What is a signing location?
A signing location is a designated place where citizens can go to sign petitions for initiatives and referendums. These locations are set up to make it easy for people to participate in the process of proposing new laws or challenging existing ones by adding their signatures to official petitions. Signing locations may be organized by community leaders, churches, or grassroots organizations and are often part of a broader strategy to mobilize public involvement in shaping policy.
We need 1,000 such sites statewide. These locations are a key part of efforts to empower citizens to “sign initiatives and referendums,” which can overturn unconstitutional laws or propose new ones that reflect the values and priorities of the community.
Why have a signing location?
A signing location is more than just a place for people to add their names to petitions—it can serve as a meaningful outreach to the community. When people from the neighborhood come in to sign an initiative, especially one that impacts families, it creates a natural opportunity to welcome them, offer hospitality (like a cup of coffee), and build relationships. This friendly environment can open doors to share about Jesus and invite visitors to church on Sunday, making the signing location a hub for both civic engagement and spiritual connection.
By hosting signing locations at churches or community centers, you not only help advance important family-focused initiatives but also extend an invitation for people to experience Christian community and hear the gospel. This approach embodies loving your neighbor and stewarding the public square, as it combines practical action for the good of families with genuine care for people’s spiritual well-being.
Wait, isn't there a separation of Church and State?
The principle of separation of church and state means that the government should not control or interfere with the affairs of the church, and likewise, the church should not govern the state. This separation protects religious liberty by ensuring that people are free to practice their faith without government interference, and that no single religion is given preferential treatment by the state. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution enshrines these protections by prohibiting the establishment of a national religion and safeguarding the free exercise of religion.
However, this does not mean that people of faith—or churches—should be silent on matters of public concern, especially on issues that impact families, religious liberty, or the protection of children and the elderly. The separation is about preventing government control over religion, not about excluding religious voices from the public square. In fact, citizens and faith communities have both the right and responsibility to express their values and advocate for policies that reflect their beliefs, particularly when these issues affect the well-being of the community.
Churches can and should allow their voices to be heard in the state, participating in public policy discussions and advocating for laws that protect families, defend religious liberty, and care for the vulnerable. Engaging in these issues is not a violation of the separation of church and state; rather, it is an exercise of the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution and entrusted to us by God through God’s word.
Church Signing Location Announcement
We’re excited to announce that our church is now an official signing location for important initiatives and referendums that protect family values and religious liberty in our state. If you’d like to make your voice heard and support these causes, you can sign petitions right here at church. For more information, visit the Family Policy Institute of Washington’s website at fpiw.org/signing-location. Let’s stand together for faith and family!
Become a Signing Location
I would like to set up a signing location at my church, business, or non-profit. Please get in touch with me.
CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON
This Constitution was framed by a convention of seventy-five delegates, chosen by the people of the Territory of Washington at an election held May 14, 1889, under section 3 of the Enabling Act. The convention met at Olympia on the fourth day of July, 1889, and adjourned on the twenty-second day of August, 1889. The Constitution was ratified by the people at an election held on October 1, 1889, and on November 11, 1889, in accordance with section 8 of the Enabling Act, the president of the United States proclaimed the admission of the State of Washington into the Union.
PREAMBLE
We, the people of the State of Washington, grateful to the Supreme Ruler of the universe for our liberties, do ordain this constitution.
ARTICLE I
DECLARATION OF RIGHTS
SECTION 1 POLITICAL POWER.
All political power is inherent in the people, and governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, and are established to protect and maintain individual rights.
ARTICLE II
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT
SECTION 1 LEGISLATIVE POWERS, WHERE VESTED.
The legislative authority of the state of Washington shall be vested in the legislature, consisting of a senate and house of representatives, which shall be called the legislature of the state of Washington, but the people reserve to themselves the power to propose bills, laws, and to enact or reject the same at the polls, independent of the legislature, and also reserve power, at their own option, to approve or reject at the polls any act, item, section, or part of any bill, act, or law passed by the legislature.
(a) Initiative: The first power reserved by the people is the initiative. Every such petition shall include the full text of the measure so proposed. In the case of initiatives to the legislature and initiatives to the people, the number of valid signatures of legal voters required shall be equal to eight percent of the votes cast for the office of governor at the last gubernatorial election preceding the initial filing of the text of the initiative measure with the secretary of state. Initiative petitions shall be filed with the secretary of state not less than four months before the election at which they are to be voted upon, or not less than ten days before any regular session of the legislature. …
(b) Referendum. The second power reserved by the people is the referendum, and it may be ordered on any act, bill, law, or any part thereof passed by the legislature, except such laws as may be necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety, support of the state government and its existing public institutions, either by petition signed by the required percentage of the legal voters, or by the legislature as other bills are enacted: Provided, That the legislature may not order a referendum on any initiative measure enacted by the legislature under the foregoing subsection…
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