The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a request by Protect Marriage Washington that the state be blocked from releasing further copies of Referendum 71 petitions while PMW appeals an earlier Federal District Court decision that ordered their release. The request had been made to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy who apparently referred it to [...]

In 2009, Protect Marriage Washington attempted a voter repeal of Washington’s Domestic Partnership Expansion Law of 2009 via Referendum 71.  By a 53% margin Washington voted to keep the comprehensive domestic partnership law, the first state in the nation to affirm a same-sex relationship recognition law at the polls. Once the Referendum 71 petitions were [...]

The Doe v. Reed transcript is out, and consensus is that the hearing went well for open government proponents.   Attorney General Rob McKenna and Secretary of State Sam Reed emerged from the U.S. Supreme Court today optimistic that the high court will allow Washington and other states to treat initiative and referendum petitions as [...]

Shortly after 10 am Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the Doe v. Reed case.  This is the case stemming from Referendum 71.  Religious conservatives led by Protect Marriage Washington were unsuccessful in using R-71 to repeal Washington’s domestic partnership law, and Washington became the first state in the nation where voters [...]

Few issues seem to transcend party politics these days, but efforts to protect open government and public records laws are solidly uniting interests across the political spectrum.  Case in point is Doe v. Reed, a case stemming from the failed efforts of anti-gay religious conservatives in Washington to repeal a comprehensive domestic partnership law via [...]

By the adoption of the initiative and referendum amendments the people of this state became a part of the legislative branch of the state government.  – Washington State Supreme Court Judge Mackintosh, State ex rel. Mullen v. Howell, concurring opinion I don’t have a seat in the state legislature, but as a voter in one [...]

As you may recall, Harry Jackson and his zombie cronies tried yesterday to get the US Supreme Court to issue a last-minute stay of DC’s marriage law.  Chief Justice Roberts denied the request.  The marriage equality law goes into effect tomorrow.  Links to briefs and a concise description of the events as they unfolded can [...]

The United States Supreme Court has decided to hear the case Doe v. Reed (09-559), which challenges the ability of Washington’s Secretary of State to release copies of referendum and initiative petitions to the public as public records.  The law being challenged is Washington’s Public Records Act, passed in 1972 with 72% of the vote [...]