SJR 8 (LSB 1730XS (3) 91)

SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 8

BY  WINCKLER, CELSI, QUIRMBACH, DONAHUE, DOTZLER, WAHLS, BLAKE, ZIMMER, PETERSEN, and TRONE GARRIOTT

SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION

A Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa relating to citizen initiatives to amend the Constitution of the State of Iowa.

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  The following amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa is proposed:
   The Constitution of the State of Iowa is amended by adding the following new sections to a new article:

ARTICLE ___.
INITIATIVES.

   Section 1.  Reservation of power to amend Constitution.  The people reserve the power to propose and enact or reject amendments to this Constitution by initiative, independent of the general assembly.
   Sec. 2.  Initiative petitions —— signatures required —— form and procedure.  An initiative petition proposing an amendment to this Constitution shall be signed by a number of qualified electors equal to ten percent of the total number of ballots cast for governor in the last gubernatorial election, including signatures from a number of qualified electors from at least one-half of all counties in this state equal to five percent of the total number of ballots cast for governor in the last gubernatorial election in that county. The initiative petition shall contain the full text of the proposed amendment to this Constitution, and shall include the phrase “Amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa Proposed by Initiative to be Submitted Directly to the Electors” printed at the top. The petition shall be submitted to the secretary of state, who shall cause the initiative to be submitted to the electorate at the next general election occurring at least one hundred twenty-five days after the submission of the petition. Except as provided in section 3 of this article, a constitutional amendment proposed by initiative petition takes effect upon the approval of the amendment by a majority of qualified electors casting votes thereon.
   An initiative petition proposing an amendment to this Constitution may include an argument from the petitioner in favor of the constitutional amendment, which shall not exceed three hundred words. The general assembly, or the governor if the general assembly is not in session, shall appoint a person to prepare an argument in opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment, which shall not exceed three hundred words. The proposed constitutional amendment, together with any arguments for or against the proposed constitutional amendment, shall be published as provided in article X, section 1, of this Constitution prior to the election.
   The signatures for an initiative petition proposing an amendment to this Constitution may be obtained and presented in separate parts, but each part shall contain a full and correct copy of the title and the proposed amendment to this Constitution. Each signer shall include the signer’s name, the date, and the signer’s address. The secretary of state shall determine the sufficiency of the signatures not later than one hundred five days before the election.
   The supreme court shall have original, exclusive jurisdiction over all challenges made to petitions and signatures under this section. A challenge to a petition or signature must be filed not later than ninety-five days before the election. The supreme court shall hear and rule on a challenge made to a petition or signature not later than eighty-five days before the election. If a ruling determining the petition or signature to be insufficient is not issued at least eighty-five days before the election, the petition and signatures shall be presumed to be sufficient.
   If a petition or signature is determined to be insufficient, ten additional days shall be allowed for the filing of additional signatures to the petition, if necessary. If additional signatures are filed, the secretary of state shall determine the sufficiency of those additional signatures not later than sixty-five days before the election. Any challenge to the additional signatures shall be filed not later than fifty-five days before the election. The court shall hear and rule on any challenges made to the additional signatures not later than forty-five days before the election. If a ruling determining the additional signatures to be insufficient is not issued at least forty-five days before the election, the petition and signatures shall be presumed to be sufficient.
   Sec. 3.  Limitations.  An initiative proposing an amendment to this Constitution shall not be used to authorize any classification of property for the purpose of levying different rates of taxation thereon, to authorize the levy of any single tax on land or land values or land sites at a higher rate or by a different rule than is or may be applied to improvements thereon or to personal property, to grant or create a monopoly, oligopoly, or cartel, to specify or determine a tax rate, or to confer a commercial interest, commercial right, or commercial license to any person or nonpublic entity that is not then available to other similarly situated persons or nonpublic entities.
   If it appears to the secretary of state that an initiative proposing an amendment to this Constitution violates this section, the secretary of state shall prescribe two separate questions to appear on the ballot. The first question shall ask whether the petitioner shall be authorized to initiate a constitutional amendment in violation of this section. The second question shall be whether to adopt the proposed constitutional amendment. A proposed constitutional amendment in violation of this section shall take effect only upon the approval of both questions by a majority of qualified electors who cast votes thereon.
   The supreme court shall have original, exclusive jurisdiction in any action that relates to this section.
    Sec. 2.
  REFERRAL AND PUBLICATION.
  The foregoing proposed amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa is referred to the general assembly to be chosen at the next general election for members of the general assembly, and shall be published as provided by law for three months previous to the date of that election.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This joint resolution proposes an amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa relating to citizen initiatives to amend the Constitution of the State of Iowa. The amendment allows a petitioner who collects a number of signatures from qualified electors equal to 10 percent of the total number of ballots cast for governor in the last gubernatorial election, including signatures from a number of qualified electors from at least one-half of all counties in this state equal to 5 percent of the total number of ballots cast for governor in the last gubernatorial election in that county, to submit the proposed constitutional amendment to the secretary of state for submission to the electorate at a general election.
   The amendment allows a petitioner to include with a proposed constitutional amendment an argument of no more than 300 words in support of a proposed constitutional amendment. The amendment requires the general assembly, or the governor if the general assembly is not in session, to appoint a person to submit an argument of no more than 300 words in opposition to the constitutional amendment. The amendment requires the proposed constitutional amendment, along with the arguments for and against the proposed constitutional amendment, to be published in the same manner as a constitutional amendment proposed by the general assembly.
   For proposed constitutional amendments that violate certain principles enumerated in the resolution’s amendment, the resolution’s amendment requires electors to both approve the right of the petitioner to propose the constitutional amendment and to approve the proposed constitutional amendment. The proposed constitutional amendment only takes effect upon the approval of both questions by a majority of qualified electors casting votes thereon.
   The amendment grants the Iowa supreme court original and exclusive jurisdiction over challenges to petitions and signatures for constitutional amendments proposed by initiative. The amendment creates a timeline for the challenge of petitions and signatures, the resolution of such challenges, and the curing of insufficient petitions.
   The resolution, if adopted, would be published and then referred to the next general assembly (92nd) for adoption, before being submitted to the electorate for ratification.