Ann Arbor city charter amendments pass muster with voters

I hope this passes, if only to send the message that using robocalls actually hurts a campaign.

id leave Michigan if it passes.taxes are to high.to many on welfare.property values down,unemployment too high.the bank can have my place like every other in so many neighborhoods .work to hard to keep giving it away

Yes, we have no new taxes today.

Proposal A:
http://electionresults.ewashtenaw.org/nov2009/canvassreport22.html

Proposal B:
http://electionresults.ewashtenaw.org/nov2009/canvassreport23.html

I took this as a vote on robocalling. I voted NO on robocalling (meaning YES on these proposals). I don't even care if the proposals really were bad, I wanted to send the message that if you support unidentified, fear-based, robocalling, then WE the people are AGAINST you, whatever the issue.

It's sad to hear that people voted for these proposals in protest of the robocalls. If you look at comments posted on the school millage articles, you'll see people calling for transparency left and right. Yet these proposals greatly reduce transparency. I sent a letter to the editor on this, you can read it at

http://www.annarbor.com/news/opinion/proposals-a-and-b-on-city-ballot-misleading-go-too-far/

There's also a great article by the Ann Arbor Chronicle

http://annarborchronicle.com/2009/08/18/column-a-charter-change-on-publishing/

Hopefully the people who voted yes will become watchdogs against abuse by the City Council.

Everybody hates robocalls, but experience has shown them to be highly effective. On the average, people who get robocalls become more likely to vote in the direction the robocalls urge.

These two charter amendments will be long remembered in Michigan politics as the first self-defeating robocall campaign. There is a point of diminishing returns on these tactics.

Future political campaigns would be well advised to take heed.

Larry -

I was surprised when I heard the robocalls that they didn't appear to be tuned to the Ann Arbor market. No one here is worried about chemical plants in their back yard, at least not in my back yard, but if you can done the same pitch about "the city wants to put a parking structure in your neighborhood park without telling you" I am certain they would have hit more of a sympathetic chord.

The article mentioned MPA opposition. Were there organized efforts supporting the proposals? Will AA.com look for ordinances published "by any other means or method determined appropriate by the City Council" and post them for public benefit, or was it all about the money?

Maybe it's because I'm an accountant, but it seems odd that 100 more people voted on PropA than B, and 450 more people voted in favor of A than in favor of B. The errors and omissions could be significant in other elections...Kunselman won the primary by 3 votes.

Here is what I don't understand... Why would people vote for LESS transparency in government? Who cares if they still have to post in the paper (even if it's not the Ann Arbor News), as well as on the website (which I THINK they could already do without any extra needed permission)?? Post it everywhere!

This almost begs for a clearinghouse website for information coming out of city hall...

This will not change a thing. The average citizen ignores the public notices. I can't tell you how many times I have had friends insist that the city has not posted the required announcement or tell me that the city should send out individual letters to all residents. I would venture to guess that the announcements will be easier to find online than they were in the newspaper. I encourage the city to provide notices via email for those who want them.