MO Opinion No. 13-2019 January 17, 2019

Did Missouri's AG approve the form of Theodis Brown's initiative petition to amend Chapter 320 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri (Petition 2020-031)?

Short answer: No. The AG rejected the petition because it was not in the form prescribed by § 116.040, RSMo, and did not show deletions in brackets and new matter underlined. The Secretary of State retains final authority under § 116.332.4.

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This page answers the general question as of 2019. Ezel answers yours: what it means for your facts, under current Missouri law, with citations.

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 AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent.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.

About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official AG opinion. The original opinion (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

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Plain-English summary

Theodis Brown submitted Petition 2020-031 proposing to amend Chapter 320 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri. Chapter 320 governs fire prevention and protection, including the State Fire Marshal's office and fire safety standards.

The AG rejected the form under § 116.040, RSMo, identifying two problems: the petition was not in the prescribed form, and it did not contain "all matter which is to be deleted included in its proper place enclosed in brackets and all new matter shown underlined."

The AG did not reach any other potential defects. Under § 116.332.4, RSMo, the Secretary of State retains final authority on form. Brown could refile a corrected version.

The opinion does not describe the substance of the proposed Chapter 320 amendment.

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. Whether Brown refiled a corrected version is a separate question that the Missouri Secretary of State's records would show.

Common questions

What is Chapter 320, RSMo?

The Missouri statutory chapter on fire protection. It includes the State Fire Marshal's office, fire safety codes, fireworks regulation, and related provisions.

What was wrong with the form?

The AG cited § 116.040, RSMo, the general form requirement, and noted that the petition also failed to show deletions in brackets and new matter underlined. The form rejection ended the review there.

Does this say anything about the policy?

No. The form rejection ended the review before any substantive question was reached. Whatever Brown wanted to change about Chapter 320 was not examined here.

What does the sponsor do now?

Refile a corrected version. Format the document per § 116.040 (proper heading, ballot title, signature pages, circulator information), and add the bracket/underline markup so it shows exactly which existing text is being deleted and which is being added.

Background and statutory framework

The form review framework:

§ 116.040, RSMo: general petition form requirements (the ground the AG cited here, including the bracket/underline markup for changes to existing text).
§ 116.332, RSMo: AG review of form, advisory to the Secretary of State.
§ 116.332.4, RSMo: Secretary of State's final authority on form.

When a petition is rejected as to form, the sponsor can refile a corrected version under a new petition number.

Source

Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/13-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2

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, ATTORNEY GENERAL
JEFFERSON CITY, P.O. Box 899, 65102
(573) 751-3321

January 17, 2019

OPINION LETTER NO. 13-2019

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 January 7, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition submitted by Theodis Brown, (2020-031).

We conclude that the petition must be rejected for at least the following reasons:

The petition is not in the form prescribed by § 116.040, RSMo; and the petition does not contain "all matter which is to be deleted included in its proper place enclosed in brackets and all new matter shown underlined."

Because of our rejection of the form of the petition for the reasons stated above, we have not reviewed the petition to determine whether additional deficiencies exist. Pursuant to § 116.332.4, RSMo, the Secretary of State is authorized to review this opinion and "make a final decision as to the approval or rejection of the form of the petition."

Very truly yours,
ERIC S. SCHMITT
Attorney General

OP-2019-0003

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