Out-of-state petition circulators collected almost 65 percent of the verified signatures required to put Issue 300 on the Colorado Springs ballot last fall, an analysis of the petitions on file in the City Clerk’s Office shows.
“They leave and then we stumble down the road of unintended consequences,” said Richard Skorman, a downtown businessman and former city council member.
Issue 300, which was authored by anti-tax advocate Douglas Bruce, effectively ended the Stormwater Enterprise.
Vice Mayor Larry Small said Thursday the measure will also reduce the money available in the city’s general fund by roughly $100 million or the next eight years or so. “It’s going to have a huge impact.”
Bruce has asked me not to email him or call him ever again so I couldn’t get his input for this piece.
The out-of-state circulators, who came to Colorado Springs to gather signatures for the Bruce-backed measure, as well as three anti-tax measures that will be on the statewide ballot in November, won’t talk about the organization of the petition drives or how they wound up in Colorado Springs.
“Here’s the deal. We’re in politics. We do petitions. And one of the things this fraternity does is we don’t talk about what we do. Don’t call me back again,” said Steve Rickabaugh, contacted on his mobile telephone this week.
Former Gazette staffer Perry Swanson did a computer analysis of the petitions. That analysis shows that Rickabaugh collected 2,259 verified signatures, or 15.1 percent, of the signatures verified for Issue 300.
Six of the out-of-state circulators – including Rickabaugh — lived in an apartment house Bruce owns on Boulder Street, according to affidavits on file with the City Clerk’s Office.
To most people, the signature-gathering process seems like the very bedrock of grassroots democracy. Reflecting that sentiment, U.S. Supreme Court noted a few years back noted that the right to petition is at “the zenith of our system of ordered liberties.”
But these days, petition drives, particularly when they deal with money issues, are cloaked in secrecy and often resemble stealth campaigns where both the financial backers and nomadic circulators prefer to remain anonymous.
“We’re putting issues on the ballot. We don’t want reporters getting involved,” said one veteran petition collector who asked that his name not be used because it could hurt his ability to make a living.
Opponents of the statewide measures – known as Amendment 60, Amendment 61, and Proposition 101 — have filed campaign finance complaints with the Secretary of State’s Office, demanding to know who the backers are. The complaints are scheduled to be heard in late March or early April.
Larry Bradshaw, another veteran petition circulator who came to Colorado Springs last summer to gather signatures for Issue 300 and the three statewide measures, lived for a while at the Chateau Motel on south Nevada Avenue.
Bradshaw and another man named Richard Riscol, who is still living at the motel, collected 1,702 verified signatures for Issue 300, or 11.4 percent of the total.
Bradshaw and Riscol were unwilling to discuss their activities. “I don’t talk about my work. I like to keep my business private,” Bradshaw said when contacted on his mobile telephone. Riscol also declined to comment through the front-desk clerk.
Jane Harwell, another former Boulder Street resident, would not say anything at all about her petition-gathering efforts.
“How’d you get my number?” she asked before hanging up.
Even the notaries public who notarized the affidavits that the circulators turned in with their petition packets were tight-lipped.
Jennifer Gleason, contacted in person at her residence on South Willamette, said, “I did it as a part-time job.”
She then opened the front door to her apartment house. “You can go now.”
(Perry Swanson contributed to this report.)
Let’s get rid of this petitioning process. It inhibits the politician’s ability to do what ever they want with us and our money.
unsurprisingly, you neglected to mention that once it was on the ballot, it still had to be voted on. Guess what? The voters, the citizens of Colorado Springs, they supported 300 and passed it.
Vice Mayor Larry Small said Thursday the measure will also reduce the money available in the city’s general fund by roughly $100 million or the next eight years or so. “It’s going to have a huge impact.”
Thought the money was for storm water? Besides that, I think that quote was for 2C, and not 300.
Crocodile tears will get you nowhere . . .
So who are paying these people? Developers? Big Business? Grassroots efforts no, sounds like coporate coruption.
The height of Capitalism is providing a legal service or product and getting paid for it. I really don’t care how petitions are circulated as long as citizen signatures are voluntary, not paid for, and valid. Taking issue with how petitions are gathered is a smokescreen from those who are dissatisfied with how citizens have voted on recent ballot issues. From what I have read the process of gathering petitions in the way that it has been done is not illegal. Ultimately people are not forced to sign petitions, nor are they forced to vote for any ballot issue, but when they do sign petitions and vote for the issues on those petitions our politicians need to take notice and follow the will of the people.
Douglas Bruce supplied much of the money and living arrangements, then failed to comply with election laws by itemizing his contributions.
This is a complete about face for a man who vowed never to be influenced by lobbyists. Mercenaries gathering petitions for hire are virtual lobbyists.
A quote from a part of our very first amendment to our United States Constitution…”Congress shall make no laws prohibiting the right of the people to assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”
Rights are given by God and can not be taken away by man to promote a liberal reporters agenda. Privileges are given by man and can be taken away by liberal lawmakers as they see fit. Get informed.
I am Richard Riscol. I bring only conservative initiatives to our ballots country wide and have zero tolerance for ones who hate our country like the author of this idiotic article. When I speak I speak with understanding and use the term idiotic literally as one who believes they know more than they do. This article was written by a reporter who has been trying to personally find me for a long time now and is a liar to her readers as well as an idiot. I am sure this liberal reporter does not know the difference from the proletariat to a property owner nor the separations of powers that protect our individual God given rights. I am sure this liberal reporter who is writing this political article does not know what the job of our Congress is or what the job of our Senate is or why we even have two houses in our House of Congress and how our founding fathers meant to have these separations of powers perform or why, and I am also sure the individuals who have written these ignorant statements do not either. And like I ask all who are the uninformed that are filled with contempt for our Nation and for whom I am sure I have contempt for, AND YOU VOTE? You ought to be ashamed of yourselves.
I am appalled at the ones who say stop the petitioning process not knowing what the the first amendment says or the liberties it affords us the people and how it was meant to protect the people from the tyranny of ones who target the uniformed with nonsense and perversions of something that is not good for our State of Colorado and Nation. The liberal has zero faith in the masses to take care of their own communities so must promote bigger and bigger government to promote the lie it takes the government to provide utopia for the people, in reality it is at the peoples expense through more and more taxes and God given rights lost. Get informed before you vote and prevent liars like this liberal reporter who is writing strictly for readers and popularity with an uninformed electorate that she knows their is always more of than there are informed. Which are you?