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Committee to
Prevent Employers from Seizing Tips
P.O. Box
71961
Las Vegas, Nevada 89170
(702) 474-9766
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Fax: (702)
386-4821
September 15, 2008
Dear Fellow Tip Earner,
Our group,
known as The PEST Committee, was created solely
to protect tips earned by employees from
confiscation by casino managers. Our direct
focus in accomplishing this has been to clarify
the existing law by amending NRS 608.160 statute
through the initiative petition process so that
it goes directly to the citizens of Nevada for
approval, circumventing all special interest.
Our initiative
filed in January was immediately challenged by
Wynn Las Vegas and other associations for
violating the single subject law NRS 295.009. In
the 2008 election cycle, out of twelve
initiative petitions filed with the Secretary of
State, eleven were challenged in state court as
violating the Single Subject law and the
affidavits required with the petition signatures
were declared flawed by the court invalidating
the twelfth initiative petition. The pattern and
premature lawsuits to remove ballot questions
before a single signature is gathered has become
the norm in the 2008 election cycle. The Single
Subject law conveniently put into place by the
Nevada Legislature to give them dictatorial
control over all law making, they themselves
violating the Single Subject law when writing
law, is a gross violation of the First Amendment
right of free speech and the right to petition
the government contrary to the First and
Fourteenth Amendments to the United States
Constitution.
Because one of
the five complaints in the lawsuit against us
declared that we violated the equal protection
clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the
Federal Constitution we believed that we could
have the case removed from State to Federal
Court to be heard and in doing so having the
Nevada Single Subject law declared
unconstitutional eliminating the restraint on
the Nevada initiative petition process.
Unfortunately the judge ruled that because the
case originated in the State Court and was tied
to other State Court complaints it should remain
in the State Court. This decision gave our
opponents cause to file what could be a costly
suit for damages which led us to withdraw the
initiative.
After many
meetings and much discussion with our attorneys
it has been decided that our goal could still be
successfully accomplished, avoiding the removal
process and money damages by filing a new
revised initiative addressing specified concerns
and filing a lawsuit directly to the Federal
Court declaring the Single Subject law
unconstitutional. This would make the Secretary
of State the only defendant in the Federal case
against the Single Subject law, eliminating Wynn
Las Vegas and other complainants. Meanwhile we
make a mad dash collecting signatures to the
finish line of November 11th. Besides
collecting signatures from our friends, family
and neighbors our main focus will be manning
Early Voting Locations and main Election Day
locations.
In order to
accomplish this there will have to be material
and supplies to be purchased and we once again
have to appeal to your generosity in helping us
financially. Please send us what you can; we
believe we can do this with your help.
Send donations
to:
Pest
Committee
P.O. Box
71961
Las Vegas,
NV 89170
Respectfully,
Tony Badillo
PEST Committee Chairman
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