Beware, voters: there are nine complicated questions as well as 15 elected positions on the Nov. 3 general election ballot spread out over four pages.
On Oct. 7, I voted early. I received my ballot in the mail, filled it out and returned it to Orange Town Hall. If you have to read all nine questions for the first time and make a decision on Election Day, you are likely to feel stressed to understand them and possibly make a poor choice.
The secretary of the commonwealth sends a summary and text of all the questions to every household with a registered voter. At the back of the pamphlet is a “cheat sheet” to mark and bring with you to the polls. However, many of the questions are difficult to understand and could have very negative consequences if passed. Here’s how I voted.
Question 1: Expanding the public records law — YES
All citizens are entitled to open government. This law makes almost all records held by the Legislature and the governor available to the public. Let’s make the government work on our behalf, not for special interests and billionaires.
Question 2: Allows collective bargaining for CPCS employees — YES
The Sixth Amendment affords all people the right to legal representation when charged with a crime. Adoption of Question 2 would allow employees of the Committee for Public Counsel to form a union and bargain with their employer for fair wages. No one charged with a crime should be represented by an overworked and underpaid attorney.
Question 3. Creating a single open state primary election — YES
The government should not be funding closed party primaries that limit voters’ choices. Open primaries allow all voters to vote for the best candidates to advance to the general election. No longer would our choice be limited to one Democrat or one Republican.
Question 4: Election Day voter registration — YES
All voters should be allowed to register or update their voter status on Election Day.
Question 5: Limiting state revenue growth and requiring rebates — NO
This law would impose strict limits on revenue growth for the state and require a rebate of any revenue in excess of that limit. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts needs to invest in education, healthcare and public safety. These revenue limits would make the needed investments impossible and only benefit the billionaires, who would receive the bulk of the rebates.
Question 6: Creating a natural resource conservation fund — YES
We all benefit from clean water, air and recreation space. The existing sales tax revenue from the sale of sporting goods would flow into a dedicated natural resources fund instead of the general fund, where it now gets used for other purposes.
Question 7: Creating single-family home lots by changing zoning — NO
Reasonable zoning regulations protect property values and our quality of life. The proposed law would override zoning in all residential areas with public water and sewer to permit single-family homes to be built on every parcel of 5,000 square feet and 50 feet of frontage. There are many beautiful residential areas in Greenfield, Northampton, Montague, Deerfield, Athol and Orange that are served by public water and sewer. We need more multi-family homes in urban areas, not the destruction of our countryside. Just imagine our beautiful rural Franklin and Hampshire counties with a house every 50 feet.
Question 8: Repealing the retail sale of recreational marijuana products — NO
Recreational marijuana use has become an accepted practice across the country. Let’s not force people to fake medical need to obtain marijuana.
Question 9: Keeping state law on firearms safety — YES
Massachusetts is the safest state in the United States, largely due to strict, common-sense gun safety regulations. A “YES” vote will keep our current firearms laws in place and enhance our safety. A “NO” vote would repeal laws governing bump stocks, trigger cranks, “ghost guns,” silencers, “assault weapons,” and make all of us less safe.
Michael Magee lives in Orange.