Did the Missouri AG approve the fiscal note for Mary Anne Sedey's 2019 Article VIII voting-access initiative petition (version 6, file 2020-110)?
Plain-English summary
Mary Anne Sedey filed eight parallel initiative petitions in August 2019 (numbers 2020-105 through 2020-112) to amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution (suffrage and elections) with a package of voting-access reforms: automatic voter registration from state agency lists, permanent vote-by-mail signup with six-week mail-voting windows, in-person voting the weekend before elections, and various per-version add-ons (teen pre-registration, voter-method list publication, inclusion of the Department of Corrections among agencies feeding registration). Petition 2020-110 is version 6.
Once the State Auditor prepared a fiscal note for each version, the AG reviewed the legal content and form of the auditor's summary under § 116.175.4 RSMo. AG Schmitt's letter here approves the fiscal note summary for version 6:
State governmental entities expect one-time costs of at least $1 million and possible ongoing costs. Local governments are expected to have costs of an unknown amount totaling at least $745,000 in one-time costs, $192,000 in annual costs, and $658,000 in costs per election.
The AG's review is narrow: a legal-form check on the fiscal note summary. It does not endorse the petition, vouch for the dollar figures, or examine "the fairness or sufficiency of the estimated fiscal impact."
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: Why does the local cost vary slightly across Sedey versions?
A: The Auditor's projection differs based on whether the version includes 16-17 year old pre-registration. Versions with pre-registration (5 and 7) show $756K one-time and $204K annual local costs. Versions without (4, 6, 8) show $745K one-time and $192K annual. The teen pre-registration adds about $11K one-time and $12K annual to the projection. The $658,000 per-election cost is the same across all versions, reflecting the cost of running mail-voting infrastructure.
Q: Why a $658,000 per-election cost?
A: The opinion does not break it down. Local election authorities (county clerks and election boards in Missouri) would have to staff for higher mail-ballot volume, print and mail more ballots, and process them. Per-election cost is the recurring burden each statewide or local election would impose on local government.
Q: Is this fiscal note accurate?
A: The opinion does not say. The AG specifically disclaims any review of accuracy. Anyone challenging accuracy must do so under § 116.190 RSMo in Cole County circuit court within ten days of certification.
Q: Did this petition reach the ballot?
A: The opinion does not say. None of the September 2019 Sedey versions appears to have advanced to the 2020 ballot.
Background and statutory framework
Chapter 116 RSMo lays out the initiative-petition pipeline. This opinion sits at step 3:
- Proponent files the petition with the Secretary of State.
- AG reviews sufficiency as to form under § 116.332 RSMo.
- State Auditor prepares a fiscal note; AG reviews under § 116.175.4 RSMo (this opinion).
- Secretary of State drafts a summary statement; AG reviews under § 116.334 RSMo.
- Petition certified for circulation.
Citations and references
Statutes: § 116.175 RSMo, § 116.175.4 RSMo (the operative provisions); § 116.332 RSMo; § 116.334 RSMo; § 116.190 RSMo (judicial challenges).
Sister Sedey Article VIII fiscal-note opinions in this cluster: 186-2019 (version 4, 2020-108), 187-2019 (version 5, 2020-109), 189-2019 (version 7, 2020-111), 190-2019 (version 8, 2020-112).
Summary-statement reviews on the same Sedey cluster (later in pipeline): 195-2019 (v1, 2020-105), 196-2019 (v2, 2020-106), 197-2019 (v3, 2020-107), 198-2019 (v4, 2020-108), 199-2019 (v5, 2020-109), 200-2019 (v6, 2020-110), 201-2019 (v7, 2020-111), 202-2019 (v8, 2020-112).
Source
- Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
- Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/188-2019.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
September 6, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 188-2019
The Honorable Nicole Galloway
Missouri State Auditor
State Capitol, Room 121
Jefferson City, MO 65101
Dear Auditor Galloway:
This office received your letter of August 29, 2019, submitting a fiscal note and fiscal note summary prepared under § 116.175, RSMo, for an initiative petition submitted by Mary Anne Sedey (20-110). The fiscal note summary that you submitted is as follows:
State governmental entities expect one-time costs of at least $1 million and possible ongoing costs. Local governments are expected to have costs of an unknown amount totaling at least $745,000 in one-time costs, $192,000 in annual costs, and $658,000 in costs per election.
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. Furthermore, our review under § 116.175.4 does not examine the fairness or sufficiency of the estimated fiscal impact.
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-2019-0217