Did the Missouri AG approve the State Auditor's fiscal note summary for Winston Apple's initiative petition (20-046) amending Article III of the Missouri Constitution?

Plain-English summary

On March 22, 2019, Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved State Auditor Nicole Galloway's fiscal note summary for Winston Apple's initiative petition 20-046, a proposed amendment to Article III (the Legislative Department) of the Missouri Constitution. The summary read:

"State government legislative operating costs are estimated to decrease by approximately $7 million annually. State and local governments could incur unknown additional election-related costs that could be significant."

The summary captures two fiscal effects: an estimated $7 million in annual legislative operating savings, and unknown additional election-related costs at the state and local level that the Auditor flagged as potentially significant.

The AG approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form under § 116.175.4. The letter states expressly that this statutory review is not an endorsement of the petition or its objectives. It does not address the accuracy of the estimate or describe the petition's specific provisions.

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 does the fiscal note summary do?

It is the short plain-language description of the projected fiscal impact that appears on the ballot. For voters who do not read the full text of an initiative, the fiscal note summary (along with the policy summary statement) is usually the main thing they see.

Why is the savings number ($7 million) given but the cost number described as "unknown"?

The Auditor estimated the legislative operating savings at about $7 million annually but reported the election-related costs as unknown, flagging only that they "could be significant" without committing to a point estimate. Those figures are the Auditor's; the AG reviewed only the summary's legal content and form.

What did the AG actually approve here?

Only the legal content and form of the fiscal note summary, the short statement of estimated cost or savings that appears on the ballot. The AG did not pass on the accuracy of the estimate or on the petition itself.

Background and statutory framework

§ 116.175 directs the State Auditor to prepare a fiscal note and fiscal note summary for every initiative petition. § 116.175.4 covers the AG's review of the fiscal note summary for legal content and form. The proposal here sat in Article III (the Legislative Department) of the Missouri Constitution.

Citations

• § 116.175, RSMo (fiscal note preparation by State Auditor)
• § 116.175.4, RSMo (AG review of fiscal note summary)
• Mo. Const. art. III (Legislative Department, the article the Apple petition would have amended)
• Mo. Const. art. III, §§ 49 to 53 (initiative and referendum process)
• Initiative Petition 20-046 (Apple, Article III)

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/58-2019.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
JEFFERSON CITY
P.O. Box 899
ATTORNEY GENERAL
65102
(573) 751-3321

March 22, 2019

OPINION LETTER NO. 58-2019

The Honorable Nicole Galloway
Missouri State Auditor
State Capitol, Room 121
Jefferson City, MO 65101

Dear Auditor Galloway:

This office received your letter of March 14, 2019, submitting a fiscal note and fiscal note summary prepared under § 116.175, RSMo, for an initiative petition submitted by Winston Apple (20-046). The fiscal note summary that you submitted is as follows:

State government legislative operating costs are estimated to decrease by approximately $7 million annually. State and local governments could incur unknown additional election-related costs that could be significant.

Under § 116.175.4, RSMo, we approve the legal content and form of the fiscal note summary. Because our review of the fiscal note summary is mandated by statute, no action that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the initiative petition or as the expression of any view regarding the objectives of its proponents.

Very truly yours,

ERIC S. SCHMITT
Attorney General

OP-2019-0058