"Ballot language" refers to the wording or content of an official voting document, typically a ballot or questionnaire, that allows people to cast their votes or opinions on a particular matter.
Full definition
As a result of the episode, lawmakers have called for reforms in
how ballot language is written for constitutional amendments.
Anti-gambling groups in New York spent very little to stem the tide of the pro-casino effort, but they point to what they saw as tilted
ballot language before voters.
-- Took another step toward a November referendum on a penny sales tax increase, directing attorneys to come back with
proposed ballot language for a 30 - year increase in the tax.
CarbonWA was preparing to turn in its signatures before the alliance had even started to gather theirs, or written
final ballot language.
The
original ballot language recommended by the state Attorney General's office was properly neutral: «The proposed amendment to section 9 of article 1 of the Constitution would allow the Legislature to authorize and regulate up to seven casinos in New York State.
Polls show a slim majority of New Yorkers support building new casinos, when they are read the
exact ballot language that includes the claims of job creation and tax reduction.
CarbonWA was being asked to trust not just that the polling on the alliance measure was good but that it would get better
when ballot language was nailed down; not just that the policy had moved its way but that it would continue to do so after January 1, when CarbonWA's 350,000 signatures became worthless.
After a quickly aborted effort in 2014, the group began fundraising and investigating tax -
swap ballot language for a 2016 effort.
As the statewide vote approached, opponents warned that new casinos would exacerbate addictive gambling, while good - government groups cried foul after the state Board of Elections
approved ballot language that included a warm description of the potential benefits of the change («promoting job growth, increasing aid to schools, and permitting local governments to lower property taxes») but none of the possible drawbacks.
But it has never produced
final ballot language that can be polled, or that CarbonWA could have evaluated in deciding whether to abandon its signatures.
Updated: Common Cause's Susan Lerner takes a different view, noting the recent court ruling that removed the word «independent» from
the ballot language before voters when it came to describing the new redistricting commission.
Dick Dadey, with Citizens Union, says even though the judge will not allow the commission to be described as independent in
the ballot language, he still sees the glass as half full.
The ballot language that was originally proposed came from the state attorney general's office.
Though the New York Public Interest Research Group hasn't taken a position on the amendment, they find
the ballot language troubling.
Leaders of the committee backing the ballot referendum that would expand casino gambling in New York do not believe
the ballot language before voters next month is leading or overly rosey.
Opponents say those claims are not 100 percent substantiated, and have assailed the Cuomo administration for manipulating
the ballot language to put this proposal in the best possible light.
All in all, the pro-casino campaign is huing rather closely to
the ballot language voters will have before them next week: Namely that the casino amendment will create jobs, lower property taxes and provide for school aid, a contention that opponents say is wrong and good - government groups cringe at.
Common Cause's executive director, Susan Lerner, is a petitioner in a lawsuit filed in response to
the ballot language.
Citizens Union, along with the League of Women Voters, helped write
the ballot language, which originally described the measure as creating an «independent» commission.
Even
the ballot language itself emphasized the potential jobs and tax cuts, and did not even use the word «gambling».
-- Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group, criticizing
the ballot language.
What the opponents say: «
The ballot language is laced with marketing spin, from the title, «Smart Schools Bond Act of 2014,» to highly dubious promises that the $ 2 billion will «equalize opportunities for children to learn» and lead to «high - quality» pre-K programs,» E.J. McMahon, president of the fiscally conservative Empire Center, wrote in an op - ed published in the New York Post.
And — echoes of Cuomo's Moreland Commission mess here — they are angry
the ballot language describing the new commission includes the word «independent.»
Anti-gambling groups have called
the ballot language «spin,» and say the casinos will also cause more gambling addiction.
The court filing came a day after a poll from Siena College showed a majority of voters, after being read
the ballot language, said they would support the referendum.
But when they find out what
the ballot language omits — that it would reinstate bilingual education — that support turns to opposition.
Allowing the oversight committee to establish the implementation timeline would have ensured that
the ballot language was driving when and how funds would be distributed to school sites.
Voters won't know they will be granting sweeping new powers to take away schools from local control and place them under state jurisdiction as
the ballot language is vague, only asking if the state should intervene in failing schools.
Under the proposal, the citizen's initiative could be amended or repealed by a majority vote of each chamber if
the ballot language states as much.
Commissioners have requested that
ballot language be developed for the 1 percent surtax earmarked for transportation and transit projects countywide.