At an October 13 presentation, Luke Mayville of Reclaim Idaho urged attendees to look beyond HJR 4’s focus on drugs and consider its implications for Idahoans’ right to make laws through citizen initiatives.
Mayville argued that the proposed constitutional amendment would concentrate power in the Legislature by taking away citizens’ authority to bring certain policy changes directly to voters.
HJR 4 would give the Idaho Legislature exclusive authority to legalize marijuana, narcotics, or other psychoactive substances, removing citizens’ ability to do so through ballot initiatives. A NO vote would preserve that ability. Voting NO would not itself legalize any substance.
A Long Tradition of Citizen-Led Reform
Idaho voters adopted the initiative process in 1912. Since then, citizens have used it to establish the Department of Fish and Game, enact the Sunshine Law’s campaign finance and lobbying disclosure requirements, approve the homeowner’s property tax exemption, and expand Medicaid. These measures demonstrate how Idahoans can act directly on issues affecting their communities.
In 2021, the Legislature attempted to require initiative organizers to gather qualifying signatures in all 35 legislative districts. The Idaho Supreme Court struck down that requirement, recognizing initiative and referendum powers as fundamental rights reserved to the people under Idaho’s Constitution.
HJR 4 would change the Constitution itself, placing a restriction on citizen initiatives in the document that protects those rights.
What Is at Stake?
Mayville described HJR 4 as a legislative power grab. Although supporters emphasize marijuana and outside interests, he encouraged voters to focus on the authority they would surrender.
During the discussion, Mayville warned that its passage could encourage future efforts to restrict initiatives involving other subjects, including education, wages, or worker protections. Those additional restrictions are a concern about future proposals; they are not part of HJR 4.
Help Protect Your Voice
The initiative process gives Idahoans a way to propose laws and bring them to a statewide vote when elected officials fail to act. Preserving that right does not require agreement with every initiative. It requires respecting citizens’ ability to put a question before voters.
Blaine County Democrats urges a NO vote on HJR 4 on November 3. Protect Idaho’s tradition of citizen-led lawmaking—and the people’s voice in their government.
GG Luke | Blaine County Democrats
Luke Mayville, Reclaim Idaho
At an October 13 presentation, Luke Mayville of Reclaim Idaho urged attendees to look beyond HJR 4’s focus on drugs and consider its implications for Idahoans’ right to make laws through citizen initiatives.