Missouri Public Campaign Finance System Funded by Optional Income Tax Allocation Initiative (2020)
| Missouri Public Campaign Finance System Funded by Optional Income Tax Allocation Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Campaign finance | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
The Missouri Public Campaign Finance System Funded by Optional Income Tax Allocation Initiative was not on the ballot in Missouri as an initiated state statute on November 3, 2020.
This initiative would have created the Missouri Elections Trust Fund, which would have provided for a public campaign finance system that provides matching campaign financing to candidates that follow certain rules. The ratio of the matching funds would have been determined on an annual basis by the amount raised by qualifying candidates and the amount available in the fund. To qualify for the program, candidates would have had to do the following, among other rules:[1][2]
- accept no contributions from corporations or political action committees that accept money from corporations;
- receive half of their total contributions, including in-kind contributions, from individuals contributing $200 or less for any election; and
- meet all conditions for both the primary and general elections.
The Missouri Elections Trust Fund would have been created through an option on all income tax returns for all individuals and corporations paying state income taxes in the amount of $25 or more to allocate $5 of their income tax bill to the fund.[2]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for this initiative:[3]
| “ |
Do you want to amend Missouri law to:
State governmental entities anticipate decreased revenues in the General Revenue Fund of up to $16.1 million annually by 2022 and anticipate corresponding increased annual revenues in the Missouri Elections Trust Fund. Local governmental entities expect no costs or savings from this proposal. [4] |
” |
Full text
The full text of the measure is available here.
Path to the ballot
In Missouri, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated state statute for the ballot is equal to 5 percent of the votes cast for governor in the previous gubernatorial election in six of the eight state congressional districts. Signatures must be filed with the secretary of state six months prior to the election.
The requirements to get an initiated state statute certified for the 2020 ballot:
- Signatures: The smallest possible requirement was 100,126 valid signatures. The actual requirement depends on the congressional districts in which signatures were collected.
- Deadline: The deadline to submit signatures was May 3, 2020.
Once the signatures have been filed with the secretary of state, the secretary copies the petition sheets and transmits them to county election authorities for verification. The secretary of state may choose whether the signatures are to be verified by a 5 percent random sample or full verification. If the random sampling projects between 90 percent and 110 percent of required signatures, a full check of all signatures is required. If more than 110 percent, the initiative is certified, and, if less than 90 percent, the initiative fails.
Stages of this initiative
Winston Apple filed the ballot initiative on July 1, 2019. On August 12, 2019, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) approved the initiative for signature gathering.Petitioners did not submit signatures by the May 3 deadline.[1]
See also
External links
- 2020 Initiative Petitions Approved for Circulation in Missouri
- Initiative Petition 2020-099 full text
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Missouri Secretary of State, "2020 Initiative Petitions Approved for Circulation in Missouri," accessed August 12, 2019
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Missouri Secretary of State, "Initiative Petition 2020-099," accessed August 12, 2019
- ↑ Missouri Secretary of State, "Statutory Amendment to Chapters 130 & 143, Relating to a Missouri Elections Trust Fund," accessed August 14, 2019
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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State of Missouri Jefferson City (capital) |
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