Group seeks legal review of initiatives

Initiatives proposed by the Spokane Patriots, a conservative activist group, will get a legal review from city attorneys before supporters start gathering signatures. Mike Fagan, who has worked with anti-tax activist Tim Eyman, submitted the proposals on behalf of the Spokane Patriots to the city clerk last month. The Spokane City Council was scheduled on Monday to decide whether to place the items on the ballot itself or make Fagan collect signatures. But before the council voted, Fagan requested that the city’s legal department review the items first. City law allows initiative sponsors to request a legal review. One of Fagan’s proposed initiatives would bar the city from joining the United Nations or from forming relationships “undermining United States sovereignty.” The other would prevent the city from “adopting any regulations, taxation or other policies which would be targeted specifically towards modifying greenhouse gas emissions.”