Did Missouri approve fair ballot wording for SJR 73 on abortion exceptions and gender-transition restrictions for minors?

Plain-English summary

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey approved the legal content and form of proposed fair ballot language for Senate Joint Resolution No. 73. The yes-vote statement described allowing abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, with a twelve-week gestational limit for rape or incest. It also described medically accurate information, informed and voluntary consent, parental or judicial consent for minors, regulation of providers and facilities, limited public funding, and access to care for ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, and medical emergencies.

The yes-vote statement also described prohibiting certain gender-transition medical procedures and medications for minors, with exceptions for specified medical conditions. The no-vote statement said the Constitution would not be amended to add the stated abortion exceptions or the described protections concerning gender transition. The measure was described as tax-neutral. The opinion did not endorse it.

What this means for you

Missouri voters

The reviewed language presented the abortion provisions, consent requirements, funding limits, emergency-care provisions, and restrictions concerning minors as the effects of a yes vote.

Healthcare providers and parents

The statement described physician-information requirements, informed and voluntary consent, parental or judicial consent for minors, provider and facility regulation, and exceptions for specified medical conditions.

Election officials and ballot-measure researchers

Opinion 115-2025 records approval of the yes-vote, no-vote, and tax-impact wording for Senate Joint Resolution No. 73. The attorney general addressed legal content and form, not the measure's merits.

Common questions

Q: Which abortion circumstances did the yes-vote statement identify?
A: Medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, and incest, with a twelve-week gestational limit for rape or incest.

Q: What consent requirements did the statement describe?
A: Informed and voluntary consent, including parental or judicial consent for minors.

Q: What care did the statement say would remain accessible?
A: Care for ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, and medical emergencies.

Q: What did the statement say about gender-transition treatment for minors?
A: It described prohibiting certain medical procedures and medications for minors, with exceptions for specified medical conditions.

Background and statutory framework

The Missouri Secretary of State requested review on June 18, 2025. The attorney general reviewed the proposed fair ballot language under § 116.025, RSMo and approved it on June 27, 2025.

The measure was identified as Senate Joint Resolution No. 73. The opinion reproduced the yes-vote, no-vote, and tax-impact statements.

Citations and references

Statute: § 116.025, RSMo.

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/115-2025.pdf

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ANDREW BAILEY

June 27, 2025

OPINION LETTER NO. 115-2025

The Honorable Denny Hoskins
Missouri Secretary of State
James C. Kirkpatrick State Information Center
600 West Main Street
Jefferson City, MO 65101

Dear Secretary Hoskins:

This opinion letter responds to your request dated June 18, 2025, for our review under § 116.025, RSMo, of a proposed fair ballot language for Senate Joint Resolution No. 73. The proposed fair ballot language statement is as follows:

A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to allow abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, with a twelve-week gestational limit for rape or incest; require physicians to provide medically accurate information; require informed and voluntary consent, including parental or judicial consent for minors; authorize laws to regulate abortion providers and facilities to ensure health and safety; prohibit public funding of abortions except in limited circumstances; guarantee access to care for ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, and medical emergencies; and protect children from gender transition by prohibiting certain medical procedures and medications for minors, with exceptions for specific medical conditions.

A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to allow abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, or to protect children from gender transition.

If passed, this measure will not increase or decrease taxes.

Pursuant to § 116.025, RSMo, we approve the legal content and form of the proposed fair ballot language statement.

Because our review of the fair ballot language statement is mandated by statute, no action we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the initiative petition, nor as the expression of any view regarding the objectives of its proponents.

Very truly yours,

ANDREW BAILEY
Attorney General

OP-2025-126

Supreme Court Building
207 W. High Street
P.O. Box 899
Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: (573) 751-3321
Fax: (573) 751-0774
www.ago.mo.gov