Did the Missouri AG approve the form of the Christopher Pieper initiative petition to amend Article VI (2020-054)?

Plain-English summary

Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved the form of Christopher Pieper's initiative petition (designated 2020-054), which proposed amendments to Article VI of the Missouri Constitution. Article VI is the local-government article, covering counties, cities, towns, school districts, and other political subdivisions of the state.

The approval is purely procedural. § 116.332 limits the AG's review to whether the petition meets the structural and formatting requirements of Chapter 116. The AG's opinion expressly notes that approval as to form is not a determination of substantive sufficiency, and not an endorsement of the petition's objectives. § 116.332 leaves final form authority with the Secretary of State.

Pieper appears elsewhere in the 2019 opinion series as the proponent of multiple petitions touching local-government provisions. The exact 2020-054 text is not reproduced in the AG opinion, which is a short form-review letter.

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

What does Article VI of the Missouri Constitution cover?

Article VI is the local-government article: counties, cities, towns, school districts, special districts, charter forms of city and county government, and the structural relationship between the state and its political subdivisions.

What does form-approval mean?

The petition meets the structural and formatting requirements of Chapter 116 (signature lines, margins, layout). It does not mean the substance has been judged.

Who has the final say on form?

§ 116.332 reserves the final form decision to the Secretary of State. The AG advises; the Secretary decides. In practice the Secretary follows the AG.

Does approval mean the petition will appear on the ballot?

No. Form-approval clears the petition to start circulating. Whether it appears on the ballot depends on signature collection, any legal challenges, and the deadline for placing measures on the ballot.

Background and statutory framework

Missouri's initiative-petition process is in Chapter 116. § 116.332 covers AG form review and reserves final form authority to the Secretary of State. The constitutional initiative process runs through Mo. Const. art. III, §§ 49 to 53. Article VI of the Missouri Constitution structures local government.

Citations

• § 116.332, RSMo (AG form review; Secretary of State final authority)
• Mo. Const. art. VI (Local Government, the article the petition proposed to amend)
• Mo. Const. art. III, §§ 49 to 53 (initiative and referendum process)
• Initiative Petition 2020-054 (Pieper, Article VI)

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/65-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT
JEFFERSON CITY
P.O. Box 899
ATTORNEY GENERAL
65102
(573) 751-3321

April 5, 2019

OPINION LETTER NO. 65-2019

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 March 26, 2019 for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition to amend Article VI of the Missouri Constitution submitted by Christopher Pieper (2020-054).

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

OP-2019-0065