NEWS
RELEASE
July 10, 2000
Contact: Sandra Matsen, President
Judith Cambria, Fiscal Policy Director
LWVNJ Challenges Ballot
Question Giving Voters ONE Question for TWO Amendments
Is one of the fundamental rights of New Jersey citizens, to
vote on amendments to the New Jersey constitution, violated by the
use of a single public question for two different amendments on
the November ballot?
Believing that citizens must be allowed to vote separately on
the constitutional dedication of tax revenues from two different
taxes, the League of Women Voters of New Jersey (LWVNJ) requested
Senate President DiFrancesco and Assembly Speaker Collins amend
the present resolution (SCR 1 and ACR 116). The League seeks to
have the legislature pass two constitutional resolutions: one to
dedicate the Petroleum Gross Products Tax and a separate one to
dedicate a portion of the revenue from the Sales Tax to the
Transportation Trust Fund. At present, both are included in a
single ballot question to be voted on by New Jersey citizens in
the November election.
LWVNJ brought its request directly to legislators on Thursday.
It asked the Assembly Appropriations Committee to amend ACR 116 to
limit that resolution and ballot question to the Petroleum
Products Gross Tax, and to either amend or support amendment of
SCR 1 for dedication of the Sales and Use Tax revenue.
The League pointed out that citizens who support dedication of
one tax but oppose the other are effectively prevented from making
their voice heard when the two issues are presented in a single
question. "These citizens would have three choices: not to vote on
the question; to oppose the dedication of both taxes; or approve
the dedication of both. All three choices deny citizens their
constitutional right to a vote which reflects their decision on
the constitutional dedication of each revenue source," said Sandra
Matsen, President of the League.
The League noted that this is not an academic question. The
League has testified before three other legislative committees
that it supports the use of the Petroleum Products Gross Tax for
highway and mass transit projects funded through the Trust Fund.
However, it opposes the constitutional dedication of revenue from
the Sales Tax for that purpose.
The League asked for the cooperation of both legislative
leaders to avoid a court case challenging the present dual
question. While the League does not support the approach put
forward by the Legislature, President Matsen wrote: "The League
does not want to see the Legislature's widely supported program
for renewing the Transportation Fund....derailed by going to court
and perhaps missing the deadline for getting the issues on the
ballot. .... We want the citizens of New Jersey to be able to
consider its merits, or lack of them, and exercise their right to
vote on these constitutional amendments to make their decision
known."
#####
Testimony, SCR 1
and ACR 116, Assembly Appropriations Committee (6/22/00)
Transportation Trust
Fund Reauthorization, S.16--letter (6/7/00)
Testimony
on Transportation Trust Fund Renewal Act, S.16 (5/4/00 and
5/11/00)
Transportation
Funding Bill article (4/00)
