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Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Politics Roll-Your-Own Cigarette Lawsuit May Be the Final Nail in I-1053's Coffin

Posted by on Tue, Jun 26, 2012 at 9:12 AM

It's not often a tax-and-spend Democrat like myself cheers the news of a court tossing out a tax increase, especially a tax on such a public-health-destroying loophole-exploiting industry as roll-your-own cigarettes, but this case is a win-win if I've ever seen one. Either the plaintiffs lose on their main argument, and Initiative 1053's two-third supermajority requirement for tax increases is somewhat narrowed, or the plaintiffs win on their main argument, ultimately forcing the state supreme court to rule on the constitutionality of the supermajority requirement itself.

I know there's another case wending its way toward the supreme court, but I'm not confident the justices won't weasel their way out of that one, overturning the lower court's ruling that the plaintiffs have standing to seek declaratory relief. But this case, well, I don't see how the underlying constitutional issue can possibly be avoided as long as the state has the balls to argue it.

So thank you, roll-your-own cigarette industry, for giving us another path toward finally killing this anti-majoritarian appropriation of the democratic process.

 

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