Section 116.175

Title IX SUFFRAGE AND ELECTIONS

Chapter 116

Effective - 28 Aug 2003   

  116.175.  Fiscal impact of proposed measure — fiscal note, fiscal note summary, requirements — return of fiscal note for revision, when. — 1.  Except as provided in section 116.155, upon receipt from the secretary of state's office of any petition sample sheet, joint resolution or bill, the auditor shall assess the fiscal impact of the proposed measure.  The state auditor may consult with the state departments, local government entities, the general assembly and others with knowledge pertinent to the cost of the proposal.  Proponents or opponents of any proposed measure may submit to the state auditor a proposed statement of fiscal impact estimating the cost of the proposal in a manner consistent with the standards of the governmental accounting standards board and section 23.140, provided that all such proposals are received by the state auditor within ten days of his or her receipt of the proposed measure from the secretary of state.

  2.  Within twenty days of receipt of a petition sample sheet, joint resolution or bill from the secretary of state, the state auditor shall prepare a fiscal note and a fiscal note summary for the proposed measure and forward both to the attorney general.

  3.  The fiscal note and fiscal note summary shall state the measure's estimated cost or savings, if any, to state or local governmental entities.  The fiscal note summary shall contain no more than fifty words, excluding articles, which shall summarize the fiscal note in language neither argumentative nor likely to create prejudice either for or against the proposed measure.

  4.  The attorney general shall, within ten days of receipt of the fiscal note and the fiscal note summary, approve the legal content and form of the fiscal note summary prepared by the state auditor and shall forward notice of such approval to the state auditor.

  5.  If the attorney general or the circuit court of Cole County determines that the fiscal note or the fiscal note summary does^* not satisfy the requirements of this section, the fiscal note and the fiscal note summary shall be returned to the auditor for revision.  A fiscal note or fiscal note summary that does not satisfy the requirements of this section also shall not satisfy the requirements of section 116.180.

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(L. 1997 S.B. 132, A.L. 1999 H.B. 676, A.L. 2003 H.B. 511 merged with S.B. 623)

*Word "do" appears in original rolls.

(2012) Section imposing a duty on the State Auditor to prepare fiscal notes and fiscal note summaries for initiative petitions is constitutional.  Brown v. Carnahan, 370 S.W.3d 637 (Mo.banc).

(2023) Section conveys no authority for attorney general to refuse to approve fiscal note summaries prepared by the state auditor for proposed initiative petitions on grounds that he believes the fiscal notes underestimate the costs to state and local governments.  State ex rel. Fitz-James v. Bailey, 670 S.W.3d 1 (Mo.banc).

(2024) The state auditor's discretion in preparing a fiscal note summary for a proposed ballot measure does not relieve the state auditor of the primary statutory obligation that the fiscal note summary must actually summarize the fiscal note in such a manner that does not materially misstate the fiscal note and mislead the voters about the fiscal note's contents.   Lucas v. Ashcroft, 688 S.W.3d 204 (Mo.banc).