Opinion
“Challenging People to Shape
a Better Future Now”
B ERNIE F OSTER
Founder/Publisher
General Election 2014
the Skanner News Endorsements
B OBBIE D ORE F OSTER
Executive Editor
———— BALLOt MEASuRES ————
J ERRY F OSTER
Advertising Manager
L ISA L OVING
News Editor
H ELEN S ILVIS
Multimedia Editor
P ATRICIA I RVIN
D AVID K IDD
Graphic Designer
M ONICA J. F OSTER
Seattle Office Coordinator
J ULIE K EEFE
S USAN F RIED
Photographers
The Skanner Newspaper, established
Systematic attacks on voting rights
around the country, alongside explod-
ing issues of street violence and civil
rights, are bringing the public focus
firmly to the ballot as a tool for making
our communities better places to live
and work. We at The Skanner News
believes strongly in voter participation.
The Skanner News encourages our
readers to support these ballot meas-
ures and vote on Nov. 4.
OREGON STATE
Measure 86 amends the Oregon
Constitution to create a fund for Orego-
nians
pursuing
post-secondary
education; authorizes debt to finance.
If passed this law would allow the
legislature to sell bonds for a higher
education loan fund benefitting college
students as well as career training pro-
grams; it would not raise taxes, but it
would give state lawmakers more tools
to help college and trade school stu-
dents get the best education they can.
We vote YES.
has not resulted in nicer elections or
more ethnic representation in the two
states in which it has passed – despite
claims to the contrary. We vote NO.
Measure 91 legalizes recreational
marijuana; tasks Oregon Liquor Con-
trol Commission with regulation of its
sale.
Of all ballot measures facing voters in
Oregon, this might be the most far-
reaching. As the so-called War on
Drugs has failed to stem their use and
has filled our jails and prisons with low-
level offenders – all at taxpayer
expense – this measure might be the
best chance we have to restore some
sanity to the system. Legalize it, regu-
late it like alcohol, and create a new
revenue stream for the state. We vote
YES.
Measure 92 mandates labeling of
certain foodstuffs that contain geneti-
cally modified organisms.
We want to know what’s in the food
we’re eating – what’s wrong with that?
We vote YES.
in October 1975, is a weekly publica-
tion, published each Wednesday by
IMM Publications Inc.,
415 N. Killingsworth St.,
P.O. Box 5455, Portland, OR 97228.
Telephone (503) 285-5555.
E-mail: info@theskanner.com
World Wide Web site:
http://www.theskanner.com
Fax: (503) 285-2900
The Skanner is a member of the
National Newspaper Pub lishers Associ-
ation and West Coast Black Pub lishers
Association.
All photos submitted become the
property of The Skanner. We are not re -
spon sible for lost or damaged photos
either solicited or unsolicited.
© 2014 The Skanner. ALL RIGHTS RE SERVED.
REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART
WITHOUT PERMISSION PROHIBITED.
To see The Skanner
News on your smart
phone go to
theskannermobile.com
or scan this QR code
with your app.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Local news
Opinions
Jobs, Bids
Sports
Entertainment
Music reviews
Bulletin board
RSS feeds
Measure 87 allows judges to be
hired by the National Guard and public
universities; allows school employees
to serve in the legislature.
This is little more than a housekeep-
ing measure, brushing cobwebs out of
our state Constitution. It would have no
financial impact; why shouldn’t state
court judges join the National Guard or
take a teaching job at a college if they
choose? We vote YES.
Measure 88 upholds four-year driver
licenses for those who cannot prove
legal presence in the United States.
Our communities are far from reach-
ing a consensus on improving our
immigration laws and processes; but
whatever you may think about the
reform debate, this measure would
make our roads safer and encourage a
more humane attitude towards working
families across the state. We vote
YES.
Measure 89 guarantees equal rights
regardless of sex.
Some people say Oregon doesn’t
need an Equal Rights Amendment for
women; at the same time, women are
at the bottom of the socioeconomic
ladder, with lower pay, less political
representation and few corner offices
in the corporate sector. Four retired
state Supreme Court justices have
made an open appeal for passage of
this measure. We vote YES.
