Did the Missouri AG approve the ballot summary for Mary Anne Sedey's 2019 Article VIII voting-access initiative petition (version 4, file 2020-075)?

Plain-English summary

On July 31, 2019, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt reissued his response about Mary Anne Sedey’s version 4 petition (2020-075) to correct a typographical error. The new letter superseded the earlier one and approved the legal content and form of a proposed summary statement. Official opinion.

The proposed statement described "automatic voter registration of individuals at least 16 years old from state agency lists (including the departments of revenue, social services and conservation)." The word including makes those named departments examples; the letter does not say that Corrections is excluded or provide an exhaustive source list. The statement also described wrong-polling-place ballot transfer, permanent mail-voting signup, and a public record of voting method. The AG expressly disclaimed endorsement of the petition.

What this means for you

Voters and petition readers. The summary describes automatic registration from state agency lists, naming three departments as examples. It does not resolve whether another agency's list would be used.

Election officials. The revised letter approves the proposed summary’s legal content and form under § 116.334, RSMo. It does not say whether the petition later reached a ballot.

Common questions

Did this version exclude the Department of Corrections from registration sources?

The opinion does not say. It names revenue, social services, and conservation in a list introduced by "including," without an exclusion rule.

Why was the AG letter reissued?

The AG says there was a typographical error in the July 29 response and that the July 31 response supersedes it. The letter does not identify the exact typo.

What did the proposed summary say about voting by mail?

It described permanent signup for mail voting, with voting by mail allowed during the six weeks before each election.

Background and statutory framework

The Secretary of State sought review under § 116.334, RSMo, of a proposed summary for version 4 (2020-075). The AG approved its legal content and form in this revised letter while disclaiming endorsement. Read the official letter.

Citations

• § 116.334, RSMo (summary-statement review).

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/147-2019.pdf

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT

July 31, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 147-2019 (revised)

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:

On July 29, 2019 we sent you a response to your request dated July 19, 2019, for our review under § 116.334, RSMo, of a proposed summary statement prepared for the petition submitted by Mary Anne Sedey regarding a proposed constitutional amendment to amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution, version 4 (2020-075). Due to a typographical error we are reissuing our response. This response supersedes the previous opinion letter. The proposed summary statement is as follows:

> Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
>
> - establish automatic voter registration of individuals at least 16 years old from state agency lists (including the departments of revenue, social services and conservation);
> - allow voters on election day to appear at the wrong polling place, vote on a wrong ballot, and have election judges later transfer the votes to the right ballot;
> - allow voters to sign up to permanently vote by mail, with voting by mail allowed during the six weeks before each election; and
> - make voters' method of voting a public record (mail, in person or military)?

Pursuant to § 116.334, RSMo, we approve the legal content and form of the proposed statement. Because our review of the statement is mandated by statute, no action that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the petition, nor 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-2019-0172