Backers Of Anti-Scam Initiative Say It’s About Protecting Seniors; Critics See Hidden Agenda

Authors of Initiative 1501 say its central aim is to protect seniors from scammers. But detractors argue the initiative itself has a hidden purpose.

Initiative 1501, on the ballot in Washington state this election, would impose harsher criminal and civil penalties on identity thieves and fraudsters who target seniors and other vulnerable people.

If SEIU 775 is packaging its main goal within a popular initiative, it wouldn't be anything new. The union has used the approach in the past to advance union goals -- and it works, according to Western Washington University political science professor Todd Donovan.