MO Opinion No. 113-2019 2019-06-28

Did the Missouri AG approve the fiscal note for SJR 14 & 9, the 2019 legislative referral imposing two-term limits on all statewide elected officials?

Short answer: Yes, as to legal content and form. AG Schmitt approved the fiscal note for Senate Substitute for Senate Committee Substitute for Senate Joint Resolution Nos. 14 & 9, which would have placed a two-term restriction on all Missouri statewide elected officials. Auditor Galloway concluded no costs or savings to state or local government from the proposal.

Disclaimer: This is an official Missouri Attorney General opinion. AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent. This summary is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed Missouri attorney for advice on your specific situation.

Plain-English summary

This opinion is a fiscal-note review of SS for SCS for SJR Nos. 14 & 9, a Missouri Senate-passed legislative referral from the 2019 session. SJR 14/9 would have placed a two-term restriction on all statewide elected officials (Governor, Lt. Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney General). Missouri already term-limits the Governor and Treasurer to two terms each (Mo. Const. art. IV, §§ 17, 17(b)); SJR 14/9 would have extended the same two-term cap to the other four offices and made the rule uniform.

Unlike most opinions in this series, the underlying measure is a legislative referral, not a citizen initiative. § 116.175 RSMo's fiscal-note pipeline applies to both kinds of ballot measures, and the AG reviews the fiscal note's "legal content and form" under § 116.175.4 RSMo regardless of who placed it on the ballot.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2019. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

The exact fiscal-note summary the AG approved

State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings from this proposal.

Common questions

Q: How did SJR 14/9 fare in the Senate and beyond?
A: The Senate passed the substitute, which is why the document arrived at the AG for fiscal-note review. The measure did not reach the 2020 ballot. Missouri's existing term limits on the Governor and Treasurer (Mo. Const. art. IV, §§ 17, 17(b)) remained in place, and the other four statewide offices remained unrestricted.

Q: Why does the auditor estimate no fiscal impact?
A: Term limits change who serves, not what the office costs. Salaries, staffing, and operating budgets of statewide offices are set by appropriation regardless of the holder, so a term cap produces no direct fiscal effect on state or local government.

Q: How is this different from the initiative petitions in this number range?
A: 113-2019 is the only legislative-referral fiscal-note review in the immediate sequence. Items immediately before and after (108-2019 through 121-2019) are initiative-petition reviews from June and early July 2019.

Background and statutory framework

Chapter 116 RSMo's pipeline:

The General Assembly passes a joint resolution (or a citizen group files an initiative).
The State Auditor prepares a fiscal note under § 116.175 RSMo.
The AG reviews the fiscal note's "legal content and form" under § 116.175.4 RSMo (this opinion).
The Secretary of State drafts a summary statement; AG reviews under § 116.334 RSMo.
The measure goes to the statewide ballot at the next general election.

Citations and references

Statutes: § 116.175 RSMo (the operative provision); § 116.175.4 RSMo (the AG's role); § 116.334 RSMo. Mo. Const. art. IV, §§ 17, 17(b) (existing Governor and Treasurer term limits).

Source

Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/113-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT

June 28, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 113-2019

The Honorable Nicole Galloway
Missouri State Auditor
State Capitol, Room 121
Jefferson City, MO 65101

Dear Auditor Galloway:

This office received your letter of June 19, 2019, submitting a fiscal note and fiscal note summary prepared under § 116.175, RSMo, for Senate Substitute for Senate Committee Substitute for Senate Joint Resolution Nos. 14 & 9. The fiscal note summary that you submitted is as follows:

State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings from this proposal.

Under § 116.175.4, RSMo, we approve the legal content and form of the fiscal note summary. Because our review of the fiscal note summary is mandated by statute, no action that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the initiative petition or as the expression of any view regarding the objectives of its proponents.

Very truly yours,

ERIC S. SCHMITT
Attorney General

Supreme Court Building
207 W. High Street
P.O. Box 899
Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: (573) 751-3321
Fax: (573) 751-0774
www.ago.mo.gov

OP-2019-0136