ELECTION FORUM: LEAGUE EXAMINES MANY ISSUES ON NOV. 3 BALLOT

With 10 constitutional amendments and initiatives on the November ballot in Missouri, it's no wonder it took more than 2 hours to discuss the issues at a special forum Thursday night in Cape Girardeau.

As part of its regular October meeting, the League of Women Voters of Cape Girardeau County asked local officials to discuss the ballot measures.

Discussion also focused on two local issues that will be included on the ballot city ward voting and county zoning. About 25 people attended the meeting, which was open to the public.

Although the event was intended primarily to inform residents about the ballot issues, one topic a county-wide zoning proposal provoked considerable debate.

Glenda Quinn, a member of the league and also of the committee that drafted the county zoning measure, presented the issue at the meeting.

Voters will decide Nov. 3 whether the county should have planning and zoning. Quinn said the measure is needed to assure orderly growth in the county and to protect the rights of property owners.

But several local residents protested that the measure would place undue restrictions on property rights.

Quinn said zoning is an issue that is nearly impossible to address without offending some.

"When people live in a rural area, they move there to have freedom from restrictions," she said. "That's why a lot of people are opposed to this.

"But what it really does is ensure your property value is protected by regulating development in the county."

The other Nov. 3 ballot issues discussed Thursday include:

Cape Girardeau City Charter Amendment to provide for zone elections, which Tom M. Meyer a member of the commission that drafted the City Charter in 1981 said will give voters the opportunity to "elect a neighbor" to the city council.

Meyer said a petition initiative secured more than 1,800 signatures in favor of placing the issue on the ballot, which exceeded the minimum needed to amend the charter.

Some people at the meeting questioned whether the boundaries of the six zones, which were drawn based on the number of registered voters, would be constitutional and ensure equal representation.

Meyer said County Clerk Rodney Miller would have to make any necessary adjustments to the zone boundaries.

"We know there are going to be some things that will have to be ironed out," he said. "But Rodney Miller could do that. And if he feels that's a little work, that's fine, because that's what he gets paid for."

Amendment 1, which would change the majority needed to pass tax levy increases from two-thirds to four-sevenths in municipalities, counties and school districts.

Larry Dew, business manager of the Cape Girardeau Public Schools, said the measure would allow school districts with tax levies above $3.75 to increase the levy with a four-seventh majority rather than two-thirds.

As applied to cities, the majority requirement would be lowered if cities want to increase above $1, and in counties if they increase above 50 cents.

Dew said the measure wouldn't affect Cape Girardeau School District, which now has a levy $3.22. The only Southeast Missouri city that would be directly affected is Gideon, with a levy of $3.77.

Amendment 2 would allow for construction of toll roads and bridges in Missouri, which now aren't authorized. Walt Wildman, director of the Regional Commerce and Growth Association, said the amendment would simply enable the state to "involve itself in a toll-road system."

"If you had a toll road authority, traffic counts were there, and the need was there... than you could possibly have private industry funding, maintaining and managing a toll road," he said. "It gives those who build highways an option that's not there now."

Proposition A would enable Missouri to legalize riverboat gambling on the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. The measure would limit losses for each person to $500 per excursion, and tax revenues would be divided between local governments and the state's general revenue fund.

Wildman said one advantage Missouri has is that it's able to draft riverboat gambling regulations based on knowledge of "what hasn't worked" in Iowa and Illinois.

Amendment 4, called the "Crime Victims Bill of Rights," would allow crime victims to be informed of how the criminal justice system works and their rights in the system. They would have the right to be informed if the defendant is released or escapes from prison and the right to seek restitution.

Sarah Froemsdorf of the Missouri State Survivors Association said Thursday the measure would afford victims of crimes rights similar to those already enjoyed by accused criminals.

"I can't imagine why we as a people would have a Constitution to protect criminals and not support the same thing for victims of crimes," she said.

Froemsdorf's husband, a state highway patrolmen, was killed in 1985 during a routine arrest. She said Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle supports the amendment "100 percent."

Amendment 6 would establish a "budget stabilization fund." Missouri Rep. David Schwab of the 158th District said the amendment would allow the legislature to set aside funds from the state budget during "years of growth for use in lean years."

The fund would be maintained at 3-5 percent of the annual state budget, he said, and appropriations from the fund would require a four-sevenths majority in the legislature.

Proposition C would add to the Missouri lieutenant governor's duties, which now include only deciding votes in case of ties in the Missouri Senate and to take over the duties of the governor is he's unable to perform them.

Schwab said the proposition would add seven new duties without added compensation. The lieutenant governor's salary now is about $50,000 annually.

Amendments 12 and 13 would establish term limits for state legislators and members of Congress.

The state limit would prohibit a person from serving more than eight years in either the House or Senate, with a total limit of 16 years in both houses. Years served prior to the passage of this amendment would not be counted.

The federal limit would not take effect until at least half the states adopted similar measures. U.S. House members would be limited to eight years and U.S. Senators limited to 12 years. Years served prior to implementation of the limit would not be counted.

Yvonne Ketcham of the League of Women Voters said the league opposes both measures. She said only three states now have term limits for Congress, although 14 states have similar proposals on the ballot this fall.

The league did not discuss Amendments 3 and 10. Amendment 3 would allow for betting on televised horse races from other horse tracks but only if a horse track is established in the state.

Voters approved parimutuel betting in 1984, but Missouri now has no race tracks. The amendment is being presented as an increased inducement for investors to build and operate tracks in Missouri.

Amendment 10 would apply only to the city of St. Louis, although statewide approval is needed. Passage of the amendment would reduce the number of yes votes needed to raise property taxes to pay bonds in the city of St. Louis from two-thirds to four-sevenths in all elections.