In the October 12, 2017, issue of the Register-Guard, reporter Christian Hill writes:
A group seeking to establish an independently elected Eugene city auditor said Wednesday it will submit almost 13,000 signatures toward qualifying the measure for the May ballot.
Members of City Accountability said they are certain they have enough valid signatures to get the measure, an amendment to the city charter, onto the ballot.
The group said it will submit the signatures to city officials at 11 a.m. Thursday, one day before the deadline.
Once submitted, city and county officials will work to verify the signatures. Supporters need 8,091 verified signatures—15 percent of the total votes cast in the last mayoral election—to qualify the initiative for the ballot. The deadline for city and county officials to confirm whether the proposed initiative qualified is Oct. 27.
“We are extremely confident that we have surpassed the required threshold of community support, but many details are left to the discretion of the city and county officials,” the group said Wednesday in a press release announcing that signature gathering is complete.
Meanwhile, a study group convened by Mayor Lucy Vinis completed its work Wednesday researching how auditors operate in other U.S. cities.
Vinis will present the information to city councilors for a discussion in November.
The discussion could lead city councilors to support, oppose or take a neutral stand on the proposed initiative—or refer to the ballot a competing proposal for a city auditor, the mayor said. …