Missouri House Bill 1763 (2008)
From Ballotpedia
Missouri House Bill 1763 has been introduced as legislation in Missouri in the 2008 Missouri General Assembly in order to aggressively restrict initiative rights in that state. It is sponsored by Rep. Michael Parson[1],[2]
The proposed legislation would:
- Require people who circulate petitions to be Missouri residents;
- Prohibit them from being paid by the signature;
- Restrict them to circulating one petition at a time.
- Forbids people to ask for signatures "via the Internet" or "by mail".
The proposed penalty for violating the new restrictions is to be found guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, up to a year in jail, and a fine not to exceed $10,000, or both.
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House passes House Bill 1763
The Missouri House has passed HB 1763 on February 28, 2008. The bill was opposed by House Minority Floor Leader Paul LeVota (D, Independence), who said "It's not a terrible bill, and that's typically what we find in Jefferson City...there's not (a lot of) bills that are so terrible, but overall I was concerned that this would limit the people of Missouri's right to use the petition-initiative process."[3]
The proposed effective date of the bill is August 28, 2008.
A similar bill is being sponsored in the Missouri Senate by Kevin Engler, a Republican.
Newspaper Endorsements
The Joplin Globe opposes the bill saying it will restrict the initiative process and that it is a way to tell Missourians "not to interfere" with the legislature's agenda.[4]
See also
- Changes in 2008 to laws governing the initiative process
- Laws governing petition circulators
- Nebraska Legislative Bill 39
- Washington House Bill 2601
- Petition blocking
External links
Additional reading
- Mo. lawmakers try to make harder for others to make laws, Associated Press, March 2, 2008
- Senators move to clean up initiative process
- Associated Press, Lawmakers target initiatives (op-ed), March 5, 2008
References
- ↑ Legislation in Missouri would tighten rules for those who conduct petition drives Kansas City Star, February 8, 2008
- ↑ HB 1763 bill tracking
- ↑ Missouri House passes stricter guidelines for petition workers, KWMU News, Feb. 28, 2008
- ↑ In our view: We have a right to use petitions, The Joplin Globe, March 4, 2008
