Press Release

Date: September 23, 2004

Initiative to Prevent Government Services to Illegal Aliens Cleared to Gather Signatures

SACRAMENTO – The Attorney General’s office issued the official title and summary for the Save Our License initiative Friday, clearing the way for proponents to begin gathering signatures.

“We’re planning an aggressive signature gathering campaign,” noted Mike Spence, one of the proponents of the initiative. “Within hours of receiving the official title and summary, we began printing hundreds of thousands of petitions for distribution.”

Spence added that Monday the campaign will mail 100,000 petitions to supporters throughout the state. Anyone who is interested in receiving a petition can request one at the campaign’s website: www.SaveOurLicense.com.

“In addition,” Spence said, “we are hitting the streets with volunteers and paid signature gatherers. Our main focus with the paid circulators will be in targeted districts with vulnerable incumbents so that we can help drive voter registration as we gather signatures.”

Assemblyman Mark Wyland, Chairman of the Save Our License Initiative said the committee’s main goal in the next two months “will be to send a clear, unambiguous signal to politicians up and down the state that they must take the illegal immigration issue seriously.”

“We’ve let government run amok with no accountability on this issue,” he added. “This initiative will give the citizens of California the chance to let their voices be heard.”

Spence noted that the Save Our License Committee has already sent surveys to all candidates for the legislature and Congress asking them to take a stand on this initiative.

“We’re going to use our website and our publications to focus attention on the worst legislators on the illegal immigration issue,” he added. “The first step will be to identify the Top 10 Most Wanted for aiding and abetting illegal aliens.”

“We’re going to allow the public to vote and have a say as to who is the illegal immigrant’s best friend.”

Additional plans of the committee include public signing events and rallies in targeted areas.

“This is not an issue that will go away,” said Spence. “And we will hold politicians accountable who try to duck it.”

The initiative is a constitutional amendment that will deny all public services, except those mandated by federal law, to illegal immigrants. In addition, if passed, the government will be required to defend the initiative against any and all legal challenges.

Perhaps the strongest enforcement feature is a provision that will allow individual California citizens to bring suit against a government entity or a government official to compel compliance with the law.

“We know that there are those who will blatantly disobey or ignore this law,” said Wyland. “This initiative puts power back into the hands of the citizenry to make sure we enforce our laws.”

Proponents will have 150 days to collect more than 600,000 signatures to place this on the June 2006 ballot.

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