Juneau -- Natural resources ballot initiatives would require approval by two-thirds of the people voting in an election to become law, under House Joint Resolution 3, introduced by Representative Con Bunde (R-Anchorage).

"By raising the bar for management of our resources, we encourage the possibility that scientific data, both pro and con, will be available to the public as voters consider their decisions," said Bunde. "Resource management should be well reasoned and based on sound scientific principles.

"As a state, we want to avoid the proliferation of initiatives that has plagued California," Bunde said. "We also want to make sure we maintain access to our natural resources."

On January 15, 1999, in Brooks v Wright, the Alaska Supreme Court found that the Legislature does not have exclusive law-making powers over natural resources. The court also ruled that management of natural resources belonging to the State is an appropriate subject for an initiative.

"Historically, voter turnout in Alaska has been relatively light," Bunde said. "Alaskans cannot properly maintain the resources they depend on for a living if they don't participate in the process. We all have a stake in assuring that our resources are managed according to the will of a clear majority, not merely by a 'majority of the moment' inflamed by passion and fueled by pseudo-science and propaganda," Bunde said.