Measure 90 creates an open, top-
two primary election system.
We are leery of changing the state
elections system, especially after a
sketchy campaign in which the ‘Yes on
90’ camp filed fake Voters Guide state-
ments and even created a fake website
to lampoon its opponents. Top Two
Page 2 The Portland and Seattle Skanner October 15, 2014
CITY OF PORTLAND
Measure No: 26-159 continues
bonds to fix playgrounds, trails;
improve park facilities, safety, and
accessibility.
This measure continues the already-
existing parks bond, which is modest
and has so far been very well spent by
Portland Parks & Recreation. Funding
parks is one of the best investments
we can make in community health, vio-
lence prevention and quality of life. We
vote YES.
METRO DISTRICT
Measure No: 26-160 would retain
the prohibition on Metro-required sin-
gle-family
neighborhood
density
increases.
If passed, this measure would contin-
ue a voter-imposed limitation on
Metro’s planning power – specifically it
keeps Metro from requiring more infill
homes in neighborhoods for the next
16 years. We are all for affordable
housing, but our concern is that so
many beautiful houses are being torn
down to make room for multiple,
cheaply made but overpriced homes.
We vote YES.
PORTLAND SCHOOL
DISTRICT #1JT
Measure No: 26-161 continues Port-
land Public Schools levy renewal for
schools and educational programs.
We don’t support every single thing
the Portland Public Schools does, nor
do we support an avalanche of bond
measures pouring additional costs on
every single household in the district.
But this is, at its heart, a tool for creat-
ing and maintaining jobs – one of the
best ways taxpayers can invest directly
in our local communities. We vote
YES.
WASHINGTON STATE
— Initiative 1351 would lower class
sizes in public schools.
Why vote for a measure without any
funding included? Unlike Portland Pub-
lic Schools’ bond measure, this isn’t
going anywhere. We vote NO.
— Initiative 591 would prohibit gov-
ernment agencies from requiring
background checks on firearm recipi-
ents unless a uniform national
standard is required.
We believe in gun control, even the
most modest measures can save lives.
Because this measure was crafted to
prevent realistic gun control measures,
we vote NO.
— Initiative 594 would require uni-
versal background checks on gun
purchases.
This is a baby step for an issue that
has torn communities apart for years.
We vote YES.
CITY OF SEATTLE
Early Learning programs, Proposi-
tion Numbers 1A and 1B
This is going to be a wildcard for vot-
ers. Struggling to fire up an early
learning system from a dead stop, a lot
of well-meaning people have compiled
their ideas into what looks like two
competing measures; now voters must
sort that out. First, voters tick the box
for whether either of the plans should
be implemented – THEN voters tick the
box that says WHICH MEASURE
SHOULD BE ENACTED. The clunky
instructions don’t help. “Simple Majori-
ty as to the first question; if first
question is approved, then the option
with the most votes as to second ques-
tion,” the ballot says.
Faced with Proposition 1A (submit-
ted by Initiative Petition No. 107),
which has many great ideas to recom-
mend it including limiting the cost of
childcare and requiring an effective
wage floor, we instead support Propo-
sition 1B because it has built-in yet
limited funding – a new tax for the next
four years. We vote YES on
WHETHER EITHER OF THESE
MEASURES SHOULD BE PASSED,
and then, YES on Proposition 1B.
Seattle Transportation Benefit Dis-
trict
Proposition
No.
1
—
Transportation Funding
Seattle is one of the most transporta-
tion-plagued big cities in the country.
But do voters support public transit?
This measure would increase the tax
on vehicle tags by $60 per year with a
0.1 percent sales and use tax – includ-
ing a $20 rebate for low-income riders
– to shore up crucial bus routes set to
be cut in 2015, with modest support for
low-income riders. The fee and the tax
would sunset Dec. 31, 2020. It’s a real
financial bite – but is it worth it to avoid
ever-growing traffic snarls in the Emer-
ald City? We vote YES.