Missouri
You have full Initiative & Referendum rights. Citizens can pass laws they write or suspend a statute passed by the Legislature by collecting enough petition signatures to place the statute on the statewide ballot for a decision by the voters. Voters can also initiate constitutional amendments by Initiative.
Coalition for an Open & Accessible Initiative Process:
Missouri Citizens for Property Rights
Americans for Prosperity, Missouri
Poll:
See the results of a poll on support for statewide initiative & referendum here.
Grade: A-
Click here to view Missouri’s individual report in Of the People, By the People, For the People: A 2010 Report Card on Statewide Voter Initiative Rights.
Citizen State Coordinator
For more information about how to get involved in protecting and expanding Missouri’s initiative process, contact the Citizens in Charge Foundation Missouri Citizen State Coordinator:
Ron Calzone
Phone: (573) 759-3585
State Balloting Process
How you can change Missouri’s government through ballot initiatives
History
Initiative and referendum became part of Missouri’s constitution
primarily as the result of a decade of work by three people: St. Louis
attorney Silas L. Moser, William Preston Hill, M.D., Ph.D., and Anna Beard,
Dr. Hill’s assistant… Read More
Ballot Qualifications & Schedule
Date Initiative language can be submitted to state for 2002: Any time.
Signatures are tied to vote of which office: Governor
Next Gubernatorial election: 2012
Votes cast for governor in last election: 2,813,898
Net number of signatures required: For a statute, proponents must collect
signatures equal to 5% of votes cast for governor in 6 out of 9
Congressional districts and 8% for constitutional amendments. The actual
total number varies, depending on which 6 counties are chosen. A statute
initiative circulated in the 6 districts with the highest votes cast for
governor would require 143,888 signatures. An amendment would require
230,222.
Distribution requirement: 5% in 6 out of 9 congressional districts.
Circulation period: 18 months
Do circulators have to be residents of the state: No, but they must register
with the Secretary of State’s office.
Date when signatures are due for certification: 6 months prior to statewide election
Signature verification process: Secretary of State verifies signatures by use
of random sampling.
Single Subject: Missouri has a single subject requirement.
Legislative tampering: The legislature can both repeal and amend
initiative statutes.
Excerpted from the Initiative & Referendum Almanac by M. Dane Waters.