Pop quiz: In which appendage of state government do interested parties push often flawed legislation, frequently amidst bitter recrimination and, occasionally, scandal?

Answer: Trick question! There are two correct answers, one of which you’ve surely guessed. The other is the initiative process, by which various groups may take their proposals directly to voters.

These two legislative branches are in constant strife. Every once in a while, the initiative folks try to constrain legislators – by, say, asking voters to approve term limits.

The Capitol crowd, meanwhile, tries to make the initiative process harder to use. It’s like an unending Tom and Jerry episode.

Because it’s in session, the Legislature is now on the offensive. Thus has Rep. Greg Macpherson, D-Lake Oswego, sponsored a proposal that would force signature-gatherers to scramble like rodents on an exercise wheel. Should Macpherson’s bill pass, hiring enough clipboard warriors to qualify initiatives for the ballot will get a lot harder. Surprise, surprise.

At the moment, signature-gatherers need no special qualifications. That’s fine. Their job – brandishing a clipboard – isn’t exactly rocket science. Besides, the signatures themselves are subject to a verification process, and their collectors may be punished for any shenanigans.

Macpherson’s bill, House Bill 3184, would change all that. Aspiring signature-gatherers would have to register with the Secretary of State’s Office, they’d have to undergo criminal background checks and, absurdly, they’d have to endure hours of “training.”

Of what would this consist? Applicants would have to spend at least four hours boning up on Oregon election law, paying particular attention to those aspects covering the initiative process. They’d have to devote another four hours – at least – to the “substantive issues” presented by each petition for which they planned to gather signatures. Thus, anyone who wanted to gather signatures for a pair of petitions would have to spend eight hours studying the issues.

Why the mandatory Ph.D. in pen-pushing? Because, says Macpherson, the extent of what most people know when they vote on a ballot measure is what they’ve been told by signature-gatherers, who have “no particular credentials, nor any training.” Macpherson likens petitioners to public school teachers, who must be certified and appropriately educated.

This bill is a “variation on an idea that is under general consideration” in the Legislature, says Macpherson. In fact, Sen. Ben Westlund, D-Tumalo, is sponsoring a related bill. What makes Macpherson’s proposal notable is its educational requirement, which places it on the outer edge of the obstacle continuum.

Should HB 3184 pass, the effect on most potential signature-gatherers is easy to predict. Told they’d have to endure hours and hours of completely unnecessary training for the privilege of making a pittance, they’d say “Fuggedaboudit!” Alternatively, their employers would have to pay them a lot more. Either way, qualifying measures for the ballot would become much more difficult.

But that, of course, isn’t Macpherson’s motivation. This bill is really about education.

That being the case, we have a couple of suggestions for follow-up legislation.

It seems to us the voters also learn a lot about ballot measures from the Voters Pamphlet, in which anyone with a few bucks may buy space for a statement. To be fair, these people should have to take a four-hour class for each measure upon which they wish to share their views.

And because what’s good for Tom should also be good for Jerry, the Legislature should share the benefits of mandatory training. Before voting on any bill, each lawmaker should spend at least four hours studying it.