Commentary: Are we letting Oregon’s initiative process become a playground for political weirdness?

— that Oregon voters will see not a single initiative measure on their ballots. You’d think that, with confidence in our Legislature at an all-time low, we’d be using our vaunted initiative process to bring new solutions to the voters. In 2002, Oregon voters approved a constitutional amendment (Measure 26) banning payments per signature in initiative campaigns. In 2008, lawmakers strengthened enforcement of Measure 26 and established standards for signature collection appropriate to its importance in the election process. But, if that’s not the case, we may as well hand over the state’s initiative process to the follies of our political fringes.