Laws governing the initiative process in Nebraska
Laws and procedures
Citizens of Nebraska may initiate legislation as either a state statute or a constitutional amendment. In Nebraska, citizens also have the power to repeal legislation via veto referendum. The Nebraska Unicameral Legislature may also place measures on the ballot as legislatively referred constitutional amendments with a three-fifths majority vote.
Crafting an initiative
Of the 24 states that allow citizens to initiate legislation through the petition process, several states have adopted restrictions and regulations that limit the scope and content of proposed initiatives. These regulations may include laws that mandate that initiatives address only one topic, restrict the range of acceptable topics for proposed laws, prohibit unfunded mandates and establish guidelines for adjudicating contradictory measures.
Single-subject rule
- See also: Single-subject rule
In Nebraska, each proposed measure must address one subject. Such laws are known as single-subject rules. In State ex rel. Wagner v. Evnen (2020), the Nebraska Supreme Court held that a ballot initiative must satisfy a natural and necessary connection test to meet the single-subject requirement. This test holds that an initiative's details must relate to the initiative's primary purpose.[1]
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Section 2
Subject restrictions
- See also: Subject restrictions (ballot measures)
Nebraska ballot measures may not enact any law which the legislature may not enact. In addition, ballot measures may not interfere with the legislature's constitutional right to raise necessary revenues via taxation.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Section 2 and Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1408
Veto referendums on emergency legislation
In Nebraska, veto referendums can be used on emergency legislation.
- Signatures are due 90 days after the legislature adjourns.
- Emergency legislation cannot be suspended during the referendum process, unlike veto referendums on regular legislation.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Sections 2 & 3
Competing initiatives
Nebraska law provides that in the event that two conflicting measures are approved, the measure with the most affirmative votes supersedes the other on all points of conflict. The other measure is not wholly superseded.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Section 2
Starting a petition
Each initiative and referendum state employs a different procedure for filing petition applications. Some states require preliminary signatures while others do not. In addition, several states review each proposed statute, verifying that the law conforms to the style and conventions of state law and recommending alterations to initiative proponents. Some of these states also review the law for more substantive considerations of content and consistency. Also, many states conduct a review of the ballot title and summary, and several states employ a fiscal review process which analyzes proposed laws to determine their impact on state finances.[2][3][4]
Applying to petition
- See also: Approved for circulation
Prior to collecting signatures, proponents must file a draft of the text of the measure and a statement of purpose, called an object clause. Once this language is submitted to the secretary of state, it is transmitted to the revisor of statutes for review. Proponents must also submit a sworn list of the petition's sponsors.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1405 (1)
Proposal review/approval
- See also: Approved for circulation
The Revisor of Statutes reviews the proposed measure for "form and draftsmanship" and recommends changes. Sponsors are free to accept or reject any of these suggestions.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1405 (2)
Petition summary
- See also: Starting a petition
Once the revisor's changes have been accepted or rejected, the secretary of state prepares a proof copy of the petition, including the statement of purpose and the text of the measure provided by sponsors.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1405 (3)
Fiscal review
- See also: Fiscal impact statement
Nebraska does not conduct a fiscal review of proposed ballot measures.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Sections 2-4 and Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32
Collecting signatures
Each initiative and referendum state employs a unique method of calculating the state's signature requirements. Some states mandate a certain fraction of registered voters while others base their calculation on those who actually voted in a preceding election. In addition, many states employ a distribution requirement, dictating where in the state these signatures must be collected. Beyond these overarching requirements, many states regulate the manner in which signatures may be collected and the timeline for collecting them.
Number required
- See also: Nebraska signature requirements
In Nebraska, the number of required signatures is tied to the number of registered voters in the state as of the deadline for filing signatures. Therefore, petitioners cannot know the number of signatures required until signatures are submitted for verification.
