Montana C-47, Initiated Statute and Referendum Distribution Requirements Amendment (2020)
| Montana C-47 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Direct democracy measures | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
Montana C-47, the Initiative Distribution Requirements Amendment, was on the ballot in Montana as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 3, 2020.[1] It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported amending constitutional language to match the existing signature distribution requirements for initiated state statutes and veto referendums. |
A "no" vote opposed amending constitutional language to match the existing signature distribution requirements for initiated state statutes and veto referendums, thereby keeping unenforced, county-based signature distribution requirements in the language of the constitution. |
Election results
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Montana C-47 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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411,153 | 74.56% | ||
| No | 140,300 | 25.44% | ||
Overview
What did Montana C-47 do?
This amendment did not alter existing enforced initiative signature distribution requirements, but amended constitutional language to match the existing signature distribution requirements for initiative petitions. For an initiated state statute or a veto referendum in Montana, signatures collected must be equal to 5 percent of the qualified electors in each of one-third (34) of the state's legislative districts.[2]
A distribution requirement is a statutory or constitutional mandate requiring that petitions for a ballot measure or candidate nomination must be signed by voters from different political subdivisions in order for the ballot measure or candidate to qualify for the ballot.[2]
Why was this amendment on the ballot?
- See also: Background
This amendment, along with a similar amendment regarding constitutional initiative petitions, were on the ballot to amend language in the state constitution to match the currently enforced signature distribution requirements.
The signature distribution requirements for initiated state statutes, veto referendums, and initiated constitutional amendments were changed in the state constitution with the passage of two voter-approved constitutional amendments, C-37 and C-38, in 2002. C-37 changed the requirement for initiated constitutional amendments to 10% of qualified electors in at least half of Montana's counties, rather than in two-fifths of the legislative districts. C-38 changed the signature requirement for initiated state statutes to 5% of qualified electors in at least half of Montana's counties, rather than in one-third of the legislative districts.
The amendments were later ruled unconstitutional and the original distribution requirements were re-enforced, but the invalidated language remained in the state constitution. These 2020 amendments would remove the invalidated language from the state constitution and replace it with language to match the currently enforced signature distribution requirements for initiatives in Montana.
At the time of the election, the following signature distribution requirements were enforced:
- initiated constitutional amendments: 10% of qualified electors in each of two-fifths (40) of the state's 100 legislative districts.
- initiated state statutes or veto referendums: 5% of qualified electors in each of one-third (34) of the state's 100 legislative districts.
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot language for C-47 is below.[2]
| “ | An act submitting to the qualified electors of Montana an amendment to Article III, Section 4, of the Montana Constitution to revise the method of qualifying an initiative for the ballot; and providing an effective date.
[] NO on Constitutional Amendment 47[3] |
” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article III, Montana Constitution
C-47 amended section 4 of Article III of the state constitution. The following underlined text was added, and struck-through text was deleted:[2]
Note: Use your mouse to scroll over the below text to see the full text.
Section 1. Article III, section 4, of The Constitution of the State of Montana is amended to read: Section 4. Initiative. (1) The people may enact laws by initiative on all matters except appropriations of money and local or special laws.
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Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2020
| Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
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Support
- If you are aware of any supporters or supporting arguments, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Supporters
Officials
- State Senator Bryce Bennett (D)
- State Representative Steve Gunderson (R)
Official arguments
Montana State Senator Bryce Bennett (D) and Montana State Representative Steve Gunderson (R) submitted the following arguments to the Montana Voter Information Pamphlet in support of the measure:[4]
| “ |
Constitutional Amendments 46 and 47 are simple, clean-up efforts to remove language that was struck down by Montana’s courts 15 years ago. These amendments provide no substantive changes to our constitution but will ensure that when people read it - they get accurate information. In 2002, voters approved constitutional amendments 37 and 38, which attempted to change the steps in how Montanans can collect signatures and place ballot initiatives before voters. The largest proposed change to the process was changing the units to qualify from legislative districts to counties. The amendments were quickly found to be unconstitutional by a U.S. District Court on equal protection grounds and we reverted to the previous way we had been qualifying initiatives for generations. Without a vote of the people, however, inaccurate information will remain in the constitution to confuse Montanans. In 2019, the Montana Legislature came together in a broad, bipartisan effort to fix this oversight and ensure that everyone who reads Montana’s incredible constitution gets accurate information. It is important to all of us that our constitution be a resource and learning tool for all Montanans. When people want to put an initiative before the people they should not be getting inaccurate information from our constitution and correct information from a government agency. When our kids learn about Montana’s Constitution in their classroom they should learn how the process actually works, not old incorrect language that we just did not bother to change. Constitutional Amendments 46 and 47 are not an effort to adopt policy or change anything about how the constitution affects the lives of Montanans today. These good government amendments simply attempt to clean up obsolete language and give our neighbors a constitution that says what it means and means what it says. Vote YES for Constitutional Amendments 46 and 47.[3] |
” |
Opposition
- If you are aware of any opponents or opposing arguments, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Opponents
Officials
- State Senator John Esp (R)
- State Senator Tom Jacobson (D)
- State Senator Gordon Vance (R)
- State Senator Jeffrey Welborn (R)
Official arguments
There were no official arguments in opposition to the measure in the Montana Voter Information Pamphlet.[5]
Campaign finance
| Total campaign contributions: | |
| Support: | $0.00 |
| Opposition: | $0.00 |
Ballotpedia did not identify any committees registered in support of or in opposition to C-47.
