Did the Missouri AG approve the form of James Owen's 2019 Chapter 393 renewable-energy-standard initiative petition (version 1, file 2020-113)?
Plain-English summary
James Owen filed four parallel initiative petitions in late August 2019 (numbers 2020-113 through 2020-116) to amend the statutes governing Missouri's renewable energy standard, the law that requires investor-owned electric utilities to source a minimum percentage of their retail sales from renewables. Petition 2020-113 is version 1 of the family.
Under § 116.332 RSMo, the Secretary of State sends each filed petition to the AG for a "sufficiency as to form" review. AG Schmitt's letter here approves the form of version 1. Form approval is structural; it does not endorse the policy and it does not bind the Secretary of State, who retains final approval authority under the same § 116.332.
This is the form-review step that came before the fiscal-note review (209-212-2019, October 4) and summary-statement review (218-221-2019, October 11) for the same petitions.
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 Missouri's "renewable energy standard"?
A: A state law (currently codified principally at § 393.1030 RSMo) that requires investor-owned electric utilities to source a rising percentage of their retail electricity sales from renewable resources, with a minimum 2% solar carveout. It was created by Proposition C, an initiative passed by Missouri voters in 2008. The Owen petitions in this cluster sought to raise the percentages on multi-year ramps.
Q: How does this version differ from the others Owen filed?
A: The four versions test different ramp speeds and add-ons. Version 1 reaches 50% by 2040. Version 2 reaches 50% by 2035 plus a "buy at least half from non-utility-owned" requirement. Version 3 reaches 100% by 2050. Version 4 reaches 100% by 2050 and amends Chapter 386 to change net-metering rules. The substance is recited in the parallel summary-statement opinions 218-221.
Q: What does Chapter 393 RSMo cover?
A: Regulation of public utilities. Sections 393.1020 through 393.1030 RSMo establish the renewable energy standard. Other Chapter 393 sections govern utility rates, service obligations, and certificates of convenience and necessity.
Q: Who has final authority?
A: The Secretary of State, John R. Ashcroft at the time. § 116.332 expressly reserves "final authority to approve or reject" to him.
Background and statutory framework
Chapter 116 RSMo lays out the initiative-petition pipeline. This opinion sits at step 2:
- Proponent files the petition with the Secretary of State.
- AG reviews sufficiency as to form under § 116.332 RSMo (this opinion).
- State Auditor prepares a fiscal note; AG reviews under § 116.175.4 RSMo.
- Secretary of State drafts a summary statement; AG reviews under § 116.334 RSMo.
- Petition certified for circulation; signatures gathered by deadline.
A statutory initiative needs fewer signatures than a constitutional amendment.
Citations and references
Statutes: § 116.332 RSMo (the operative provision); § 116.175 RSMo (fiscal-note pipeline); § 116.334 RSMo (summary-statement pipeline); § 116.050 RSMo (drafting requirements); Chapter 393 RSMo (regulation of public utilities); Chapter 386 RSMo (Public Service Commission); § 393.1020 et seq. RSMo (renewable energy standard).
Sister Owen renewable-energy form-review opinions in this cluster: 192-2019 (version 2, 2020-114), 193-2019 (version 3, 2020-115), 194-2019 (version 4, 2020-116).
Fiscal-note opinions for the same Owen cluster: 209-2019 (v1, 2020-113), 210-2019 (v2, 2020-114), 211-2019 (v3, 2020-115), 212-2019 (v4, 2020-116).
Summary-statement opinions for the same Owen cluster: 218-2019 (v1, 2020-113), 219-2019 (v2, 2020-114), 220-2019 (v3, 2020-115), 221-2019 (v4, 2020-116).
Source
- Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
- Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/191-2019.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 13, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 191-2019
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 September 6, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition to amend Chapter 393, Revised Statutes of Missouri, version 1 (2020-113) submitted by James Owen.
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-2019-0220