West County Democrats

Resolutions on November 4 ballot issues –

to be voted on in the WCD general meeting Oct. 13.

(See Appendix for the ballot language.)

WCD Resolution on Proposed Constitutional

Amendment 2 – Nov. 4 ballot

Whereas: Proposed Constitutional Amendment 2 would allow evidence of

prior criminal acts, whether charged or uncharged, to be admissible in

certain crimes, and

Whereas: The introduction of such prior acts is intended to support the

victim’s testimony or show that the person charged is more likely to

have committed the crime, and

Whereas: The introduction of such evidence is likely to have the effect of

biasing the jury, and

Whereas: It is well-documented that victim eye-witness testimony is

unreliable, and

Whereas: It is also well-documented that when a person is wrongfully

convicted of a crime of a sexual nature, the damage suffered by that

person is considerable, and

Whereas: Convicting an innocent person allows the actual perpetrator of

the crime to remain at large and free to commit additional crimes,

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT

The membership of the West County Democrats

opposes the adoption of Amendment 2 and urges

all Missouri voters to vote against this

amendment.

WCD Resolution on Constitutional

Amendment 3 – Nov. 4 ballot

Whereas: Research supports the importance of teachers and school

leaders as the principal components of student success in the K-12

educational system, and

Whereas: Student scores on standardized tests depend entirely on

student retention and understanding of the content of the tests, and also

depends on students’ willingness to answer standardized test questions,

and

Whereas: It is in the interest of the citizens of Missouri and their schoolage

children to recruit, hire, and retain the best new teachers for

Missouri’s public schools, and

Whereas: Continuing contracts (a/k/a “tenure”) for teachers is a principal

means of recruiting and retaining teachers who are deemed effective

during their three- to five-year probationary employment period, and

Whereas: The proposed amendment requires school districts to evaluate

teachers primarily on the basis of “quantifiable student performance data”

rather than the professional judgment of other teachers and

administrators, and

Whereas: The right to make teacher evaluation systems negotiable is

denied in the collective bargaining process, and

Whereas: The right of due process is severely and unconstitutionally

curtailed in “retaining, promoting, demoting, dismissing, removing,

discharging and setting compensation for certified staff,”

Be it therefore resolved that:

The West County Democrat Club opposes the

amendments to Article IX and urges voters to vote

“No” on Ballot Measure No. 3 in the November 4

general elections.

WCD Resolution on Proposed Constitutional

Amendment 6 – Nov. 4 ballot

Whereas: Proposed Constitutional Amendment 6 allows early voting for a

time period substantially more limiting than that proposed by an initiative

petition campaign, and

Whereas: This proposed Amendment permits early voting only in years

when the General Assembly provides funding, and

Whereas: This proposed Amendment does not guarantee that early

voting will actually be implemented on a regular and consistent basis, but

is dependent on the General Assembly for funding, and

Whereas: It is within the purview of the General Assembly to adopt laws

regarding early voting without recourse to a constitutional amendment,

and

Whereas: It is therefore unnecessary and inappropriate to amend the

state constitution in this manner,

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT

The membership of the West County Democrats

opposes the adoption of Amendment 6 and urges

all Missouri voters to vote against this amendment.

WCD Resolution on Constitutional

Amendment 10 – Nov. 4 ballot

Whereas: The Governor already has the responsibility for proposing and

implementing a budget for the State, and

Whereas: The Legislature already has the responsibility for adjusting and

approving the budget for the State, including its revenue projections, and

Whereas: The Governor must often adjust specific budget items in

reasonable and prudent response to changing financial and programmatic

conditions, and

Whereas: Constitutional amendments should be reserved for public

policies of general importance, and not be used for operational disputes

between branches of the government, and

Whereas: This amendment, if passed into law, unduly restricts the

Governor’s rightful and reasonable prerogatives and responsibilities,

Be it therefore resolved that:

The West County Democrat Club opposes the

movement of House Joint Resolution No. 72 into

the Missouri State Constitution, and urges voters

to vote “No” on Constitutional Amendment 10.

APPENDIX

The following ballot measures have been certified for

the November 4, 2014 general election. (Source:

http://www.sos.mo.gov/elections/2014ballot/)

Constitutional Amendment 2

[Proposed by the 97th General Assembly (First Regular Session)

HJR 16]

Official Ballot Title:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended so that it will be permissible to allow

relevant evidence of prior criminal acts to be admissible in prosecutions for

crimes of a sexual nature involving a victim under eighteen years of age?

