Ezel / AG Opinions / MO
MO 270-2019 2019-12-18

Did the Missouri AG approve the Secretary of State's summary statement for the Sedey AVR initiative version 3 (2020-131), with expanded data sources and weekend in-person voting?

Short answer: Yes. AG Eric Schmitt approved the legal content and form under Mo. Rev. Stat. § 116.334. Version 3 added two enhancements over version 1: (a) the Secretary of State could designate additional state agencies as AVR data sources beyond the Department of Revenue, and (b) in-person absentee voting the weekend before an election.
Currency note: this opinion is from 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.
Disclaimer: This is an official Missouri Attorney General opinion. AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent. This summary is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed Missouri attorney for advice on your specific situation.

Subject

The Missouri AG's review under § 116.334, RSMo, of a proposed summary statement for an initiative petition (version 3, 2020-131) submitted by Mary Anne Sedey to amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution. Version 3 expanded AVR data sources beyond DOR (allowing Secretary-of-State designation of other agencies) and added weekend-before-election in-person absentee voting.

Topics: INITIATIVES. INITIATIVE 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.

Plain-English summary

The proposed summary statement that AG Schmitt approved said:

Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:

  • establish automatic voter registration from lists of eligible adults from the department of revenue based on driver and nondriver license transactions, and from certain other state agencies if designated by the secretary of state;
  • change current absentee voting by prohibiting a voter from having to state a reason for being prevented from going to the polls to vote on election day; and
  • allow in-person absentee voting the weekend before an election?

Version 3 was the most expansive of the Sedey AVR variations. It combined the SoS-other-agencies feature with the weekend in-person absentee feature. The AG approved the legal content and form, with the standard caveats that approval is not an endorsement.

Common questions

Q: Why allow the SoS to designate "other state agencies" as AVR data sources?

The DOR provides driver and nondriver IDs, which capture most adults but miss some (people who don't drive or have state ID, including some elderly and rural residents). Allowing the SoS to add other agencies (DSS, Conservation, etc.) would broaden the AVR pool. Version 3 baked this expansion into the constitutional text rather than leaving it to future statute.

Q: How is this different from version 4?

Version 4 (271-2019) keeps the SoS-other-agencies provision but drops the weekend in-person absentee provision. So version 4 is essentially version 3 minus the weekend feature.

Q: Why issue separate AG reviews for so many minor variations?

Each filed petition is legally distinct, even if the differences are small. The AG's office reviews each separately because the summary statement language differs and may raise different legal-content issues.

Background and statutory framework

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 116.334 governs the AG's summary-statement review. Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution covers elections. Sedey's series of late-2019 versions explored various policy combinations: AVR + absentee + (sometimes) early voting + (sometimes) expanded data sources.

Citations

  • Mo. Rev. Stat. § 116.334 (AG summary statement review)
  • Mo. Const. art. VIII (elections)
  • Companion summary-statement reviews: 268-2019 (version 1), 269-2019 (version 2), 271-2019 (version 4), 272-2019 (version 5)
  • Companion fiscal-note reviews: 262-2019 (version 11), 263-2019 (version 12)

Source

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT
December 18, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 270-2019
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 December 5, 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 3 (2020-131). The proposed summary statement is as follows:
Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
• establish automatic voter registration from lists
of eligible adults from the department of revenue
based on driver and nondriver license
transactions, and from certain other state
agencies if designated by the secretary of state;
• change current absentee voting by prohibiting a
voter from having to state a reason for being
prevented from going to the polls to vote on
election day; and
• allow in-person absentee voting the weekend
before an election?

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
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-2019-0304