Before any misunderstanding develops -- I know no member of the Augusta City Charter Commission who favors the abridgement of citizens' referendum rights through the petition initiative.

There have been two instances where petitions with sufficient signatures failed to yield a referendum.

One, was the attempt at a second vote on the Hannaford project after citizens had approved it. Petitioners failed to follow the rules in a timely fashion.

The other was the attempt to force each and every zoning change to public referendum. This failed because it was ruled illegal and in violation of the city charter and constitutional amendments.

In both cases, the Maine courts agreed with the council's decision to not hold those referenda. When "discretion" is mentioned in the charter it is with exactly those type of examples in mind. Illegality, redundancy, and any proposal that would violate the council's fiduciary responsibility certainly qualify for "discretion."

Under "home rule" provisions adopted by Augusta in 1970 some discretion is allowed. All charter members have spoken in favor of clarifying the "shall vs should language" regarding petition procedures. This will undoubtedly be taken care of to give further protection to the people's right to petition.

But, make no mistake, there has never been any attempt to thwart the "people's veto." The city of Augusta has become infamous for the number of unsuccessful referenda and lawsuits against city government and the will of the majority. Next charter public hearing -- 6:30 p.m. June 5 at council chambers.

Don Roberts

Vice-Chair

Augusta Charter Commission