Guest Opinion: Redmond Officials Must Let Residents Vote on Cameras

This Tuesday at 7:30 pm, Scott Harlan, me, and other supporters of Redmond Initiative #1 will use the open comment period at the beginning of the city council meeting at city hall to thank the voters of Redmond for helping Scott achieve something truly extraordinary:  being the first in Redmond city history to qualify a citizen initiative for the ballot. 

“LET THE VOTERS DECIDE ON RED-LIGHT CAMERAS IN REDMOND” needed 3,845 voter signatures but because of the popularity of the initiative, over 6,000 were turned in. That’s nearly half of active voters in Redmond. Amazingly, more citizens signed initiative petitions than voted for the mayor or members of the city council.

As the mayor and city council wait for the county to validate the signatures, they should consider what Mukilteo's officials did (and the courts approved). 

Faced with the same initiative and also a record number of voter signatures from its community, Mukilteo’s mayor and City Council unanimously approved a resolution putting the initiative on the ballot for a public vote. The mayor and City Council sided with the citizens and not the for-profit, out-of-state red-light camera company. They followed the law (RCW 35.17.260 requires certified initiatives to be approved by the council or put up for a public vote) and won the respect and appreciation of Mukilteo's citizens.

Redmond’s officials can and should follow in Mukilteo's footsteps and adopt a resolution just like theirs.

In response to the city of Mukilteo’s decision to let the people vote, the red-light camera company sued to City.  Mukilteo, defending its decision, wrote in its legal brief: "The Mukilteo City Council desires to hear from its electorate." They concluded:  "... the number of signatures on the petition for the subject initiative indicated the citizens' desire to be heard. The only controversy here is that Plaintiffs desires to deny voters the chance to be heard." The Plaintiff was the red-light camera company.

Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Michael Downes wasted no time and sided with the city: "This is a unique situation where citizens want to vote but also the city council, the duly elected representatives, also want to hear from the electorate." He went on: "A lawsuit at this point is premature. I don't know how voters are going to vote on this but I see no harm in letting them vote. If it is approved, plaintiffs or those with interest in this issue can file a legal challenge afterwards, but again, I see no harm in having this proceed." 

The red-light camera company, upset with the ruling, appealed, asking the State Supreme Court for an emergency stay to keep the initiative off the ballot. The High Court sided with Judge Downes and refused to prevent the people from voting. Thanks to that unanimous vote by Mukilteo's mayor and City Council, there was a public vote on the initiative last November. 

Mukilteo's city officials, some of whom supported the ticketing cameras, blazed a trail of respect for its citizenry. And the Courts, both the lower court and high court, backed them up every step of the way.  

Again, the law governing Redmond Initiative #1 is clear: after the county auditor confirms that sufficient valid signatures were submitted, RCW 35.17.260 requires the mayor and city council, within 20 days, to either adopt the initiative or put it on the next ballot (February, 2012).

Mukilteo provides a positive role model; Longview serves as a negative role model. Faced with a similar red-light camera initiative (Longview Initiative #1), the city’s officials, instead of following the law and placing the initiative on the ballot, decided instead to sue their own citizens. They spent nearly $30,000 in city revenue on legal fees to block the initiative and ultimately failed: Longview Initiative #1 is on the November ballot despite months of expensive litigation. Suing their own citizens proved costly, both financially and politically (the mayor decided not to seek re-election).

In cities that have followed the law and respected their voters, officials have won the respect and appreciation of their people. And cities that sued their own citizens? Not so much.

Scott firmly believes that based on the professional and transparent reputation of Redmond’s mayor and City Council, they will follow in the footsteps of Mukilteo and not Longview.

Redmond's local citizens have done everything required of them to earn their right to decide this issue for themselves. I hope Redmond’s officials respect their constituents as much as Mukilteo’s officials did. If they don’t, Redmond’s citizens will rightly ask:  “Why didn’t you let the voters vote—were you afraid of the outcome?”

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Tim Eyman served as a mentor and coach to Scott Harlan and his volunteers on Redmond Initiative #1. He can be reached at 425-493-9127, tim_eyman@comcast.net and www.Voters-Decide.org.