accept unlimited gifts and free travel.  This money would go to 
them *personally*, circumventing all campaign finance restrictions entirely.

Importantly, signers of this initiative were not told (and did not have the 
opportunity to learn) that it would repeal the ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT ACT.  This 
is a clear violation of California law which states that the major provisions 
of an initiative should be outlined in the title and summary contained on the 
petition form.

Based on this deficient title and summary, a League of Women Voters led 
coalition (Californians for Political Reform) has filed a complaint against 
the sponsors of this initiative, stating that they failed to fulfill their 
legal requirement to adequately inform signers of their petitions as to its 
true content.  In short, signatures in support of "Anti-Corruption Act" were 
obtained fraudulently, as most people would *not* have signed had they known 
that the true effect of this initiative would be to repeal the ETHICS IN 
GOVERNMENT ACT.

To support this contention, we are looking for people who signed the petition 
to place the "Anti-Corruption Act" on the ballot, but would not have done so 
if they had known about its repeal of the ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT ACT.  If you 
fit this description, please contact us by email at mgunn@cgl.ucsf.edu or call 
our coalition office at (916) 444-0834.

This is *your* chance to do something about the increasing number of "bait-and 
switch" California initiatives that aren't what they claim to be.

Just so you know, the fact that the "Anti-Corruption Act" would repeal the 
ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT ACT is *not* in question.  The proponents of this 
initiative have now admitted to the press that this was their intention 
("Measure Repeals Limits on Political Gifts" LA Daily Journal 6/19/96 
<http://www.vida.com/cfr/LADJ.html>).

If you would like more detailed information on this attempted repeal 
California's limits on political gifts and honoraria (including the text of 
the current law and relevant provisions of the ACA), see: 
<http://www.vida.com/cfr/ethics.html>

Michael Gunn                                Californians for Political Reform
mgunn@cgl.ucsf.edu                                           www.vida.com/cfr