Did the Missouri Attorney General approve the form of Damien Johnson's initiative petition to amend Article III of the Missouri Constitution?

Plain-English summary

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved the form of an initiative petition submitted by Damien Johnson (2020-025). The petition proposed amending Article III of the Missouri Constitution, the article that establishes the legislative branch (the General Assembly, its powers, election of members, sessions, redistricting, and related topics).

The form review under § 116.332, RSMo, is procedural. The AG checks formatting and statutory recitations, not substance. The Secretary of State has the substantive approval call.

This is a form-review letter for a Damien Johnson petition in the January 7, 2019 batch.

Letter dated January 7, 2019. Internal tracking number OP-2018-131.

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.

Background and statutory framework

Article III of the Missouri Constitution is the legislative-branch article. It governs the structure of the General Assembly (Senate and House), how members are elected, qualifications, salaries, legislative sessions, the lawmaking process, and apportionment.

Section 116.332, RSMo, requires the AG to review every submitted petition for form. The duty is mandatory and ministerial. Approval at this stage carries no policy endorsement and no preview of what the Secretary of State or a court might do later.

Common questions

What did Damien Johnson's petition propose to change in Article III?
The AG opinion does not say. For the actual text, see the Missouri Secretary of State filing for petition 2020-025.

Does form approval mean Johnson's petition is well-written legally?
Form approval means the paperwork format meets § 116.332 requirements. It does not mean the substance would survive a substantive legal challenge, ballot-title litigation, or signature certification.

Why is the boilerplate so emphatic about "not an endorsement"?
Because § 116.332 forces the AG to act on every petition, including ones the AG dislikes. The boilerplate makes that explicit so the act of completing the statutory duty is not misread as political support.

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/7-2019.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
Jefferson City, P.O. Box 899, 65102
(573) 751-3321

January 7, 2019

OPINION LETTER NO. 7-2019

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 27, 2018, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition to amend Article III, of the Missouri Constitution submitted by Damien Johnson, (2020-025).

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-2018-131