( – promoted by SFBrianCL)

Have you ever heard of Howard Rich?  Well, consider yourself on notice.  Howard Rich is waging a war on the government, via the “Save Our Homes” initiative.  Shane Goldmacher has the story:

Through a web of organizations, Rich is backing eminent-domain initiatives in Arizona, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Oklahoma and Washington with $4 million–though no state has received as much financial support as California. In each of these efforts, Rich himself is never disclosed as a major donor. Instead, he steers his contributions through nonprofit intermediaries, such as the Fund for Democracy, which he is using to finance California’s Proposition 90 campaign.

“I think California often leads the nation,” says Rich. “It is the largest, most populous state and it is very important to us that property rights be restored there.”

But the influx of out-of-state money pushing measures to amend state constitutions across the country has angered many local activists.

“They are backed by an organization that is chaired by a New York real estate developer and that makes you wonder who is going to benefit,” says Aaron Toso, spokesman for the campaign against Washington’s eminent-domain measure. “Obviously if people don’t live here they wont have to pay the extra taxes and sit in the extra traffic.”

Here in California, opponents of the eminent-domain initiative are also accusing Rich of pushing his unwanted, out-of-state agenda on the state’s voters.

“The fact that this one guy from New York, an out-of-state multimillionaire, has decided, ‘I know what’s best for the nation and I am going to tell all the state’s how to do things right’ … that’s offensive,” says No on 90 spokeswoman Kathy Fairbanks.(Capitol Weekly 7/13/06)

These out-of-staters come into California because we are such a leader in the initiative process, for better or worse.  If California falls victim to Prop 90, you can bet similar initiatives will be all over the nation. And Prop 90 is merely using the Kelo decision for cover.  It is far more insidious.  The “damage” provision in Prop 90 would prevent zoning and any environmental regulation at the state or local level.  Of all the initiatives, it is most important that Prop 90 be defeated.  Its effects would be felt immediately and permanently in much the same way we still feel the devestation of Prop 13.