Arizona: legislator proposes repeal of clean election program
AP reports: A state lawmaker has proposed a ballot measure that would repeal funding for Arizona's public financing of political campaigns, saying the system's rules are enforced unevenly and that candidates are essentially penalized for not using that money for their campaigns.
If it's approved by the Legislature, the proposal by Republican Rep. Rick Murphy of Glendale would appear on the November ballot.
Voters approved the campaign finance system in 1998. It gives participating candidates for state offices public money if they collect a certain number of contributions of at least $5. The system, which is funded mostly by traffic and criminal fine surcharges, has been used in elections in 2000, 2002 and 2004 to provide funding for participating candidates for governor and numerous other state offices.
A judge threw out an initiative in 2004 that would have asked voters to repeal the system, ruling that the initiative violated the Arizona Constitution by posing two separate questions in one measure. -- Lawmaker proposes repeal of public campaign financing system | www.azstarnet.com