what is the Initiative and Referendum Institute?

It all started in 1998. In recognition of the initiative and referendum process’ influence on America, the Initiative & Referendum Institute was founded by Dane Waters. The institute is a non-profit non-partisan research and educational organization dedicated to providing information to the citizens, academics, governments, and students about how the initiative and referendum process has been utilized.

Edwin Meese, III, former U.S. Attorney General under President Ronald Reagan, had this to say about the Institute, "[T]he Initiative & Referendum Institute performs a valuable service to the Nation by providing research and educational programs to protect and expand the democratic process of initiative and referendum by the people in the several states. Having this electoral ability is a critical ‘safety valve’ for effective citizenship."

In 2006, in order for the Institute to grow to its full potential, it became part of the University of Southern California under the leadership of Professor John Matsusaka.

The Initiative & Referendum Institute extensively studies the initiative and referendum process and publishes papers and monographs addressing its effect on public policy, citizen participation and its reflection of trends in American thought and culture.  We also research and produce a state-by-state guide to the initiative and referendum process that can be used by activists, and work to educate and update the public on how the process is being utilized across the country.  We analyze the relationship between voters and their elected lawmakers and when and why the people turn to initiative and referendum to enact changes in state and local law. The Initiative & Referendum Institute has garnered significant media attention.  We have been interviewed or cited by numerous media outlets globally including, ABC News, Voter News Service, CBS Radio, Pacific Radio Network, CNN, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Fox News Channel, The Christian Science Monitor, The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, The National Journal, The Wall Street Journal, Governing Magazine, USA Today, Court TV’s “Supreme Court Watch” and “Washington Watch”, The Economist, National Public Radio, Campaigns and Elections Magazine, U.S. News and World Report, Congressional Quarterly, and dozens of other publications, newspapers and radio stations around the world.