Did Missouri's AG approve the form of the Damien Johnson initiative petition for amending Article III (2020-032)?
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This page answers the general question as of 2019. Ezel answers yours: what it means for your facts, under current Missouri law, with citations.
Plain-English summary
Note: the AG's own subject line for this opinion is internally inconsistent. It says "rejection," but the body of the letter says "We approve the petition as to form." The body governs. This is an approval, not a rejection.
Under § 116.332, RSMo, the Missouri Secretary of State submits initiative petitions to the Attorney General for a check on form. The AG reviewed Petition 2020-032, submitted by Damien Johnson to amend Article III of the Missouri Constitution, and approved its form.
The opinion is a form letter with two important reservations:
- Final authority is the Secretary's. Section 116.332 makes the Secretary of State the final decisionmaker on form. The AG's approval does not preclude the Secretary from rejecting the petition.
- Form approval is not substance approval. The form review does not determine whether the petition is sufficient as to substance. The AG is not endorsing the petition or its objectives.
Article III of the Missouri Constitution governs the legislative branch. The opinion does not describe what change to Article III the petition proposes, because the form review does not go to substance.
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. Whether Petition 2020-032 was actually circulated and whether it qualified for the ballot is a separate question that the Missouri Secretary of State's initiative records would show.
Common questions
Is this opinion an approval or a rejection?
An approval. The subject line on the AG's office filing system reads "rejection," but the body of the opinion letter clearly approves the form. Treat the body as authoritative.
What does approval on form mean?
It means the AG looked at the petition's structural compliance with Chapter 116, RSMo, and did not find a fatal defect that would require rejection. It does not mean the AG is taking a position on whether the proposed amendment is sound, lawful, or wise. Those questions are not before the AG at the form-review stage.
Does the Secretary of State have to follow the AG's approval?
No. Under § 116.332, RSMo, the Secretary of State has final authority to approve or reject the form. The AG's review is advisory.
Where does the actual substance of the petition appear?
In the petition itself, filed with the Secretary of State's office. The Secretary's office maintains records on each numbered petition (here, 2020-032).
Background and statutory framework
Missouri's initiative process for constitutional amendments is in Article III of the Missouri Constitution and Chapter 116 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri. The AG's form review under § 116.332, RSMo, is the first procedural hurdle, and the Secretary of State holds the final decision on form. Later stages of the process run under separate provisions of Chapter 116.
Source
- Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
- Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/14-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2
Original opinion text
Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain. The linked PDF is authoritative.
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT, ATTORNEY GENERAL
JEFFERSON CITY, P.O. Box 899, 65102
(573) 751-3321
January 17, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 14-2019
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 January 7, 2019, for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of an initiative petition to amend Article III of the Missouri Constitution submitted by Damien Johnson, (2020-032).
We approve the petition as to form, but § 116.332 gives the Secretary of State final authority to approve or reject the petition. Therefore, our approval of the form of the petition does not preclude you from rejecting the petition.
Because our review of the petition is simply for the purpose of determining sufficiency as to form, the fact that we do not reject the petition is not to be construed as a determination that the petition is sufficient as to substance. Likewise, because our review is mandated by statute, no action that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the petition or of the objectives of its proponents, or the expression of any view respecting the adequacy or inadequacy of the petition generally.
Very truly yours,
ERIC S. SCHMITT
Attorney General
OP-2019-0004
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