The following are the requirements for the types of citizen-initiated measures in Nebraska:
- initiated constitutional amendment (ICA): 10 percent of registered voters
- initiated state statute (ISS): 7 percent of registered voters
- veto referendum (VR): 5 percent of registered voters for a referendum and 10 percent to suspend the law until voters decide the law's fate
Below are the signature requirements that initiative proponents must meet to get their initiatives certified based on the date signatures were filed:
Note: As signature requirements are based on the number of registered voters upon the signature petition filing deadline, and voter registration fluctuates constantly, the exact number of signatures required to qualify an initiative or referendum cannot be known before the signatures are submitted. The figures below are simply to give an approximation of the signature requirements.
| Date | Registered voters | Amendment | Statute | Referendum without suspension | Referendum with suspension |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 5, 2024 | 1,22,596[5] | 124,467 | 85,818 | 61,299 | 124,467 |
| July 1, 2022 | 1,239,599 | 123,960 | 86,772 | 61,980 | 123,960 |
| July 2, 2020 | 1,222,741 | 122,274 | 85,592 | 61,137 | 122,274 |
| October 29, 2018 | 1,219,644 | 121,964 | 85,375 | 60,982 | 121,964 |
| December 2, 2016 | 1,212,965 | 121,297 | 84,908 | 60,649 | 121,297 |
| October 27, 2014 | 1,159,085 | 115,909 | 81,136 | 57,955 | 115,909 |
| October 29, 2012 | 1,164,166 | 116,417 | 81,492 | 58,209 | 116,417 |
| May 4, 2010 | 1,136,173 | 113,618 | 79,533 | 56,809 | 113,618 |
| October 28, 2008 | 1,157,034 | 115,704 | 80,993 | 57,852 | 115,704 |
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Sections 2 & 3
Distribution requirements
- See also: Distribution requirements and Bernbeck v. Gale (2014)
Initiative proponents are required to collect signatures from 5 percent of the registered voters in each of two-fifths (38) of Nebraska's 93 counties. The same was true for veto referendums.
On November 10, 2014, Nebraska's distribution requirements were ruled in court as unconstitutional on the basis that they violated the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the one-person-one-vote principle. The decision was appealed, however, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit overturned the lower court's decision without ruling on the merits of the case, basing the ruling, instead, on the argument that Bernbeck did not have standing. For details on the court case, see Ballotpedia's article on the decision.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Sections 2 and 3
Restrictions on circulators
Circulator requirements
- See also: Petition circulator
In Nebraska, circulators are permitted to sign the petition that they are circulating.[6] Each initiative petition contains a mandatory circulator affidavit. A circulator is required to sign these affidavits before a public notary, and he/she must swear to and sign a statement, under the penalty of law, that he/she personally witnessed every act of signing the petition and that to his/her knowledge the date and information written by the signer is correct. The affidavit also says, "that the affiant (circulator) stated to each signer the object of the petition as printed on the petition before he or she affixed his or her signature to the petition."[7] Those circulating petitions are required to be at least 18 years of age.[8]
The secretary of state interprets the clause about stating the object of the petition to mean that the circulator must read aloud the object clause of the initiative to each and every signer.[9]
Once circulation is completed, the signatures are submitted to the Nebraska secretary of state.[10]
See law: Nebraska Revised Statute 32-628, Nebraska Revised Statute 32-629, Nebraska Revised Statute 32-630, and Nebraska Revised Statute 32-1407,
Pay-per-signature
- See also: Pay-per-signature
Nebraska allows paying signature gatherers based on the number of signatures collected.
