Changes to the Initiative Petition Process

On Tuesday morning, the House Elections Committee heard HB 551, sponsored by Rep. John Martin (R-Columbia), and HB 575, sponsored by Rep. Brad Banderman (R-St. Clair), identical bills affecting the initiative and referendum petition process used to amend the Missouri Constitution by voters, making numerous statutory changes to the process of collecting signatures and enabling topics to reach the statewide ballot. HB 551 and HB 575 require signature pages to be printed on a form as specified by the Secretary of State (SOS). No measure circulating by petition shall claim to nullify or amend Federal law or accomplish any act that the U.S. Constitution requires to be accomplished by the General Assembly. Signature collectors must be citizens of the United States and residents of Missouri or must be physically present in Missouri for at least 30 consecutive days prior to the collection of signatures. HB 551 and HB 575 provide that signatures on initiative and referendum petitions submitted to the SOS are not open records under the Missouri Sunshine Law. Signatures must be recorded using black or dark ink. Only Missouri registered voters can challenge the official ballot title or fiscal note for a Constitutional amendment, initiative petition, or referendum measure. The bills require final adjudication relating to a challenge of the official ballot title or fiscal note to occur at least eight weeks before the date of the election. Petition sample sheets must be submitted to the SOS six months prior to the next general election. If a court orders a change that substantially alters the content of the official ballot title of an initiative or referendum petition, all signatures gathered before the change occurred must be invalidated. During discussion, Rep. Martin said similar legislation nearly passed the General Assembly last year. Rep. Banderman noted compensation for petition circulators is not restricted; the bill does restrict payment per signature collected. Testifying in support of the bills was Sam Lee of Campaign Life Missouri, saying there should be stronger safeguards in the process. Opposing testimony on various portions of the bills was presented by Arnie Dienoff, Jobs With Justice Voter Action, Missouri Voter Protection Coalition, Missouri Coalition for the Environment, and Action St. Louis Power Project. Information only testimony was offered by Amanda Bell of the Secretary of State’s Office.