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General Election: Ballot initiatives

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WILLIAMS, Ariz. — The 2018 general election will be held Nov. 6. The following statewide initiatives will be on the ballot:

Proposition 127— Renewable Energy Standards Initiative

Proposition 127 would increase the state’s renewable portfolio standards (RPS). An RPS is a mandate that electric utilities acquire a minimum amount of electricity from renewable energy sources. As of 2018, Arizona’s RPS is 15 percent by 2025. Proposition 127 would increase the RPS each year until reaching 50 percent in 2030. The initiative would define renewable energy to include sources such as solar, wind, biomass, certain hydropower, geothermal, and landfill gas energies. Proposition 127 would task the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) with enforcing the initiative’s standards.

A YES vote supports this constitutional amendment to require electric utilities in Arizona to acquire a certain percentage of electricity from renewable resources each year, with the percentage increasing annually from 12 percent in 2020 to 50 percent in 2030.

A NO vote opposes this constitutional amendment to require electric utilities in Arizona to acquire a certain percentage of electricity from renewable resources, thereby leaving in place the state’s existing renewable energy requirements of 15 percent by 2025.

Proposition 305 — Expansion of Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Referendum

Proposition 305 would uphold Senate Bill 1431 (SB 1431), which was designed to make all K-12 students eligible to apply for an ESA. The expansion would phase in over four school years.

The original program allowed parents or guardians of students with disabilities to sign a contract to opt out of the public school system and instead receive an ESA from the Arizona Department of Education (DOE) that could be spent on private education, homeschooling, or other non-public education. An ESA is funded at 90 percent of what the state would have paid for the student in a district or charter school. Parents or guardians use a prepaid bank card to pay for education-related tuition and fees, textbooks, tutoring, educational therapies, and curriculum.

A YES vote is to uphold the contested legislation, Senate Bill 1431, which would phase in an expansion of the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESAs) program to make all public school students eligible to apply for an ESA.

A NO vote is to repeal the contested legislation, Senate Bill 1431, which would phase in an expansion of the state’s ESAs program to make all public school students eligible to apply for an ESA.

Proposition 306 — Clean Elections Initiative

The measure would prohibit candidates from using their public financing accounts, known as clean election accounts in Arizona, to give funds to political parties or tax-exempt 501(a) organizations that are allowed to engage in activities to influence candidate elections.

The measure would also remove the Citizens Clean Election Commission’s (CCEC) exemption from the state’s rulemaking requirements. The measure would require the CCEC to receive approval from the seven-member Governor’s Regulatory Review Council (GRRC) to finalize rules for the public financing program. The governor appoints six of the council’s seven members.

A NO vote supports this measure to prohibit candidates from using their public financing accounts to give funds to political parties or tax-exempt 501(a) organizations that are allowed to engage in activities to influence candidate elections and requires the Citizens Clean Election Commission’s proposed rules to receive approval from the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council.

A NO vote opposes this measure, thus continuing to allow the Citizens Clean Election Commission to determine whether candidates can use their public financing accounts to give funds to political parties or tax-exempt organizations and keeping the Citizens Clean Election Commission’s rule-making decisions independent of the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council.


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