Will residents face retribution for trying to block the raises?
Our volunteers keep reporting that folks they talk to WANT to sign the petitions to repeal Quincy politicians’ raises, but they’re afraid to do so for fear of retribution from the city. (Hopefully that fear is not based in reality, but it’s concerning that it seems to be so widespread.) So here is a little information for anyone who is worried about that.
A Just Quincy will only send the signed forms to the city clerk’s office if it looks like we have the required number of signatures to pass one or both repeal referendums (one is to repeal the mayor’s 79% raise, the other is to repeal the council’s 50% raise).
The city clerk’s office will then have to check that the signatures come from registered Quincy voters and that the number of those verified voter signatures is equal to at least 12% of all registered Quincy voters.
Citizens’ right to follow their consciences and petition the government for a redress of grievances is enshrined in the first amendment to the US Constitution. But even so, I’ve asked the city clerk to confirm that citizens will face no negative repercussions if they sign these petitions, and I fully expect she will do so when she returns to the office after the weekend.
—Maggie McKee
