Panel presses lawyers on whether initiative is administrative or legislative

Multiple questioners on the panel pressed both sides to explain whether the initiative's effects are properly characterized as administrative or legislative. One questioner asked the appellant whether, if a three-block project on Elm Street required a bike path, that project would be subject to a vote under the initiative; counsel replied "yes" if the project falls within the initiative's broad scope.

The court pressed the city on why the clerk should be allowed to decline to place a petition on the ballot for reasons beyond signature sufficiency; city counsel responded the charter contemplates advisory review by the city attorney and that, in a charter city, the charter's allocation of duties should be given deference. These exchanges framed the central legal issue before the court: process vs. merits and the proper scope of initiative authority.