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Missouri Senate gives preliminary approval to bill limiting review of General Assembly ballot summary statements
Summary
The Missouri Senate returned Tuesday afternoon to Senate Bill 22 and gave the measure preliminary approval, advancing a proposal that would create new rules governing summary statements the General Assembly prepares for ballot measures.
The Missouri Senate returned Tuesday afternoon to Senate Bill 22 and gave the measure preliminary approval, advancing a proposal that would create new rules governing summary statements the General Assembly prepares for ballot measures.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Rick Bratton of Harrisonville, would institute a three-attempt or “three‑strike” process for the secretary of state when handling those summary statements. Senate Minority Floor Leader Doug Beck of Afton said senators negotiated the measure as a compromise and that it would allow the secretary of state an opportunity to weigh in while preserving parties’ ability to seek court review.
Senate Bill 22 received preliminary approval on the Senate floor; another positive vote would send the proposal to the Missouri House of Representatives for its consideration. The transcript did not record a formal roll-call tally, mover or seconder for the preliminary approval.
Sen. Rick Bratton is listed as the bill’s sponsor in the floor discussion. Doug Beck told the sponsor that “senators worked together on this compromise,” and discussed the balance in the proposal between executive review and legal rights for disputing parties. The transcript paraphrased that the bill would give the secretary of state “the opportunity to weigh in and do some things,” and it explicitly noted that parties would retain the right to return to the courts if they chose to do so.
The discussion on the Senate floor as reflected in the transcript focused on the mechanics of how summary statements would be treated under SB 22 and on safeguarding existing legal remedies. The transcript did not provide the text of the bill, specifics about how the three attempts would be administered, any statutory citations, a vote tally, or a timeline for further action beyond the note that a subsequent positive vote would refer the measure to the House.
Reporting from the state capital, Dean Morgan.
