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| Activist turns in petition for council term limits |
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| Written by John Saiz and Jonathan Partridge / Patterson Irrigator / | |
| Wednesday, 09 July 2008 | |
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“This truly reveals the will of the people, and that is what the initiative process is all about.” — Donna Worley Activist “It will take away the right of the individual to decide who they want in office.” — Becky Campo Patterson mayor A measure that would limit the terms of Patterson City Council members might appear on a ballot soon, after an activist turned in a petition with more than 1,000 signatures July 2. Patterson resident Donna Worley, who organized the signature-gathering effort, submitted the petitions to Patterson City Hall, which forwarded them on to the county clerk-recorder’s office. “This truly reveals the will of the people, and that is what the initiative process is all about,” Worley said.  Donna Worley Those appointed or elected mid-term to fill a vacated council or mayoral seat would be considered to have filled a full term under the proposed limits. About six volunteers went door to door and gathered signatures, Worley said, though she would not provide details on the volunteers or how she found them. She said she did not pay the signature gatherers, but she does not know if someone else gave them money for their efforts. Patterson City Councilwoman Annette Smith said she received phone calls from 10 to 20 residents who said the people collecting signatures for the term-limits initiative also gathered signatures for at least one other initiative. Worley said she had no knowledge of other petitions being distributed. Candidate for mayor Luis Molina said petition gatherers stopped by his door with both the term-limit initiative and an initiative having to do with veteran’s affairs. He said he does not support the term-limits initiative. Residents have the opportunity to vote people out of office, he said, so term limits aren’t necessary. Stanislaus County Clerk-Recorder Lee Lundrigan said her office counted 1,119 signatures on the petition. Supporters needed only about 550 signatures to get the measure on the ballot, said Worley, who has sought signatures since late last year. The measure has its share of critics. Those include some who have accused Worley of being a paid representative of PCCP West Park LLC, which aims to build a 4,800-acre industrial park in and around the Crows Landing airfield south of Patterson despite the opposition of Patterson City Council members and numerous other West Side agencies. Worley has denied any affiliation with project developers. She said she favors term limits in general. In addition, she said, petition gatherers heard local residents discuss a “need for change” as they gathered signatures. “Term limits is a just a stepping stone, but it brought the community together, and signing this petition gave our people a way to express themselves,” Worley said. Patterson Mayor Becky Campo agreed with her challenger, Molina, with regards to the term limits. “It will take away the right of the individual to decide who they want in office,” Campo said. She is seeking her second term as mayor. Lundrigan said there will be a 30-day review period for the petition. If it is certified, the city can choose to adopt the measure as an ordinance, place it on the ballot for a special election or order a fiscal impact report. Lundrigan estimated the proposed measure would not reach the city’s desk until August. Worley is not certain whether the initiative will be completed too late to appear on November’s ballot. She could have turned the signatures in earlier if she stopped at the minimum requirement, but with the 1,119 signatures she gathered, she said, there’s the added flexibility to call for a special election. “It will be on the ballot when we want it to be on the ballot,” she said.
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