Civic Engagement & Public Services

Challenging reforms are needed to make sure all Americans are represented in civic life. These changes are all the more urgent in an age of partisan gridlock and polarization fueled by new media. Americans need more democratic election laws, more self-governance for local communities, and more safeguards against corporate dominance of government and common resources.

• The House of Representatives and the lower houses of state legislatures should be elected by a system of proportional representation.

• All elections should be held using either a ranked choice system or approval voting.

• Voter registration should be easy, and laws attempting to restrict voter registration deserve opposition.

• Access to impartial information on candidates and ballot initiatives should be easily available in public print and broadcast media.

• Independent and minor-party candidates for public office shall have fair and equal access to ballots. This right shall not be infringed by burdens such as exorbitant voter signatures and filing fees.

• We believe that local governments are most competent to solve community-based problems. In keeping with the principle of subsidiarity, there should be more autonomy of local governments from state governments wherever possible. There should be legal accountability of higher levels of government to lower levels.

• Federal, state, and local governments should maintain a well-functioning and accessible public transportation system.

• We desire zoning laws which favor small businesses and conservation over large-scale corporate investment and which disfavor vice businesses such as strip clubs and casinos.

• High standards of accountability and frequent audits of local officials are needed to prevent corruption and maintain financial health.

• We call for job programs to prevent “brain drain” from low-income areas.

• We oppose “race to the bottom” tax credits that incentivize large companies to manipulate local economies.

• Privatization of natural monopolies means that people who must use these services are left unrepresented. Public resources must remain public, including transportation services, toll roads and bridges, community policing and parking enforcement, prisons, and energy and water utilities.

• We oppose the enclosure of science and culture through unduly restrictive intellectual property laws. Copyright and patents should be leased at their full market value, in order to lower prices on necessary resources such as medicine and educational materials for those who need them most. We support increased public funding for scientific research.

• As part of an effort to continue public arts, entertainment, and media, there should be more non-commercial ownership of the airwaves.

• We will work to restrict the legal construct of “personhood” for organizations and corporations.

• We call for greater legal responsibility on the part of creditors and vendors for vigilance against fraudulent activity, such as identity theft.

• There should be federal antitrust legislation and enforcement to resist the formation of media conglomerates, and, if necessary, to break up those that already exist. There is special concern about big technology companies and social media providers.

• We regard the Internet as a public utility. The federal government should uphold strict net neutrality, so that users may access legal content without restrictions imposed by their Internet service providers. We will support the creation of local, public ISPs and universal wireless access to the Internet. Internet histories and other user data collected by ISPs should be destroyed, unless retention is specifically required by a court order.

• While the government has a responsibility to curtail media consolidation, it should not use its resources to censor the media or the Internet or to violate digital privacy itself. There should be no indiscriminate and unauthorized collection of data from the telephones and computers of American citizens and foreign nationals. The government should reform laws and trade agreements that allow the monitoring of personal Internet usage for non-criminal offenses, such as copyright infringement.