Did the Missouri AG approve the form of the Hurth petition to amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution?

Plain-English summary

Attorney General Eric Schmitt rejected the form of the Charles Hurth initiative petition designated 2020-060, which proposed to amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution. Article VIII is the suffrage and elections article. The form defect: the petition did not bracket text being deleted and underline new text, as required by § 116.050, RSMo. The AG stopped at this one ground and did not look for additional defects. § 116.332.4 lets the Secretary of State make the final form determination.

The fact that the Hurth petition was framed as a constitutional amendment but cited § 116.050 as the failed rule suggests the AG was applying § 116.050's markup-format rule as a cross-cutting requirement that applies to any amendment regardless of whether it operates on the constitution or the statute book.

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 an existing text, § 116.050 requires the petition to show the changes visually: brackets around words being struck, underlines beneath words being added. This is the standard visual convention for showing legislative edits.

What is Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution?

Article VIII covers suffrage and elections. It includes the qualifications to register and vote, election administration rules, and (in the modern version) the constitutional cap on campaign contributions added through the 2016 Clean Missouri amendment. Amendments to Article VIII typically touch voter eligibility, election timing, redistricting, or campaign finance.

Why does this opinion cite § 116.050 for a constitutional amendment?

Because the bracket-and-underline rule in § 116.050 has historically been applied to all petitions that amend existing language, whether constitutional or statutory.

Who is Charles Hurth?

Charles Hurth III is a Missouri attorney who has filed multiple initiative petitions in various cycles. The opinion does not describe the substance of the Hurth petition, only its form defect.

Can Hurth resubmit?

In practice yes, after applying the bracket-and-underline format. The AG's letter does not address resubmission, but Chapter 116 permits revised filings.

Background and statutory framework

Chapter 116 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri governs initiatives and referenda. § 116.050 sets the form rules that apply to petitions generally, including the markup convention. § 116.332 routes petitions through the AG for form review. § 116.332.4 makes the Secretary of State the final authority on form. The combination operates as a screen, removing petitions with obvious form defects before they go out for signature collection.

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)
• Mo. Const. art. VIII (suffrage and elections, the article the petition proposed to amend)
• Initiative Petition 2020-060 (Hurth)

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/77-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT

April 26, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 77-2019

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 18, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition submitted by Charles Hurth (2020-060).

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

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-2019-0084