Did the Missouri AG approve the form of the Pauly Lentz initiative petition to amend Chapter 128, RSMo?

Plain-English summary

Attorney General Eric Schmitt rejected the form of the Pauly Lentz initiative petition designated 2020-058, which proposed to amend Chapter 128 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri. The reason: the petition did not show its proposed changes in the format Missouri law requires. Specifically, § 116.050, RSMo, mandates that "all matter which is to be deleted [be] included in its proper place enclosed in brackets and all new matter shown underlined." The Lentz petition omitted those visual markers, so it was rejected on form.

As with all § 116.332 form reviews, the AG stopped at the first ground for rejection and did not continue to look for other defects. § 116.332.4 vests final form authority in the Secretary of State, who can review the AG's opinion and make the binding decision.

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 is the bracket-and-underline requirement?

When an initiative petition amends existing statutory text, § 116.050 requires the petition to display the changes in markup form: bracket the words being struck out and underline the new words being added. This lets a reader (and ultimately a voter) see exactly what is changing. Petitions that just rewrite the section without showing the difference fail the form requirement.

Why does the form rule matter?

Voters cannot meaningfully evaluate a proposed amendment without seeing what is being changed. The bracket-and-underline convention is a baseline transparency rule. Skipping it means the petition is hiding the delta, intentionally or not.

What is Chapter 128 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri?

Chapter 128 covers Congressional districts and apportionment. Without seeing the petition itself, the substantive change Lentz proposed cannot be characterized from this opinion alone.

Can Lentz fix and resubmit?

In practice yes, after reformatting to comply with § 116.050. The AG's letter does not address resubmission, but Chapter 116 contemplates a remedial cycle.

What happens next under § 116.332.4?

The Secretary of State reviews the AG's letter and either accepts the rejection or independently approves the petition's form. The Secretary's decision is the binding administrative action.

Background and statutory framework

Chapter 116 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri governs initiative and referendum procedure. § 116.050 sets out detailed form requirements. § 116.332 routes petitions through the AG for form review. § 116.332.4 makes the Secretary of State the final authority on form, with the AG's opinion advisory.

Citations

• § 116.050, RSMo (petition format and bracket-and-underline rule)
• § 116.332, RSMo (AG form review)
• § 116.332.4, RSMo (Secretary of State's final authority)
• Chapter 128, Revised Statutes of Missouri (statutes the petition proposed to amend, congressional apportionment)
• Initiative Petition 2020-058 (Lentz)

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/73-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT

April 19, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 73-2019

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 April 11, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition submitted by Pauly Lentz (2020-058).

We conclude that the petition must be rejected for at least the following reasons:

The petition does not contain "all matter which is to be deleted included in its proper place enclosed in brackets and all new matter shown underlined" as required pursuant to § 116.050, RSMo.

Because of our rejection of the form of the petition for the reasons stated above, we have not reviewed the petition to determine whether additional deficiencies exist. Pursuant to § 116.332.4, RSMo, the Secretary of State is authorized to review this opinion and "make a final decision as to the approval or rejection of the form of the petition."

Very truly yours,

ERIC S. SCHMITT
Attorney General

Broadway Building
P.O. Box 899
Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: (573) 751-3321
Fax: (573) 751-0774
www.ago.mo.gov

OP-2019-0077