Tribes File Suit To Block Referendums

Yesterday, the Morongo Band of Mission Indians and the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians filed a formal lawsuit in Sacramento Superior Court to block the referendums from appearing on the February 5 statewide ballot.

The two Riverside County tribes claim opponents of their recent gambling deals missed the deadline to file signatures for February ballot measures that would give voters final say on whether they can expand their casinos. They contend that Secretary of State Debra Bowen wrongly let the agreements' opponents have 90 days to gather voter signatures.

In their suits, the tribes argue that the 90-day window covers both circulating petitions as well as the weeks-long process of certifying signatures. Opponents of the deals turned in their last petitions on the Monday deadline -- too late to be certified, the plaintiffs say.

"The language is clear. The entire process -- from enactment of the statute to the certification of the validity of signatures -- must be completed in 90 days," Robert Martin, chairman of the Morongo tribe, said in a statement.

Gov. Schwarzenegger signed legislation ratifying the compacts with the Morongo and Pechanga tribes, as well as two other tribes, on July 10, when the 90-day clock started running.

Al Lundeen, a spokesman for groups trying to qualify the measures, called the lawsuits "absurd and frivolous."

The anti-expansion campaign said it turned in about 2.8 million signatures, about 300,000 more than the minimum number of valid voter signatures needed to qualify each referendum measure.

"We abided by the calendar. We have no reason to expect anything other than voters will have a chance to say yes or no to these gambling deals in February," Lundeen said.

The language at issue is found in Article II, Section 9:
"A referendum measure may be proposed by presenting to the Secretary of State, within 90 days after the enactment date of the statute, a petition certified to have been signed by electors equal in number to 5 percent of the votes for all candidates for Governor at the last gubernatorial election, asking that the statute or part of it be submitted to the electors. "

Full Articles:
http://www.kqed.org/weblog/capitalnotes/2007/10/tribes-ask-court-to-block-referendums.jsp
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_D_referendum11.3db000e.html