A video surfaced showing a group in San Francisco allegedly offering individuals $5 in exchange for their signatures on a state ballot initiative, even providing a participant with a false name and address for the form.
The video, filmed by JJ Smith, depicts a gathering of people in downtown San Francisco queuing to sign the paperwork. When asked about the purpose, a man explained, "It’s for signing a petition. You get five bucks to sign a petition."
In the footage, a woman at a table distributing the paperwork directs someone to sign as "Carol Sanderson of Avila Beach." The petition belongs to Building a Better California, a ballot initiative funded by billionaires and aimed at prohibiting taxes on personal wealth.
Abby Lunardini, a spokesperson for Building a Better California backed by Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, stated, “To be clear, we absolutely do not tolerate this or any type of fraudulent activity in the signature-gathering process.” She added that the campaign has taken steps to address the issue, including identifying the culprit and rejecting any petitions linked to them.
The fraudulent signature gatherers were also reportedly funding ink for other petitions and the appropriate authorities have been alerted.
The ballot initiative in question, the Retirement and Personal Savings Protection Act, requires approximately 874,000 valid signatures to qualify for a November vote. It seeks to ban taxes like the controversial billionaire tax prompting wealthy individuals to consider relocating to states with lower tax rates.
Nathan Click, a spokesperson for the Retirement and Personal Savings Protection Act, stated, “As soon as we became aware of the activities in question, we demanded that our signature-gathering firm identify the petition circulator, reject any and all petitions submitted by this circulator,” adding that strict enforcement of protocols is being ensured.
The California Secretary of State is responsible for verifying signatures for voter initiatives and has emphasized that offering cash for signatures and submitting petitions with forged signatures are illegal activities.
Paul Mitchell, a political consultant from Sacramento, expressed concerns about fraudulent practices in the signature-gathering process, suggesting that lower-level contractors may be deceiving higher-tier contractors paying for the signatures.
Building a Better California has received substantial funding, including $20 million from Google co-founder Sergey Brin, contributing to a total of $45 million raised from wealthy Californians. The group has proposed four measures for the November ballot focusing on affordability, housing, and governance issues, including an affordable housing bond and a ban on wealth taxes.
Additionally, the group is supporting two other measures aimed at streamlining housing construction and reducing bureaucratic hurdles in permitting for infrastructure projects, sponsored by the Nor Cal Carpenters Union and the California Chamber of Commerce, respectively.
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