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City Recorder's Office <br />MEMORANDZTM <br />Date: January 23, 2008 <br />To: Mayor and City Councilors <br />From: Mary Feldman, City Recorder <br />Subject: Potential Referendum Election <br />City of Eugene <br />' 777 Pearl Street, Room 105 <br />Eugene, Oregon 97401-2793 <br />(541) 682-5042 <br />(541) 682-5414 FAX <br />www.eugene-or.gov <br />This is to provide information about the timing of an election on a referendum that could be filed <br />if council approves extension of the gas tax sunset date at its January 28 meeting. Assuming the <br />Mayor signed an ordinance the following day or day after, petitioners could file a prospective <br />referendum petition January 29 or 30. If that occurred on one of those two dates, petitioners <br />would have until February 27 or 28 to gather the requisite 6,365 signatures. Should the Mayor <br />sign the ordinance later; all subsequent dates would need to be adjusted accordingly. <br />Lane County is allowed 15 days to complete signature verification, or until March 13 or 14. <br />Once signature verification was successfully completed by Lane County, the City Recorder <br />would certify the petition, likely on either March 14 or 17. Both of these dates are well past the <br />90-day deadline for the City Recorder's certification of a petition for the May 2008 election (that <br />date is February 20). <br />In order for the measure to be placed on the May ballot instead of going to a September special <br />election, one of two things would need to occur: ~ <br />1) The petitioners would need to submit their signatures for verification in less than the <br />30 days allowed; in fact, no later than February 4. The City has no ability to require that <br />and since it would reduce the likelihood that a sufficient number of signatures would be <br />gathered; there is little incentive for petitioners to do so; . <br />2) The City Council, without knowing the outcome of the referendum effort, could take <br />action no later than March 15 (66 days prior to the election) to refer the ordinance to the <br />May election under the ballot title prepared (and appealed or not) at the beginning of the <br />' referendum process. The last opportunity to do that prior to council break would be <br />either March 10 or 12. <br />Please feel free to contact me at 682-8353 if you have questions about the election process and <br />timing issues. <br />May08 referendum deadlines memo <br />