If more resources are needed to defend increased prosecutions additional costs

to governmental entities could be at least $1.4 million annually, otherwise the

fiscal impact is expected to be limited.

Fair Ballot Language:

A

“yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to allow evidence of prior

criminal acts, whether charged or uncharged, to be considered by courts in

prosecutions of sexual crimes that involve a victim under eighteen years of

age. The amendment limits the use of such prior acts to support the victim’s

testimony or show that the person charged is more likely to commit the

crime. Further, the judge may exclude such prior acts if the value of considering

them is substantially outweighed by the possibility of unfair prejudice to the

person charged with committing the crime. A

“no” vote will not amend the

Missouri Constitution regarding the use of evidence of prior criminal acts to

prosecute sexual crimes.

If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.

2

Constitutional Amendment 3

[Proposed by Initiative Petition]

Official Ballot Title:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:

•

require teachers to be evaluated by a standards based performance evaluation

system for which each local school district must receive state approval to

continue receiving state and local funding;

•

require teachers to be dismissed, retained, demoted, promoted and paid

primarily using quantifiable student performance data as part of the

evaluation system;

•

require teachers to enter into contracts of three years or fewer with public

school districts; and

•

prohibit teachers from organizing or collectively bargaining regarding the

design and implementation of the teacher evaluation system?

Decisions by school districts regarding provisions allowed or required by this

proposal and their implementation will influence the potential costs or savings

impacting each district. Significant potential costs may be incurred by the state

and/or the districts if new/additional evaluation instruments must be developed to

satisfy the proposal’s performance evaluation requirements.

Fair Ballot Language:

A

“yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to require teachers to be

evaluated by a standards based performance evaluation system. Each system

must receive state approval in order for the local school district to continue

receiving state and local funding. Teachers will be dismissed, retained, demoted,

promoted and paid primarily using quantifiable student performance data as part

of the evaluation system. The amendment further requires teachers to enter into

contracts of three years or fewer with public school districts, with exceptions. The

amendment also prohibits teachers from organizing or collectively bargaining

regarding the design and implementation of the teacher evaluation system.

A

“no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution regarding teacher contracts

and performance evaluation systems.

If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.

3

Constitutional Amendment 6

[Proposed by the 97th General Assembly (Second Regular Session)

SS SCS HCS HJR 90]

Official Ballot Title:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to permit voting in person or by mail

for a period of six business days prior to and including the Wednesday before the

election day in general elections, but only if the legislature and the governor

appropriate and disburse funds to pay for the increased costs of such voting?

State governmental entities estimated startup costs of about $2 million and costs

to reimburse local election authorities of at least $100,000 per election. Local

election authorities estimated higher reimbursable costs per election. Those

costs will depend on the compensation, staffing, and, planning decisions of

election authorities with the total costs being unknown.

Fair Ballot Language:

A

“yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to permit voters, in years when

the legislature provides funding, an early voting period of six business days prior

to and including the Wednesday before election day to cast a ballot in all general

elections. This amendment does not allow early voting on Saturday or Sunday.

A

“no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to provide all voters with a

six-business day early voting period.

If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.

6

Constitutional Amendment 10

[Proposed by the 97th General Assembly (Second Regular

Session) HJR 72]

Official Ballot Title:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to require the governor to pay the

public debt, to prohibit the governor from relying on revenue from legislation not

yet passed when proposing a budget, and to provide a legislative check on the

governor’s decisions to restrict funding for education and other state services?

State governmental entities expect no direct costs or savings. Local

governmental entities expect an unknown fiscal impact.

Fair Ballot Language:

A

“yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution regarding the requirements

placed on the governor for proposing a state budget and for withholding money

appropriated in the budget passed by the legislature. This amendment prohibits

the governor from reducing funding passed by the general assembly without

receiving legislative consent, and provides certain other restrictions on the

governor’s ability to increase or decrease line items in the budget. This

amendment further prohibits the governor from proposing a budget that relies on

revenue from legislation that has not yet passed in the general assembly.

A

“no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution regarding the requirements

placed on the governor for proposing a state budget and for withholding money

appropriated in the budget passed by the legislature.

If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.

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