By HOWARD FINE
Union dues used for political causes are expected to be one of the most heated,and costly,battles in the Nov. 8 special election called by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
An initiative on the ballot requires public employee unions to get yearly written consent from members to use dues for political lobbying and campaigning.
The campaigns on both sides are expected to raise tens of millions of dollars. At stake, they say, is the balance of power in Sacramento.
If the initiative passes, it could restrict the ability of public employee unions to raise money for political campaigns and weaken their influence as the traditional support base for Democrat lawmakers.
“This is the big enchilada in this special election,” said Tony Quinn, co-editor of the California Target Book and a former Republican strategist. “It’s where the Democrats and their union allies and Schwarzenegger are really in conflict.”
The initiative is expected to draw national attention from unions and conservative groups as California becomes center stage in the battle over union power.
Only a handful of states have adopted similar measures, none of them as strict as what now is on the table here.
A Field Poll released last week shows 57% of likely voters are inclined to support the initiative. Thirty-four percent oppose it.
A loose coalition of businesses, anti-tax groups and conservatives say the measure, dubbed “paycheck protection,” is aimed at granting public employees the right to choose whether their money should fund certain candidates or views.
In so doing, proponents argue that officials of public employee unions will become more responsive to their members.
Opponents say the initiative represents a power grab by business interests aimed at shutting down public employee unions as a political force.
They say it will force them to divert millions of dollars from their political advocacy efforts to a costly annual canvas of their members.
For more on this story, please see the June 27 edition of the Business Journal.