In 2015, Nebraska Legislative Bill 367 removed the state's ban on pay-per-signature practices. Prior to LB 367, the law was challenged in 2011 in Bernbeck v. Gale, but the ban was not overturned.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 630 (g)
Out-of-state circulators
Nebraska does not require that petition circulators reside in the state. It used to have such a ban on out-of-state petition signature collectors, but the rule was struck down in 2011 by a federal court in Citizens in Charge v. Gale. The state does require that circulators be at least eighteen years of age.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 629 (2) (Overturned Statute)
Badge requirements
- See also: Badge requirements
Nebraska law requires that the circulator's paid or volunteer status be disclosed on the petition form in large red lettering.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 628 (4)
Electronic signatures
- See also: Electronic petition signatures
Since electronic signatures are an emerging technology, the constitutionality of bans on e-signatures and the legality of e-signatures in states without bans is largely untested. Nebraska law does mandate that signatures be collected in person.
See this page for information about a law designed to explicitly allow electronic signatures in Nebraska.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 628 (3)
Deadlines for collection
In Nebraska, petitioners may begin a petition drive at any time. However, according to state law, completed signature petitions are due at least four months prior to the next general election, and submitted signatures become invalid at the next general election occurring at least four months following the submission of the preliminary petition form. Therefore, for example, beginning a signature petition campaign seven months before a general election would give petitioners only three months to collect signatures, since they must submit final signatures four months before the election and, if they do not finish collecting signatures, all of the signatures collected from seven months before until four months before the most proximate general election would become invalid and could not be used to qualify the initiative for the following general election.
Since general elections are only held in even numbered years in Nebraska, this allows for a total possible period of just under two years to circulate petitions. For petitioners to maximize the time to collect signatures and give themselves the full two-year window, the initiative petition application should be submitted just under four months before a November general election, giving them until four months before the next November general election to collect signatures.
For example, if petitioners had submitted their petition application on July 10, 2016, the signatures would have been due on July 6, 2018, giving them very close to two years for circulation.
If filed signature petitions are found to be sufficient, the issue proposed will appear on the ballot at the next general election, at least four months following the submission of the petition application form prior to circulation.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1407 (2)
Getting on the ballot
Once signatures have been collected, state officials must verify that requirements are met and that fraudulent signatures are excluded. States generally employ a random sample process or a full verification of signatures. After verification, the issue must be prepared for the ballot. This often involves preparing a fiscal review and ballot summary.
Signature verification
- See also: Signature certification
At least four months prior to the election, proponents must submit their signed petitions, sorted by county, to the secretary of state for verification. The secretary then distributes them to county officials for certification. Once the signatures have been checked, and any duplicate or unregistered signers have been noted, the petitions are sent back to the secretary of state. The secretary then totals the valid signatures and notifies sponsors of the result.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1409
Ballot title and summary
- See also: Ballot title
In Nebraska, the ballot title and "yes" and "no" vote statements are prepared by the attorney general once the signature petitions have been filed for certification. The ballot title briefly explains the purpose of the measure. The "yes" and "no" vote statements explain the effect of an affirmative or negative vote. Beginning in 1986, initiated measures are also assigned a generic number starting with the number 400 (e.g. Initiative Measure 400, 401, 402, etc.).
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1410 (1-2)
The election and beyond
Ballot measures face additional challenges beyond qualifying for the ballot and receiving a majority of the vote. Several states require ballot measures to get more than a simple majority. While some states mandate a three-fifths supermajority, other states set the margin differently. In addition, ballot measures may face legal challenges or modifications by legislators. If a ballot measure does fail, some states limit how soon that initiative can be re-attempted.
Supermajority requirements
- See also: Supermajority requirements
In Nebraska, each ballot measure requires a simple majority of the votes cast for or against the measure. However, the number of affirmative votes cast for the measure must be greater than 35 percent of the total votes cast in the election. This also applies to legislative referrals.
For example, if 100,000 electors voted in the election, but only 60,000 voted on the measure in question, the measure would require at least 35,000 "yes" votes for approval, even though 30,000 would be a simple majority.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Section 4 and Article XVI, Section 1
Effective date
Ballot measures take effect upon the Governor of Nebraska's proclamation of the election results. The proclamation must be made within ten days of the completion of the election results canvass. The canvass is certified on the fourth Monday after the election.[11]
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1037 and Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1414
Litigation
- See also: Ballot measure lawsuit news
Challenges to the signature count, the ballot summary, or the "yes" and "no" vote explanations should be filed in the district court of Lancaster County.
