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State Ballot Measure Monthly: April 2024
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By Ballot Measures Project Staff
This edition of the State Ballot Measure Monthly covers the certifications of state ballot measures, as well as notable ballot measure news, from March 13 through April 9.
2024 ballot measures
Overview: Nationally, 87 ballot measures have been certified in 32 states for elections in 2024.
Signatures submitted: Signatures have been submitted and are pending verification for the following citizen-initiated ballot measures:
- California Require Personal Finance Course for High School Graduation Initiative (2024)
- Colorado Economic Impact Statements Shown with Ballot Question Initiative (2024)
- Michigan $15 Minimum Wage Initiative (2024)
Certified to the legislature: Signatures have been verified for the following indirect initiatives. The legislature has the option to approve them before certification:
- Maine Campaign Contribution Limits Initiative (2024)
- Massachusetts App-Based Drivers as Contractors and Labor Policies Initiative (2024)
- Massachusetts Authorization of State Auditor to Audit General Court Initiative (2024)
- Massachusetts Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees Initiative (2024)
- Massachusetts Regulated Access to Psychedelic Substances Initiative (2024)
- Massachusetts Repeal Competency Assessment Requirement for High School Graduation Initiative (2024)
- Massachusetts Unionization and Collective Bargaining for Transportation Network Drivers Initiative (2024)
Changes in 2024 ballot measure numbers
Comparison to earlier years
So far, 87 state ballot measures have been certified for 2024. From 2012 through 2022, an average of 81 state ballot measures through the first week of April of a general election year. An average of 157 total ballot measures were certified for even-numbered year ballots from 2012 through 2022.
2024 certifications
- See also: Ballotpedia's Tuesday Count for 2024
From March 13 through April 9, 11 statewide measures qualified for the ballot in six states—Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, and North Dakota.
March 15
- Kentucky Allow State Funding for Non-Public Education Amendment: The amendment would allow for laws to provide state funding for non-public education. The measure would add language to the Kentucky Constitution saying that "the General Assembly may provide financial support for the education of students outside the system of common schools." As of 2024, Kentucky was the only U.S. state where charter schools were legal, but not funded.
- Kentucky Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment: This amendment would provide that only United States citizens can vote in elections in the state. This includes elections for school trustees and common school district elections. In Kentucky, noncitizens cannot vote or register to vote for any state or local elections. Since 2018, voters have decided on six ballot measures related to adding language about citizenship requirements for voting in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Ohio. All were approved.
March 18
- Arizona Life Imprisonment for Sex Trafficking of a Child Measure: The ballot measure would guarantee a sentence of life imprisonment without parole if an individual is found guilty of sex trafficking of a child. It passed the Senate on March 11, 2024, by a 20-8 vote with all Republicans voting in favor of the law and Senate Democrats divided. It passed the House in a 31-27 vote on March 18, 2024, along party lines with all Republicans voting in favor and all Democrats voting against.
- North Dakota Congressional Age Limits Initiative: The initiative, which will appear on June 11, would prohibit an individual from being elected or appointed to serve in Congress if the individual would become 81 years old by December 31 of the year preceding the end of their term. The initiative would provide that, in the case of a court ruling blocking the enforcement of the age limit, any candidate who would be restricted from serving due to the age limit, would be barred from appearing on the ballot to be nominated or elected to serve in the U.S. House or Senate. If a court ruling requires such a candidate to appear on the ballot, the initiative would require a note on ballots next to the candidate's name stating the candidate's age at the end of their term.
March 20
- Georgia Creation of Tax Court Amendment: The amendment would create the Georgia Tax Court, which would have concurrent jurisdiction with the state business court and superior courts in equity cases. A superior court could order the removal of a case to the business court or tax court. Georgia Tax Court judges would serve terms of four years and be appointed by the governor with approval by the Senate Judiciary Committee and House Committee on Judiciary. The state legislature would be authorized under the amendment to provide for the number of judges on the court and the qualifications to serve.
March 25
- Idaho Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment: The amendment would provide that only a citizen of the United States can vote in the state. The House voted 63-6 to approve the measure on March 11, 2024, with five Democrats joining the Republican majority. The Senate voted 28-6 to approve the measure on March 25, 2024, along party lines with Republicans voting in favor and Democrats against.
March 26
- Georgia Personal Property Tax Exemption Increase Measure: The measure would increase the personal property tax exemption from $7,500 to $20,000. The exemption excludes all property owned by a taxpayer within a county (except motor vehicles, trailers, and mobile homes) with a fair market value of $20,000 or below from taxation. Personal property includes furniture, fixtures, machinery, equipment, inventory, and other property used in a business; as well as aircraft and boats owned by an individual or corporation. Georgia voters last approved an increase to the exemption in 2002 with the approval of Referendum E, which increased the personal property tax exemption from $500 to $7,500.
