Did Missouri approve ballot wording combining local wage, leave, and rent-control powers?

Plain-English summary

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey approved the legal content and form of the proposed summary statement for Terrence Wise's initiative petition 2026-041. The statement described a constitutional amendment allowing cities with populations over 10,000 and all counties to adopt local ordinances concerning higher local minimum wages, additional leave from work, and restrictions on residential rent and fees, even when those ordinances conflict with state law.

The statement also described prohibiting the state from overriding or preempting those local laws. It exempted state or local government entities, public property, and housing authorities. The opinion approved the statement under § 116.334, RSMo without endorsing the petition.

What this means for you

Employees, employers, landlords, and tenants

The reviewed statement described local authority to impose higher minimum wages, require additional leave, and restrict rent and fees for privately owned residential rental property. The opinion addressed the statement's legal content and form, not the proposal's merits.

City and county officials

The statement described authority for every county and for cities with populations over 10,000 to enact the listed local ordinances, even if they were inconsistent with state law, and to shield them from state override or preemption.

Missouri voters and election researchers

Opinion 94-2025 records approval of the proposed summary statement for petition 2026-041. The attorney general expressly did not endorse the petition or its objectives.

Common questions

Q: Which local governments did the statement cover?
A: Cities with populations over 10,000 and all counties.

Q: What local rules did the statement describe?
A: Higher local minimum wages, additional leave from work, and limits on rent and fees for privately owned residential rental property.

Q: Could the state override the local laws described in the statement?
A: The statement described prohibiting state override or preemption of those local laws.

Q: Did the attorney general endorse the proposal?
A: No. The opinion approved the summary statement's legal content and form and expressly disclaimed endorsement.

Background and statutory framework

The Missouri Secretary of State requested review on June 13, 2025. The attorney general reviewed the proposed summary statement under § 116.334, RSMo and approved it on June 23, 2025.

The proposal was identified as Terrence Wise's petition 2026-041. The opinion reproduced the statement's local-rule provisions and its protection from state override or preemption.

Citations and references

Statute: § 116.334, RSMo.

Source

• Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/94-2025.pdf

Original opinion text

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ANDREW BAILEY

June 23, 2025

OPINION LETTER NO. 94-2025

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 13, 2025 for our review under § 116.334, RSMo of a proposed summary statement prepared for the petition submitted by Terrence Wise, 2026-041. The proposed summary statement is as follows:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to allow cities with populations over 10,000, and all counties, to enact local ordinances, even if inconsistent with state law, that:

• impose higher local minimum wages;
• require additional leave from work;
• restrict how much rent and fees property owners may charge for privately
owned residential rental property; and
• prohibit the state from overriding or preempting such local laws, while
exempting their application to state or local government entities, public
property, and housing authorities?

Pursuant to § 116.334, RSMo, we approve the legal content and form of the proposed statement. Because our review of the statement is mandated by statute, no action that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the petition, nor as the expression of any view regarding the objectives of its proponents.

Very truly yours,

ANDREW BAILEY
Attorney General

OP-2025-105

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