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"Original Acts," "Meager Offspring," And Titles In A Bill's Family Tree: A Legislative Drafter's Perspective On City Of Fircrest V. Jensen, Kristen L. Fraser

Seattle University Law Review

This Article takes a closer look at the "dark and bloody ground" of City of Fircrest v. Jenson from the perspective of a legislative drafter, and discusses several flaws in the Fircrest plurality's approach. First, by focusing on the title of an "original act," the plurality's resurrection of the St. Paul analysis (under which the title of an "act" may be used to determine whether a subsequent "amendatory act" complies with the subject-in-title requirement of Article II, section 19 of the state constitution) conflicts with legislative use and implementation of Article II, section 19. Second, Fircrest and St. Paul thwart …