SignMyName.org   Online e-Petitioning in Michigan

Online e-Petitions in Michigan FAQ

What is signmyname.org?

We are a Michigan based non-partisan, not-for-profit initiative with the mission of researching the feasibility of providing registered voters in Michigan, the ability to sign their names to petitions electronically. Our only mission is to revolutionize the current citizens' initiative process in Michigan, which we believe is antiquated and inaccessible to many individuals.

How far along is this effort?

Currently, we are soliciting comments regarding the idea. Eventually we would like to either directly provide, or establish a legal foundation for a non-profit 501c(3) organization to pursue online services that facilitate e-Petitioning.

Who would e-Petitions benefit?

E-Petitions offer greater accessibility to the citizens' initiative process. The convenience of e-Petitioning is obvious, however, e-Petitions would allow those with disabilities as well as Armed Forces personnel working overseas, the ability to participate in this important democratic process. This increased accessibility is especilly valuable for anyone who does not have the luxury of being both "in town" and at a public event, where petitions are often solicited for signature. The advent of e-Petitions will bridge this physical divide and will offer for many physically disabled voters, their very first chance to participate in Michigan's citizens' initiative process.

Besides bridging physical divides, e-Petitions help to narrow an "information divide". With your computer by your side, e-Petitions allow citizens immediate access to Internet resources, to make better decisions about if they would like to sign their name to petitions.

How can I support this effort?

We cannot yet accept tax-deductible donations as we are not yet a 501c(3) non-profit entity. However, there are still plenty of ways to help and every little bit counts!

• Send us a email or letter of support and we'll post it on our page. This could be a personal letter or from your organization.
• Link to our website from yours
• Post a signmyname.org logo on your website that links to us to show your support.
• Send a message or letter of support to a State of Michigan Senator or Representitive for your area
• Blog about the signmyname.org effort
• Post your thoughts on the discussion board
• Tell your friends!

What is an e-Petition?

e-Petition (or ePetition) stands for "electronic petition". An e-Petition, in purpose, is analogous to any paper petition that you would sign, with the exception that your signature would be "stamped" via electronic means, over the Internet and at your command. There are some variations out there of this idea, such as "i-Petition", which generally stands for "Internet petition" and "digital petition". All of these efforts that we've seen to date seem to lack a tie-in with the State initiative process. We've chosen e-Petition as a descriptor, as we feel it best matches the stated goals of this effort, and avoids the baggage of the term "i-Petition", which is often used for mass-mailed public opinion style rallying sites.

How would it work?

Users would register essential information about themselves at a website and would subsequently be sent a "signature card" to collect their legal signature. These signatures would be digitized and securely stored in a database along with the user's registration record. Once the user's eligibility to vote has been established, the user would be allowed to digitally sign petitions of their choice at the same site.

If there are enough signatures collected, these petitions would automatically be submitted in paper form to the State of Michigan Elections Bureau for verification/validation.

For users who would use e-Petition services to supplement traditional signature gathering, we would send the officially registered petition organizer finished petition sheets with digitized signatures.

Could it be done securely?

We believe so. Multiple levels of security would need to be implemented with verification emails at several steps. High levels of security would accompany automatic voter registration eligibility checks.

Would these petitions be prone to error?

Sure, however, we believe that petitions that are signed online would offer more accuracy than paper petitions due to planned automatic verification and secure user identification, which cannot be completed while collecting petition signatures offline.

Is this an effort at an "Electronic Direct Democracy" (EDD) system?

No. EDD is a broad term, usually used in reference to the idea of electronic voting, in a government system that has adopted a direct democracy. The signmyname.org project does not offer any way to vote on ballot measures electronically nor is it our goal to establish a direct democracy beyond what is already in place with current initiative laws. The benefit of e-Petitions in Michigan would only extend to the ability to collect digital signatures for direct initiatives, so that they may become ballot initiatives that are later voted upon.

Is anybody else doing e-Petitions?

There are many sites on the Internet that provide e-Petitioning, however, most of these sites do not offer any tie-in with state or municipal initiative laws. Most of these sites simply offer ways to gain consensus, and rally support for a cause.

The UK government at 10 Downing Street provide e-Petitions that are officially submitted to government agencies and the program has been quite successful: http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/faq. This model could serve as a basis for a Michigan e-Petition initiative.

Would e-Petitions in Michigan Hold the same legal standing as paper-based ballot initiatives?

It appears they would, but that is what we are attempting to establish firmly. Current Michigan law allows electronically signed documents to be given "legal" status by way of the UETA Act (Uniform Electronic Transactions Act), established in 1999 and adopted by the State of Michigan in 2000. This law removes the somewhat tenuous standing that digital signatures had before the law was adopted.

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