With the approximately 1.1 million signatures gathered statewide in hand, a press conference was held this morning at the Sacramento County Elections Office to ceremoniously turn in several boxes of petitions from Sacramento County voters for the California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act.
Some of the many individuals on hand were representatives from various pro-property rights groups or supporters including Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and their spokesman Jon 
Coupal; California Farm Bureau, [Vice President Kenny Watkins] ; National Federation of Independent Business executive director John Kabateck; chairman of the California Alliance to Protect Private Property Rights, former Senator Jim Nielsen; the Hispanic Chamber Of Commerce Chairman Ken Macias; former Congressman Doug Ose; and another Doug, myself, were among those that spoke.
All 58 counties should receive their petitions by tomorrow, ending the first, and successful, petition drive phase. Verification of signature samples over the next month will yield a successful qualification for the June ballot.
The "other initiative" is still out there in circulation, [paying a hefty $4 bounty per sig I hear]. That, of course is the phony one that might protect a few homes under the right circumstances but does little or nothing for protecting small businesses, farmland, business or rental property, and even church owned land that would be a future sight of worship, from abusive eminent domain takings.
As all the signature efforts are now in for the "good guys" initiative, beware of circulators out there still gathering, as that is your League Of Cities sponsored bait and switch special, designed to fool voters or get them to vote no on all eminent domain measures because of confusion and deceit.
The Farm Bureau-Jarvis measure represents the only real choice to rein in government takings of anyone’s land for any reason they see fit as the "public benefit". This has been a real team effort so far and congrats to all who had a hand in circulating these petitions and gaining the volume necessary to likely qualify the initiative with ease.
November 21st, 2007 at 12:00 am
Assemblyman, I don’t see any mention of the many other effects of this legislation, such as the negative effects on water projects, like dams, that I know you support, in your post here. I know the lawyers in my neighborhood look forward to this initiative: more work for them.