Subverting Direct Democracy

Michigan is one of 24 states that allows its resident voters to take a direct role in the legislative process. Through the application of a ballot measure/voter initiative or a veto referendum, the people of our state are given a voice in the shape of an up-or-down vote on a piece of legislation during a general election. This right to referendum is enshrined in the Michigan Constitution of 1963, as long as the referendum doesn't affect appropriations in any way. 

A voter initiative is used when constituents want a law passed that isn't being considered by the legislature, and a veto referendum is an initiative used to reject a law passed by the legislature. Both function in the same way, with supporters of each voting yes, to enact or affirm the law, and detractors voting no to reject or repeal the law. Much like the scheduled meetings of "the sovereign" people in Jean Jacques Rousseau’s On Social Contract, the public referendum serves as a check on the government's usage of power.

In early 2011, the newly-elected Governor Rick Snyder signed into law Public Act 4 (2011), with the purpose of expanding the procedures related to the appointment of Emergency Financial Managers, their salaries, and their authority. This law, passed by the Republican controlled State House and State Senate, widened the reach of Public Act 72 (1990). 

Soon after the law took effect, a progressive organization called Stand up for Democracy, in the State of Michigan, launched a veto referendum effort to serve as a public plebiscite on PA 4 (2011). Since this law was a danger to local control and local power, the people took up the idea of a veto referendum, acting similarly to Rousseau's Emergency Meetings of the people which were used when threats were concerning to the public. Citing issues with previous Emergency Manager Laws and the stops they placed on locally elected officials, the referendum made it onto the 2012 General Election Ballot as Proposal One.  

In an effort to save one of his initial achievements as Governor, the Snyder administration fought back against the veto referendum effort, calling it "good law" and "good public policy" since it expanded the powers of EFMs, lessening the need for them to remain in power longer.

In a decisive victory for the general public and Stand Up for Democracy, the voters in the 2012 General Election vetoed Public Act 4 by a six-point margin, 53% opposed to 47% support. The people had utilized their constitutional right, to use direct democracy to rid their legal system of a disastrous law that would have allowed state takeovers and dissolutions of local governments. This was a win for the will of the majority, who had been wronged by their representatives, whose aim had been state control, which threatened the sovereignty of the people.

The state did not take the defeat of the law lightly, and began to draft a replacement bill within a few days of the election that repealed PA 4 (2011). The law was passed and signed within six weeks, and took effect on March 28, 2013 as Public Act 436 (2012). Legislators included an appropriation for the salaries of EFMs, thereby strengthening it and making it impervious to another public referendum. 

The people had spoken a clear, loud rejection of state overreach, but their representatives ignored their protests by passing a law that the voters had rejected days earlier. The general will of the majority, in this case the voters of the State of Michigan, was overridden by their representatives, exactly what Rousseau feared. 

The State Constitution allows for the legislature to amend laws passed by referendum as long as 3/4 of both houses agree to it, but does not create any restrictions on laws rejected through referendums. The only thing that made the situation worse was the tacking on of an appropriation, thereby silencing the voters’ voices from the past and tying their hands for all future efforts.

The EFMs appointed by Snyder have regularly failed at their job, racking up deficits beyond expectations, leaving school buildings unhygienic and in shambles, as well as destroying the lives of families by causing and ignoring crises like that in Flint. Even Governor Snyder, when subpoenaed by Congress and testifying to a congressional committee, admitted that the law failed the city of Flint. Darnell Earley was appointed as EFM of the City of Flint, and then again as the EFM of the Detroit Public Schools, and his cost-cutting measures lead to the Flint Water Crisis and the DPS Sickout Crisis. 

While much of the blame can be placed on the legislature, the Governor, and his appointees, I agree with one of my peers that the root cause of the problem lies on paper: Public Act 436 must be repealed, and veto referendums need to be structurally strengthened so they aren't affected on the whim of a simple majority of the state House and Senate.

We must return control to the people.

Updated 4/13/2016 to add tags and links