March 28
- Colorado Remove Right to Bail in First Degree Murder Cases Amendment: The amendment would remove the right to bail in cases of first-degree murder when the proof is evident or the presumption is great. It was passed by the House on March 2, 2024, in a vote of 59-5 with one member absent. The Senate passed the amendment on March 28, 2024, in a vote of 35-0.
- Georgia Appropriations of Federal Legal Settlement Funds Amendment: The amendment would provide that all proceeds over $75 million from legal judgments or settlements and unanticipated changes to federal funding are appropriated by the state legislature or held in the state treasury and appropriated through a supplementary appropriations act.
- Georgia Local Option Homestead Property Tax Exemption Amendment: This amendment would provide for a local option homestead property tax exemption and allow a county, municipality, or school system to opt out of the exemption. On March 26, 2024, the Senate adopted an amended version of the bill in a vote of 42-11. The House adopted the bill on March 28 in a vote of 171-0.
- Georgia Statewide Homestead Property Tax Exemption Increase Measure: The measure would increase the statewide homestead property tax exemption from $2,000 to $10,000. Under Section 2 of Article VII of the Georgia Constitution state constitution, property tax exemption bills require a two-thirds supermajority vote (rather than a simple majority vote) in the state legislature and must be approved by a majority of statewide voters.
Headlines
California Proposition 1 was the eighth-closest statewide ballot measure election since at least 1908, with a margin of 0.36%
California Proposition 1 was approved by a vote of 50.18% to 49.82%—a 0.36% margin as of April 9 with more than 95% of the vote accounted for. Fifteen days after the election, the Associated Press called Proposition 1 as approved.
Proposition 1 joins 16 other California statewide measures decided by a margin of less than 0.5% of the vote. It is the eighth-closest statewide ballot measure election in the state.
The measure with the closest margin was SCA 14, the Increase State Officers' Salaries Amendment, in 1908. It was approved by a margin of two votes. The measure increased the annual compensation for state officers, including the governor.
Nine of the 15 closest measures were defeated, and six were approved. A majority of the measures (10) were decided at elections before 1950. Only one measure in the closest 15 elections, Proposition 29 (2012), was decided in the last 25 years. Proposition 29, an initiative that would have enacted a tobacco tax to fund cancer research, was defeated with 0.47% separating yes and no vote totals.
Proposition 1, which appeared on the March 5 primary ballot, was proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and was the product of two laws passed during the 2023 legislative session. The bills received unanimous approval by voting Democrats in the state legislature, while Republicans were divided on the proposals.
Support campaigns received over $14.7 million in contributions compared to the $1,000 in contributions reported by the single committee registered in opposition to Proposition 1.
Gov. Newsom’s Ballot Measure Committee was the primary committee behind the Yes on Proposition 1 campaign, contributing over $13.6 million to the effort. Other top donors to support committees included Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria ($1.5 million), Sutter Health ($1.15 million), and California Hospital Committee on Issues ($1 million).
After conceding defeat on March 12, Proposition 1 opponents released a statement reviving their campaign to get rejected ballots counted, an effort Gov. Newsom’s campaign is also undertaking.
Paul Simmons, a director of Californians Against Prop. 1, said, “We don’t know if reviving rejected ballots will change the outcome of this election, but if the governor thinks it might, we for damn sure aren’t going to let him have the field to himself.”[1]
The governor’s federal PAC, Campaign for Democracy, sent an email seeking volunteers to help voters whose ballots were rejected. The email read, “This ballot initiative is SO CLOSE that your commitment to volunteer could mean the difference between people getting off the streets and into the treatment they need... or not.”[2]
There are no automatic recounts for statewide ballot measure campaigns in California. A voter may request one in a specific county or counties but must self-fund the recount. The governor can call for a recount of a statewide measure within five days after the 31st day of the election if the “yes” and “no” votes are separated by less than or equal to the lesser of 1,000 votes or 0.00015% of the number of all votes cast on the measure.
State law requires the secretary of state to certify statewide election results no later than 38 days after the election. Proposition 1 results will be certified by April 12.
Ballotpedia's Historic Ballot Measures project (HBM) will document nearly 200 years of direct democracy in the United States. In California, our dataset is complete back through 1911. This ongoing research effort will provide an unparalleled resource for researchers, reporters, and the voting public on how ballot measures have evolved, the issues they've covered, and the role they have played in our civic life.
See also
- 2024 ballot measures
- Ballot initiatives filed for the 2024 ballot
- Ballot Measure Scorecard, 2024
- Ballotpedia's Tuesday Count for 2024
Related articles
Footnotes
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