Ezel / AG Opinions / MO
MO Opinion No. 119-2019 2019-07-03

Did the Missouri AG approve the form of Winston Apple's 2019 Chapter 192 (public health co-op) initiative petition (file 2020-096)?

Short answer: Yes, as to form. AG Schmitt approved Apple's petition 2020-096 (amending Chapter 192 RSMo, the Department of Health and Senior Services chapter) as sufficient as to form under § 116.332 RSMo. The companion fiscal note (140-2019) frames this as the public health co-op proposal. Form approval is procedural, not a substantive endorsement.
Currency note: this opinion is from 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.
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 AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent.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

Petition 2020-096 was a Winston Apple proposal to amend Chapter 192 RSMo, which governs the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. The companion fiscal note review (opinion 140-2019) treats this as the public health co-op proposal: a state-run cooperative health-care entity. Statutory (not constitutional) initiative.

Under § 116.332 RSMo the AG reviews initiative petitions for "sufficiency as to form." The check is procedural. AG Schmitt approved the form of this petition. Final form approval rests with the Secretary of State.

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.

Common questions

Q: What is a Chapter 192 statutory initiative?
A: A statutory (not constitutional) ballot initiative that would amend the laws governing the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. Statutory initiatives need fewer signatures than constitutional initiatives but, if passed, can be amended by the General Assembly with a simple majority.

Q: What does the form review actually check?
A: A procedural check under Chapter 116 RSMo: bracketing of deleted text and underlining of new text under § 116.050, single-subject limitation, signature-block format, and the like. The AG does not opine on whether the proposal is good policy, fundable, or constitutional.

Q: Why does AG approval not "preclude" the Secretary of State from rejecting?
A: § 116.332 gives the Secretary of State the final call. The AG opinion is advisory; the Secretary can take a different view on form.

Q: Did this petition reach the ballot?
A: The opinion does not say. None of Apple's 2019 petitions appears to have reached the 2020 statewide ballot.

Background and statutory framework

Chapter 116 RSMo lays out the initiative-petition pipeline. This opinion sits at step 2:

  1. Proponent files the petition with the Secretary of State.
  2. AG reviews sufficiency as to form under § 116.332 RSMo (this opinion).
  3. State Auditor prepares a fiscal note; AG reviews under § 116.175.4 RSMo.
  4. Secretary of State drafts a summary statement; AG reviews under § 116.334 RSMo.
  5. Petition certified for circulation.

Citations and references

Statutes: § 116.332 RSMo (the operative provision); § 116.050 RSMo; § 116.175 RSMo; § 116.334 RSMo. Chapter 192 RSMo (Department of Health and Senior Services).

Companion fiscal-note opinion (2020-096): 140-2019.

Source

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain, the linked PDF is authoritative.

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT

July 3, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 119-2019

The Honorable John R. Ashcroft
Missouri Secretary of State
James C. Kirkpatrick State Information Center
600 West Main Street
Jefferson City, MO 65101

Dear Secretary Ashcroft:

This opinion letter responds to your request dated June 27, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition to amend Chapter 192, Revised Statutes of Missouri, submitted by Winston Apple (2020-096).

We approve the petition as to form, but § 116.332 gives the Secretary of State final authority to approve or reject the petition. Therefore, our approval of the form of the petition does not preclude you from rejecting the petition.

Because our review of the petition is simply for the purpose of determining sufficiency as to form, the fact that we do not reject the petition is not to be construed as a determination that the petition is sufficient as to substance. Likewise, because our review is mandated by statute, no action that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the petition or of the objectives of its proponents, or the expression of any view respecting the adequacy or inadequacy of the petition generally.

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-2019-0145