Last month, Eric Lukingbeal wrote an important op/ed piece describing how, as it currently stands, the legislature can sell, swap or give away public lands such as state parks, forests and even state-owned farmlands without public knowledge or input.
Protocol calls for a public hearing, but at the end of a legislative session, the rules can be ignored, and that is when many of these transactions take place.
The only way to make sure there is a public hearing before any of our land is taken away is to amend the State Constitution to require the public hearing. The amendment also contains the clause that any proposed legislation must pass by at least two-thirds of the House and the Senate. Legislators cannot ignore the Constitution. That’s why it is so important for you to vote “yes” on Question #2 on your ballot on Nov. 6. The question appears on the front of the ballot, bottom right corner.