See law: Nebraska Revised Statutes, Chapter 32, Section 1410 (3) and Section 1412
Legislative alteration
- See also: Legislative alteration
The Nebraska Legislature may not "amend, repeal, modify, or impair" any initiative without a two-thirds (66.67%) vote.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Section 2
Re-attempting an initiative
In Nebraska, ballot measures may not be reattempted more than once every three years.
See law: Nebraska Constitution, Article III, Section 2
Funding an initiative campaign
Some of the notable features of Nebraska's campaign finance laws include:
- Nebraska treats groups in support of or opposition to a ballot measure differently from other political committees.
- All campaigns in support of or opposition to a referendum must have a surety bond of $5,000 in place within 30 days of first forming a committee.
- Nebraska requires separate reporting if a registered campaign pays for signature collectors.
- All advertising expenditures for campaigns are reported as independent expenditures.
- Normal campaign finance reporting for expenditures can be only for general operating costs and overhead.
- Nebraska bans campaigns from engaging in business with Nebraska State Lottery contractors.
State initiative law
Article III, Sections 2-3 of the Nebraska Constitution address initiatives.
Chapter 32 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes governs initiatives.
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Nebraska State Legislature, "Nebraska State Constitution Article III-2," accessed June 20, 2023
- ↑ NCSL, "Drafting the Initiative Proposal," accessed May 19, 2011
- ↑ NCSL, "Preparation of a Fiscal Analysis," accessed May 19, 2011
- ↑ NCSL, "Preparation of a Ballot Title and Summary," accessed May 19, 2011
- ↑ As of December 1, 2023
- ↑ Laws stating otherwise were not found by Ballotpedia staff, July 2013
- ↑ Nebraska Legislature, "Nebraska Revised Statutes Section 32-628," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ Nebraska Legislature, "Nebraska Revised Statute 32-629," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Initiative and Referendum information document," accessed December 1, 2021
- ↑ Nebraska Legislature, "Nebraska Revised Statute 32-1407," accessed July 21, 2013
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "How to use the initiative and referendum process in Nebraska," December 1, 2021
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State of Nebraska Lincoln (capital) |
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Changes in the law
| Contents |
|---|
| 1 Laws and procedures |
| 2 Changes in the law |
| 2.1 Proposed changes by year |
| 2.1.1 2022 |
| 2.1.2 2021 |
| 2.1.3 2010 |
| 2.1.4 2019 |
| 2.1.5 2018 |
| 2.1.6 2017 |
| 2.1.7 2016 |
| 2.1.8 2015 |
| 2.1.9 2014 |
| 2.1.10 2013 |
The following laws have been proposed that modify ballot measure law in Nebraska. If a box is empty for any given year, it means Ballotpedia did not track any ballot measure or recall-related laws in that year.
Proposed changes by year
2022
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2021
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2020
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2019
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2018
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2017
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2016
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2015
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2014
- The lawsuit and subsequent court decision Bernbeck v. Gale (2014) overturned Nebraska's distribution requirements, which, prior to the ruling, required signatures from 5 percent of the registered voters in each of two-fifths of Nebraska's 93 counties. This century-old facet of Nebraska ballot law was ruled unconstitutional on the basis that it violated the 14th Amendment and the one-person-one-vote principle.
The following bills were introduced in the Nebraska State Legislature:
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2013
The following bills were introduced in the Nebraska State Legislature:
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2012
The following bills were introduced in the Nebraska State Legislature:
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2011
The following bills were introduced in the Nebraska Legislature:
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2010
The following bills were introduced in the Nebraska Legislature:
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State of Nebraska Lincoln (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2024 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
