Laws governing local ballot measures in Connecticut

Laws Governing Local Ballot Measures

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Terms

Initiative • Home rule • General law city • Charter city • Petition • Initiative petition circulation periods • Circulator • Paid circulator • Volunteer circulator • Circulator affidavit • Signer • Valid signature • Forged signature • Fraudulent signature • Invalid signature • Electronic petition signature • Legislative alteration • Registered voter

Connecticut charter cities and towns have an initiative process for local ballot measures. This article sets out the laws governing local ballot measures in Connecticut. It explains:

• Which local units of government make the initiative process available to residents.
• How and whether local units of government, including school districts, can refer local ballot measures (such as school bond propositions) to the ballot.
• An overview of laws governing local recall elections.

Types of local government

According to a 2022 study from the U.S. Census Bureau, this state's local governments consist of 179 cities, towns, and villages, and 433 special districts. There are eight counties in Connecticut. Although Connecticut is divided into counties, it does not have any local government at the county level. On June 6, 2022, Governor Ned Lamont (D) announced that the U.S. Census Bureau had approved the use of nine planning regions as county-equivalent geographic units for the purpose of collecting, tabulating, and disseminating census data.

School districts

See also: School bond and tax elections in Connecticut

In Connecticut, the voters of a school district must approve the district's budget on an annual basis. Connecticut and New Jersey are the only two states in the nation to require school district budgets to be approved by voters. If the referendum is defeated, then the school board must approve a new budget within a time frame mandated by Connecticut law. Also, voters in a municipality can approve bond issues for private academies recognized by the Connecticut Department of Education. If an academy defaults on its bond obligations, then all aid payments are withheld until the default is cured. Also, Connecticut requires state approval for public school bonding and capital projects, but does not require voter approval.

Local recall rules

Ballot Law Portal

Laws Governing Ballot Measures

Very limited local recall is available in Connecticut in the "few Connecticut communities" that were granted certain home rule powers by the Connecticut State Legislature.

For additional detail, see: Laws governing recall in Connecticut

Initiative process availability

The powers of initiative and referendum for an amendment, or repeal of an amendment, to the municipal charter is mandated for all charter cities and towns and the process is largely determined by the State Statutes in Title 7 Ch. 99. According to section 7-188 of the State Statutes this power also applies to ordinances enacted before October 1, 1982.

Some charter local governments have the initiative and referendum power for local ordinances, but the process is set at the local level.

There was no mention of initiative and referendum powers for general law cities or towns found in the Connecticut Constitution and State Statutes.

For more information on which local governments have Initiative and Referendum powers and what the signature requirements are in each, see: Local Charter Governments with Initiative and Referendum Document

A guide to local ballot initiatives

Initiative process features

Charter amendment petition process   Signature requirements The state mandated process for amendment of local charters requires the signatures of 10% of the registered voters for a valid petition. Connecticut State Statutes Section 7-188 (dead link) Circulation These signatures must be gathered within ninety days before the petition is filed. Connecticut State Statutes Section 7-188 (dead link) Process for submission and approval The complete petition must be filed with the town or city clerk. The circulator must include on each page of the petition his address, name, and a signed statement that he witnessed all the signatures given on that page. The form of the petition is further established in Section 7-189 (dead link) of the State Statutes. Connecticut State Statutes Section 7-188 (dead link)

Authority

Constitution

There is no specific mention of initiative and referendum powers in the Connecticut Constitution.

Statutes

Petitions to amend, adopt or repeal a home rule charter or ordinance are dealt with in:

