Did the Missouri Attorney General approve the form of DeeAnn Aull’s Article IX petition, version 3 (2020-119)?
Apply this to your situation
This page answers the general question as of 2019. Ask about yours and see what current Missouri law means for your facts, with citations you can check.
Plain-English summary
The Secretary of State asked the Attorney General to review the sufficiency as to form of DeeAnn Aull’s initiative petition to amend Article IX of the Missouri Constitution, version 3 (2020-119). The Attorney General approved the petition as to form under § 116.332, RSMo.
The letter says the Secretary of State has final authority to approve or reject the petition and may reject it despite this form approval. The Attorney General did not determine whether the petition is sufficient as to substance and did not endorse the petition or its proponents’ objectives. The letter does not describe the proposed amendment beyond its Article IX target.
Currency note
This letter was issued in 2019. Consult current law and the petition text for present requirements and the proposal’s substance.
Common questions
Q: Could the Secretary of State reject the petition after this approval?
A: Yes. The letter expressly says § 116.332 gives the Secretary of State final authority and that the Attorney General’s form approval does not prevent rejection.
Q: Did this letter approve the petition’s substance?
A: No. The Attorney General says the form decision is not a determination of substantive sufficiency or an endorsement.
Q: What change to Article IX did this petition propose?
A: The letter identifies the constitutional article, proponent, version, and petition number, but does not set out the proposed change. Read the petition text for that detail.
Background and statutory framework
The Secretary of State requested this form review under § 116.332, RSMo. This letter addresses that review only and records no later fiscal-note or summary-statement decision.
Citations and references
Statute cited: § 116.332, RSMo.
Source
Original opinion text
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT
September 20, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 205-2019
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 10, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition to amend Article IX of the Missouri Constitution submitted by DeeAnn Aull, version 3 (2020-119).
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-2019-0235
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