The Petition Drive for Voters Rights in Ramsey County Now Underway!

For locations where you can sign the petition

Check here DAILY for updates!
We are taking signatures at many locations

The No Stadium Tax Coalition's
PETITION DRIVE
IS OVER HALF WAY TOWARD OUR GOAL
See our April 9 press release here

Use the link below to send us an e-mail
and you will be put on our list
to be contacted
or volunteer to collect signatures

When you send your e-mail
please include
the following information:
Your Name,
Street Address,
Phone number,
and E-Mail address

THIS IS A LEGAL PETITION and is the ONLY petition circulating in Ramsey County on the stadium funding issue. We cannot "sign" your name because you send us an e-mail.

A legal petition cannot be circulated by e-mail or on the internet. Those are surveys and polls, and carry no legal teeth.

Only registered voters living in Ramsey County can sign the petition, and have to do so in person. A voter can sign only for him/herself, no one else. All signatures have to be witnessed by the person who is collecting the signatures. The petition will be filed with Ramsey County and has to meet all legal requirements.

Ramsey County citizens are petitioning to put a question on the ballot for the Nov. 6, 2012 general election.

The petition language is as follows:

RAMSEY COUNTY CHARTER AMENDMENT PETITION
RESTRICTION ON USE OF TAXES, BONDING AND OTHER RESOURCES FOR PROFESSIONAL SPORTS

We, the undersigned registered voters in Ramsey County, hereby petition the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners for the purpose of amending the Ramsey County Charter, as follows:

Sec.9.06 Restriction on Use of Taxes, Bonding and Other Resources

Ramsey County shall be prohibited from using tax revenues, bonding authority, or any other county resources to finance a sports facility to be used by a professional team, or to subsidize the operations of a professional sports team, unless approved by over 50% of those voting on the question in a general election.

IS THE FIVE-ALARM FIRE OVER?

CAN WE GO BACK TO SLEEP AGAIN?

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

The Lanning-Rosen bill for the Vikings stadium was killed in a House committee meeting April 16, keeping it from going to the House floor. Two days later, Ortega and Bennett showed up to a press conference to promote again the idea of a tax in Ramsey County, this time with their ally, Rep. Tim Mahoney of St. Paul, who has authored a bill that would impose a 2% tax on restaurants and on-sale liquor. (Link to article here). We doubt that a bill can pass this year, and if that is the case, it is critical that we get our Charter Amendment on the ballot this November so that we are protected for next year.

If voters approve the amendment, the charter would forbid Ramsey County from using taxpayer funds and public resources of any kind for a professional sports stadium without first obtaining voter approval on a referendum.

This amendment would be permanently in the county charter. This issue will come up time and time again. Now is the time for action!

We wouldn't be surprised to see many of the "lame ducks" (legislators who are not running for re-election) in both parties suddenly become "brave" and vote for a stadium plan that includes taxation of the public or the spending of public dollars in some way. There's been talk of a special session of the Legislature that may be called after the November elections to let the "lame ducks" vote for a stadium with no personal consequences to them.

Go to this page for locations where we will have volunteers ready to take your signature.

HOUSE COMMITTEE HEARINGS ON THE STADIUM ISSUE

Video and audio files of the Government Operations and Elections Committee meeting of April 16, 2012 can be found on
this page

SENATE HEARINGS ON THE STADIUM ISSUE

See video of the meetings here:
March 14, 2012 Senate Local Government & Elections Committee Nov. 29, 2011
Dec. 6, 2011