Facts

Plaintiffs, anti-tax activists Richard Rider and Stephen Cicero, filed suit against defendants Elizabeth Maland, in her official capacity as City of Clerk of the City of San Diego, and Deborah Seiler, in her official capacity as Registrar of Voters of the County of San Diego, challenging the constitutionality of five provisions in Proposition D, a half-cent sales tax initiative within the City of San Diego.

The City of San Diego, Mayor Jerry Sanders, and City Council members were named as real parties-in-interest.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiffs contended that the proposition violated the "single issue" rule, contained provisions that were administrative in character, and thus beyond the authority of voters to approve, and would delegate legislative power to the City Auditor in violation of the constitution. Further, plaintiffs argued that crucial portions of Proposition D were void under the constitution. Plaintiffs contended that the measure included "specific purposes" which requires two-thirds approval rather than a simple majority vote. Lastly, they claimed that the proposition's title and summary contained false and misleading language, which they claimed violated the Elections Code.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
The defense argued that the measure, as drafted, complied with the "single subject" rule. The defense contended that the ten conditions outlined in the measure were "reasonably germane" to the single subject of the measure: a sales tax.

Result

The court denied plaintiffs' claims and dismissed the action.