If voter turnout is an indication of voter apathy, it's clear Albertans are growing increasingly apathetic towards provincial elections. Voter turnout levels in Alberta have steadily dropped with each election since 1993. In 1993, 60.2 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot; in 1997, that number was down to 53.8 per cent. In 2001, voter turnout dropped to 52.8 per cent, and then to 44.7 per cent in 2004.

Is it a lack of interest in the candidates or just a lack of interest in our options for political involvement A September 2001 Environics poll of over 1,000 Albertans would suggest the latter. The poll revealed that 79 per cent want direct democracy legislation.

Citizens' initiative legislation gives regular citizens the right to initiate and vote in referendums on issues of importance to them, through the successful gathering of a prescribed threshold of signatures on a petition calling for a public vote. More than just allowing citizens to initiate referendums, citizen-initiatives take the heat off politicians who often avoid controversial or divisive issues - issues that may be of high importance to many Albertans.

Voters in British Columbia have had this right since 1995, when the government introduced the Recall and Initiative Act. The BC law requires 10 per cent of eligible voters to sign a petition within 90 days. Since 1995, six attempts have been made in BC to gather enough signatures to force a vote, but all have failed.

Initiatives are common in Switzerland, but perhaps best know just south of the border. According to the University of Southern California's Initiative and Referendum Institute, 204 referendums were held in 37 states during the recent November elections. Of the 204 measures, 75 were citizen-initiated and the remaining 129 were government-initiated.

Voters in various states voted on issues such as eminent domain (property rights), gay marriage, abortion, tax hikes, minimum wages and smoking laws.

Citizens in Arizona were asked to vote on a salary increase for their state legislators (failed 47-53), and whether the state should award $1-million to a random voter each election to encourage voter turnout (failed 34-66), to name a few.

Californians voted on increased penalties for sex crimes (approved 71-29), and on a new $2.60 per pack cigarette surtax (failed 48-52), among others.

People in Missouri cast a ballot on stripping pensions from government officials convicted of felonies (approved 84-16). In Nevada they voted on whether they should double their state legislator salaries (failed 30-70). In Montana, voters decided whether government officials should be prohibited from lobbying for two years after leaving office (approved 75-25).

In all, 68 per cent of all referendums were approved, with 41 per cent of the citizen-initiated referendums getting the thumbs-up from US voters.

Alberta once had a citizens' initiative law. From 1913 to 1958, Alberta had the Direct Legislation Act, where 20 per cent of the voters could petition the Legislature to pass a proposed law. Unfortunately the excessively high signature threshold ensured no referendums took place. According to Dr. Barry Cooper of the University of Calgary, the Act was repealed in 1958 after a handful of Albertans started asking questions on how the law could be used.

Interestingly, Albertans already have the right to initiate referendums on issues of their choice at the municipal level. If 10 per cent of eligible voters sign a petition within a 60 day period, calling for a vote on a municipal by-law, a vote must be held.

If citizens' initiative is good enough for British Columbians, for Americans, and for our municipal governments in Alberta, it should be good enough for our provincial government.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation recently asked the PC leadership candidates if they would commit to introduce a new law giving Albertans the right to initiate referendums on issues of importance. Dave Hancock, Gary McPherson, Ted Morton, and Lyle Oberg committed they would, if elected Premier.

The others, sadly, did not.