Did the Missouri AG approve the ballot summary for James Owen's 2019 Chapter 393 renewable-energy-standard initiative petition (version 2, file 2020-114)?
Plain-English summary
James Owen filed four parallel initiative petitions in October 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. The petitions are statutory (Chapter 393 RSMo, plus Chapter 386 in version 4), not constitutional, so they would amend the RSMo directly rather than the Constitution. Petition 2020-114 is version 2.
After the Secretary of State drafted a summary statement (the ballot question voters would see), AG Schmitt's office reviewed it under § 116.334 RSMo. This opinion approves the legal content and form of the summary for version 2.
The petition would have raised Missouri's renewable energy standard from the existing 15% of retail sales (set in 2008 by Proposition C) to a higher target on a multi-year ramp: 20% by 2022, 27% by 2025, 35% by 2028, 42% by 2031, and 50% by 2035.
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.
The exact ballot summary the AG approved
Do you want to amend Missouri law regarding the renewable energy standard applicable to investor-owned electric utilities as follows:
- increase the minimum renewable energy amount from the existing 15% of retail sales in 2021 to 20% by 2022, 27% by 2025, 35% by 2028, 42% by 2031, and 50% by 2035;
- only allow the use of renewable energy credits if they are associated with electricity the utility sold to Missouri customers;
- require each utility to purchase at least half of the renewable energy used to meet the standard from resources it does not own?
Common questions
Q: What is Missouri's "renewable energy standard"?
A: It is 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. The standard was created by Proposition C, an initiative passed by Missouri voters in 2008. The Owen petitions in this cluster sought to raise the percentages.
Q: How does this version differ from the others Owen filed?
A: The four versions test different ramp speeds and add-ons. Version 1 (2020-113) reaches 50% by 2040. Version 2 (2020-114) reaches 50% by 2035 and adds a "buy at least half from non-utility-owned" requirement. Version 3 (2020-115) reaches 100% by 2050. Version 4 (2020-116) reaches 100% by 2050 and also amends Chapter 386 to change net-metering rules.
Q: What is "net metering" (the change in version 4)?
A: Net metering is the billing system for customers (typically rooftop solar) who put electricity onto the grid. Currently the customer's bill is "netted" against the energy they push back. Different states use different formulas, and modifying net metering shifts incentives for distributed solar.
Q: What does "renewable energy credits" mean and why does the petition limit their use?
A: A renewable energy credit (REC) is a tradeable certificate representing one MWh of renewable generation. Utilities use RECs to demonstrate compliance with the standard. The Owen petitions would have allowed RECs only when "associated with electricity the utility sold to Missouri customers", which would block the utility from buying out-of-state RECs to satisfy the standard. That is a meaningful tightening.
Q: Did this petition reach the ballot?
A: The opinion does not say. AG approval is one early step. The petition still needed certified signatures by the statutory deadline (5% of votes cast for governor in two-thirds of Missouri's congressional districts for a statutory initiative, per Mo. Const. art. III, § 50).
Background and statutory framework
Chapter 116 RSMo lays out the initiative-petition pipeline:
- 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.
- Secretary of State drafts a summary statement; AG reviews under § 116.334 RSMo (this opinion).
- Petition certified for circulation; signatures gathered by deadline.
A statutory initiative (which is what the Owen petitions are) requires fewer signatures than a constitutional amendment.
Citations and references
Statutes: § 116.334 RSMo (the operative provision); § 116.175 RSMo (fiscal-note pipeline); § 116.332 RSMo (sufficiency-as-to-form); § 116.190 RSMo (judicial challenges); 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-standard summary statement opinions: 218-2019 (version 1, 2020-113), 220-2019 (version 3, 2020-115), 221-2019 (version 4, 2020-116).
Source
- Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
- Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/219-2019.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
October 11, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 219-2019
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 October 4, 2019, for our review under § 116.334, RSMo, of a proposed summary statement prepared for the petition submitted by James Owen regarding a proposed amendment to amend Chapter 393, Revised Statutes of Missouri, version 2 (2020-114). The proposed summary statement is as follows:
Do you want to amend Missouri law regarding the renewable energy standard applicable to investor-owned electric utilities as follows:
- increase the minimum renewable energy amount from the existing 15% of retail sales in 2021 to 20% by 2022, 27% by 2025, 35% by 2028, 42% by 2031, and 50% by 2035;
- only allow the use of renewable energy credits if they are associated with electricity the utility sold to Missouri customers;
- require each utility to purchase at least half of the renewable energy used to meet the standard from resources it does not own?
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-2019-0253