Which Reform Measure Could Voters Use If They Wanted To Change A Law About Taxes?

Meet NCSL'due south Initiative and Referendum Processes resources for more comprehensive details on citizen initiatives, popular referenda and each land'southward laws.

Denizen Initiative Overview

In political terminology, the initiative is a process that enables citizens to bypass their state legislature by placing proposed statutes and, in some states, constitutional amendments on the ballot. The first state to adopt the initiative was S Dakota in 1898. Since and then, 23 other states have included the initiative process in their constitutions, the most contempo being Mississippi in 1992. That makes a total of 24 states with an initiative process.

There are two types of initiatives: straight and indirect. In the directly process, proposals that authorize go directly on the ballot. In the indirect process, the proposal is submitted to the legislature. The legislature tin approve the proposed mensurate, or a substantially like one, in which case it is unnecessary for the measure to go on the ballot for voters to consider. Procedures vary from land to land, but in general if the legislature has not adopted the proposal, the initiative question goes on the ballot. In some states with the indirect process, the legislature may submit a competing measure that appears on the election along with the original proposal.

No two states accept exactly the same requirements for qualifying initiatives to be placed on the ballot. More often than not, yet, the process includes these steps:

(1) preliminary filing of a proposed petition with a designated state official;

(ii) review of the petition for conformance with statutory requirements and, in several states, a review of the linguistic communication of the proposal;

(3) preparation of a ballot title and summary;

(iv) apportionment of the petition to obtain the required number of signatures of registered voters, unremarkably a per centum of the votes cast for a statewide part in the preceding general ballot; and

(5) submission of the petitions to the state elections official, who must verify the number of signatures.

If enough valid signatures are obtained, the question goes on the election or, in states with the indirect procedure, is sent to the legislature. Once an initiative is on the ballot, the full general requirement for passage is a majority vote, though at that place are exceptions.

Popular Referendum Overview

The pop plebiscite is a measure that appears on the ballot as a result of a voter petition drive and is like to the initiative in that both are triggered by petitions, merely in that location are important differences. The pop referendum allows voters to approve or repeal an act of the Legislature. If the Legislature passes a police force that voters practice not approve of, they may get together signatures to need a pop vote on the law. Generally, there is a xc-day flow after the police is passed during which the petitioning must take place. In one case enough signatures are gathered and verified, the new constabulary appears on the ballot for a popular vote. During the time between passage and the pop vote, the law may non take upshot. If voters approve of the law, it takes outcome equally scheduled. If voters reject the law, it is voided and does not take result. 24 states have the popular referendum. Most of them are as well initiative states.

Legislative Referral (or Referendum) Overview

Legislatures are oft required to refer certain measures to the ballot for voter approving. For case, changes to the land constitution must be canonical by voters before they can have effect. Many country legislatures are also required by their state constitutions to refer bond measures and revenue enhancement changes to the voters. Although this is not ever the example, legislative referenda tend to be less controversial than denizen initiatives, are more often approved by voters than citizen initiatives, and often receive higher vote thresholds. Legislative referenda may announced on the ballot in all 50 states.

Another course of referendum or referral, the advisory referendum, is rarely used. In this grade of the process, the Legislature, and in some states the governor, may place a question on the election to estimate voter stance. The results of the election on this question are non bounden. An example of an informational referendum is Question 5, which appeared on the Rhode Island election in 2002. Placed on the ballot past the governor, Question 5 asked voters if they favored changing the state constitution to make the three branches of regime co-equal. Although voters overwhelming voted yeah, the question was non-binding and the governor and legislature were not obligated to act upon the measure.

NCSL Resources

Initiative and Referendum Processes
Chart: The I&R States
Statewide Ballot Measures Database
Initiative and Referendum in the 21st Century (2002 report from NCSL'due south I&R Task Force)