If you are aware of a committee registered to support or oppose C-47, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.
Background
Amendments C-37 and C-38 of 2002
In 2002, two voter-approved constitutional amendments, C-37 and C-38, attempted to change the basis for the ballot initiative distribution requirement in Montana from legislative districts to counties. C-37 changed the requirement for initiated constitutional amendments to 10% of qualified electors in at least half of Montana's counties, rather than in two-fifths of the legislative districts. C-38 changed the signature requirement for initiated state statutes to 5% of qualified electors in at least half of Montana's counties, rather than in one-third of the legislative districts. However, given population disparities among counties, the amendments were found by a U.S. District Court to be unconstitutional on equal protection grounds in Montana PIRG v. Johnson. Attorney General Mike McGrath subsequently ruled that the federal court's invalidation of C-37 and C-38 meant that the prior language of the state's constitution about distribution requirements based on legislative districts for citizen initiatives was considered to be fully back in force. The language from C-37 and C-38 concerning county-based distribution requirements, however, remained in the state constitution.
Direct democracy measures, 2020
- See also: Direct democracy measures on the ballot
Five measures that were designed to change the state's laws governing citizen initiatives or other ballot measures were on the ballot in four states for the election on November 3, 2020. The measures included questions about a state's initiative and referendum process, signature gathering requirements, constitutional amendment requirements, and other topics. Click [show] to read more about direct democracy measures in 2020.
| Direct democracy measures, 2020 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020 direct democracy measures on the ballot: Click here to read about changes to laws governing ballot measures in 2019 and here to read about changes to laws governing ballot measures in 2020. | |||||
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Montana Constitution
C-47 was introduced as House Bill 245 on January 18, 2019, by Rep. Steve Gunderson (R-1). On January 31, 2019, the House passed the bill in a vote of 60 to 39. Since the amendment must be adopted by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of all members of the legislature, 40 yes votes were required from the Senate for this measure to pass and secure a place on the ballot. The measure passed in the Senate on April 3, 2019, in a vote of 45-4 with one Republican Senator, Jennifer Fielder not voting. The four no votes came from Republicans John Esp, Jeffrey Welborn, and Gordon Vance and Democrat Tom Jacobson.[1]
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How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Montana
Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Montana.
| How to cast a vote in Montana | |||||
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Poll timesIn Montana, polling place hours vary throughout the state. Most polling places open at 7:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m., although some polling places may open as late as 12:00 p.m. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[6] Registration requirements
To register to vote in Montana, each applicant must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of Montana for at least 30 days prior to the election, and at least 18 years old by the day of the election. People serving a felony sentence in a penal institution and those who have been declared by a court to be of unsound mind are not eligible to vote.[7] Citizens can register to vote in person by completing a registration application at their county election office. They can register by mailing the application to their county election administrator or submitting it when applying for or renewing a driver’s license or state ID. Citizens may also register to vote at their county election offices, certain designated locations, or at their designated polling location on Election Day.[7] Automatic registrationMontana does not practice automatic voter registration. Online registration
Montana does not permit online voter registration. Same-day registrationMontana allows same-day voter registration. Residency requirementsIn order to register to vote in Montana, applicants must have lived in the state for at least 30 days prior to the election. Verification of citizenshipMontana does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. Verifying your registrationThe site My Voter Page, run by the Montana secretary of state’s office, allows residents to check their voter registration status online. Voter ID requirementsMontana requires voters to present identification while voting. Montana's voter identification requirements are outlined in Section 13-13-114 of Montana Code, as amended when SB169 was signed into law on April 19, 2021. The law states, "Before an elector is permitted to receive a ballot or vote, the elector shall present to an election judge one of the following forms of identification showing the elector's name:"[8]
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Montana State Legislature, "House Bill 245," accessed February 3, 2019
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Montana Legislature, "HB 245 Full Text," accessed February 3, 2019
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "2020 Voter Information Pamphlet," accessed October 7, 2020
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "2020 Voter Information Pamphlet," accessed October 7, 2020
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "Elections & Voter Services: 2022 Polling Places", accessed April 19, 2023
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Montana Secretary of State, “How to Register to Vote,” accessed April 19, 2023
- ↑ Montana Code Annotated 2021, "Section 13-13-114." accessed April 19, 2023
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