ABSTRACT
For over 120 years, the initiative and referendum process, or direct democracy as it is known in most parts of the world, has been a tool to check the power of government at the state and local level in the United States. Some of the toughest challenges that must be overcome are the direct result of state legislators' actions to limit the citizens' ability to use the initiative and referendum process. The people's right to self-determination, the right to be a check and balance on both elected officials and their fellow citizens, is being diminished. These legislative actions have a direct impact on the legal impact, implementation, and duration of direct democracy. The legal impact of direct democracy has fundamentally changed the political, economic, and social landscape in the United States. But when discussing the legal impact of direct democracy, there is no greater issue that affects all citizens than the fiscal implications of the voters' actions.