Ch. 99, Section 7-188   “ Sec. 7-188. Initiation of action for adoption, amendment or repeal of charter or home rule ordinance. (a) Any municipality, in addition to such powers as it has under the provisions of the general statutes or any special act, shall have the power to (1) adopt and amend a charter which shall be its organic law and shall supersede any existing charter, including amendments thereto, and all special acts inconsistent with such charter or amendments, which charter or amended charter may include the provisions of any special act concerning the municipality but which shall not otherwise be inconsistent with the Constitution or general statutes, provided nothing in this section shall be construed to provide that any special act relative to any municipality is repealed solely because such special act is not included in the charter or amended charter; (2) amend a home rule ordinance which has been adopted prior to October 1, 1982, which revised home rule ordinance shall not be inconsistent with the Constitution or the general statutes; and (3) repeal any such home rule ordinance by adopting a charter, provided the rights or benefits granted to any individual under any municipal retirement or pension system shall not be diminished or eliminated. (b) Any action pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall be initiated by a resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote of the entire membership of the appointing authority of such municipality, or by petition filed with the clerk of such municipality for submission to the appointing authority and signed by not less than ten per cent of the electors of such municipality, as determined by its last-completed registry list; provided, in the case of a consolidated town and city having a town clerk and a city clerk, such petition shall be filed with the city clerk. (c) No signature on any petition filed pursuant to subsection (b) of this section shall be valid unless it has been obtained within ninety days of the filing of the page of the petition on which it appears. Any elector signing such a petition may cause his signature to be removed at any time prior to the filing of such petition with the clerk. The clerk with whom the petition is filed shall proceed forthwith to determine its sufficiency by comparing the signatures thereon with those contained in said registry list and shall certify its sufficiency or insufficiency to the appointing authority. (d) After a resolution has been so adopted by the appointing authority or a petition has been so certified as sufficient, as the case may be, the appointing authority shall not adopt any resolution initiating such action and the clerk shall not accept any petition for the initiation of such action until such time as the commission appointed pursuant to such original resolution or petition has been terminated. ”

Charter Amendment Referendum is dealt with in:

CH. 99, Section 7-191   “ 7-191 (d) Not later than fifteen days after receiving the final report, the appointing authority, by a majority vote of its entire membership, shall either approve the proposed charter, charter amendments or home rule ordinance amendments or reject the same or separate provisions thereof. Not later than forty-five days after a vote of the appointing authority to reject such matter, a petition for a referendum thereon, signed by not less than ten per cent of the electors of such municipality, as determined by the last-completed registry list thereof, and filed and certified in accordance with the provisions of section 7-188, may be presented to the appointing authority. Not later than thirty days after approval by the appointing authority or the certification of such a petition (1) the proposed charter shall be published in full at least once in a newspaper having a general circulation in the municipality, or (2) the portion of the charter or home rule ordinance being amended shall be published at least once in a newspaper having a general circulation in the municipality with a notice that a complete copy of the charter or home rule ordinance and amendment is available in the town clerk's office and that a copy shall be mailed to any person who requests a copy. The town clerk shall mail or otherwise provide such copy to any person who requests a copy. (e) The appointing authority shall, by a majority vote of its entire membership, determine whether the proposed charter, charter amendments or home rule ordinance amendments shall be submitted to the electors for approval or rejection at a regular election or at a special election warned and held for that purpose, which shall be held not later than fifteen months after either the approval by the appointing authority or the certification of a petition for a referendum. (f) The proposed charter, charter amendments or home rule ordinance amendments shall be prepared for the ballot by the appointing authority and may be submitted in the form of one or several questions; and, if approved by a majority of the electors of the municipality voting thereon at a regular election or if approved by a majority which number equals at least fifteen per cent of the electors of the municipality as determined by the last-completed active registry list of such municipality at a special election, such proposed charter, charter amendments or home rule ordinance amendments shall become effective thirty days after such approval unless an effective date or dates are specified therein, in which event the date or dates specified shall prevail. (g) Not later than thirty days after the approval by the electors of any proposed charter, charter amendments or home rule ordinance amendments, the town or city clerk shall file, with the Secretary of the State, (1) three certified copies thereof, with the effective date or dates indicated thereon, and (2) in the case of the approval of charter or home rule ordinance amendments, three certified copies of the complete charter or ordinance incorporating such amendments. The Secretary of the State shall distribute two copies, whether tangible or intangible in form, to the State Library, where a file of such charters, charter amendments and home rule ordinance amendments shall be kept for public inspection. ”

Local I&R Laws in the 50 States

Source: Local Ballot Initiatives: How citizens change laws with clipboards, conversations, and campaigns

Initiative process in the top 10 most populated cities

No additional individual city provisions for initiative or referendum were found in the top 10 most populous cities beyond the limited process given by state law and outlined above.

See also

• Laws governing ballot measures
• Laws governing local ballot measures
• Local ballot measures, Connecticut

External links

• Connecticut Conference of Municipalities
• Connecticut Judicial Branch Law Library, "Connecticut Ordinances and Charters by Town"
• Local Charter Governments with Initiative and Referendum