State Ballot Measure Monthly: June 2020
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By Ballot Measures Project staff
This edition of the State Ballot Measure Monthly covers certifications and a selection of notable ballot measure news from May 15 through June 15. Fifteen (15) new measures were certified for 2020 ballots in Alaska, California, Colorado, Louisiana, Missouri, and Oklahoma. One measure was put on the Aug. 4 primary ballot in Missouri. The remaining 14 will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot.
To date, 94 statewide measures in 32 states have been certified for this year's ballot. Alabama, California, and Maine voters decided three measures on March 3. Wisconsin voters decided one measure on April 7. Oklahoma voters will decide one measure on June 30. Maine voters will decide two measures on July 14. Missouri voters will decide one measure on Aug. 4. The remaining 86 measures are on the Nov. 3 ballot.
HIGHLIGHTS
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Number of certifications in past years:
The graph below shows the number of certifications in each week of 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018, as well as the average for each week. The graph also shows 2020 certifications.
- 2018: By the second week of June, 109 measures had been certified for the 2018 ballot.
- Ultimately, 167 measures were on the ballot in 2018.
- 2016: By the second week of June, 111 measures had been certified for the 2016 ballot.
- Ultimately, 162 measures were on the ballot in 2016.
- 2014: By the second week of June, 122 measures had been certified for the 2014 ballot.
- Ultimately, 158 measures were on the ballot in 2014.
- 2012: By the second week of June, 122 measures had been certified for the 2012 ballot.
- Ultimately, 188 measures were on the ballot in 2012.
2020 certifications
From May 15 to June 15, 14 new statewide measures and the second version of an already qualified initiative in California were certified for the 2020 ballots.
May 15:
- Oklahoma State Question 814, Decrease Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust Fund Deposits and Fund Medicaid Program Amendment (2020) - The Oklahoma Legislature referred this measure to the Nov. 3 ballot largely along party lines with most Republicans in support and most Democrats opposed. The amendment would divert funding the state receives from tobacco settlements and direct it, along with other tobacco settlement funds, to fund Medicaid and draw matching federal Medicaid funding.
- On June 30, Oklahoma voters will decide State Question 802, an initiative to expand Medicaid coverage. On March 6, 2020, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority submitted a state plan amendment for alternative Medicaid expansion designed to take effect on July 1. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt (R) also announced SoonerCare 2.0, a separate expansion plan under the Trump administration's Healthy Adult Opportunity (HAO) program.
May 20:
The Alaska Legislature adjourned on May 20 without voting on the two citizen initiatives for which proponents had submitted more than the required 28,501 valid signatures before the January deadline. The legislature had the option to approve the proposals or equivalent legislation before the end of this year's legislative session according to the state's indirect initiative process. Since the legislature did not approve equivalent legislation, the two initiatives were certified for the Nov. 3 ballot:
- Alaska Ballot Measure 2, Top-Four Ranked-Choice Voting and Campaign Finance Laws Initiative (2020) - This initiative would establish ranked-choice voting for general elections, including the presidential election. It would also replace partisan primaries with open top-four primaries for state executive, state legislative, and congressional offices. The initiative also contained provisions requiring persons and entities that contribute more than $2,000 that was derived from donations, contributions, dues, or gifts to disclose the true sources (as defined in law) of the political contributions.
- Alaska Ballot Measure 1, North Slope Oil Production Tax Increase Initiative (2020) - This initiative would increase taxes on oil production fields that are (a) located above 68 degrees north latitude in Alaska, which is an area known as the North Slope; (b) have a lifetime output of at least 400 million barrels of oil; and (c) have an output of at least 40,000 barrels per day for the preceding calendar year. According to Robin Brena, chairperson of the campaign behind the ballot initiative, three oil production fields—Alpine, Kuparuk, and Prudhoe Bay—meet those criteria.
May 22:
- California Proposition 22, App-Based Drivers as Contractors and Labor Policies Initiative (2020) - This ballot initiative would define app-based transportation (rideshare) and delivery drivers as independent contractors and adopt labor and wage policies specific to app-based drivers and companies. The ballot measure would override Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5), signed in September 2019, on the question of whether app-based drivers are employees or independent contractors. The ballot initiative would also enact labor and wage policies specific to app-based drivers and companies, including a net earnings floor based on 120 percent of the state's or municipality's minimum wage and 30 cents per mile; a limit to the hours permitted to work during a 24-hour period; healthcare subsidies; occupational accident insurance; and accidental death insurance. The measure would also require the companies to develop anti-discrimination and sexual harassment policies. The Protect App-Based Drivers and Services campaign filed 987,813 signatures in March 2020. The group needed 623,212 valid signatures to qualify the initiative for the ballot. On May 22, the office of Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced that a random sampling had projected a sufficient number of valid signatures.
- The initiative's support committees have raised $110.69 million, including $30.47 million from Lyft, Inc.; $30.23 million from Uber Technologies, Inc.; $30.00 million from DoorDash, Inc.; and $10 million each from Instacart (Maplebear, Inc.) and Postmates, Inc. Opponents have raised $690,000, with the Transport Workers Union of America as the largest donor, providing $500,000.
- (Second version) California Proposition 15, Tax on Commercial and Industrial Properties for Education and Local Government Funding Initiative (2020) - This initiative would require commercial and industrial properties, except those zoned as commercial agriculture, to be taxed based on their market value, rather than their purchase price. In California, the proposal to assess taxes on commercial and industrial properties at market value, while continuing to assess taxes on residential properties based on purchase price, is known as split roll.
- On Aug. 14, 2018, the campaign backing the ballot initiative filed 855,623 signatures for an earlier version of the measure. A total of 661,306 valid signatures were required. On Oct. 15, 2018, the initial version qualified for the Nov. 2020 ballot. The campaign spent $3.5 million on signature gathering for the first version. On April 2, 2020, the campaign Schools and Communities First filed 1,748,647 signatures for their second version of the initiative. At least 997,139 of the signatures needed to be valid. On May 22, Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced that the initiative had qualified for the Nov. 3 ballot. The campaign said it would withdraw the initial version of the initiative, which means this certification did not increase the number of measures voters will see on the ballot.
- Missouri Amendment 2, Medicaid Expansion Initiative (August 2020) - This initiative would expand Medicaid eligibility in Missouri to adults that are 19 years old or older and younger than 65 whose income is 133% of the federal poverty level or below, which would effectively expand Medicaid to those with incomes at or below 138% of the federal poverty level under the Affordable Care Act. It would also prohibit any additional restrictions or requirements for the expanded population to qualify for Medicaid coverage than for other populations that qualify for Medicaid coverage and require the state to seek maximum federal funding of Medicaid expansion. Healthcare for Missouri submitted 341,440 signatures to the Missouri Secretary of State on May 1. It needed 172,015 valid signatures to qualify the initiative for the ballot with a certain number from at least six of eight congressional districts.
- On May 26, Gov. Mike Parson (R) called for the measure to be put on the Aug. 4 primary election ballot rather than the Nov. 3 default. An initiative to expand Medicaid also qualified for the Oklahoma ballot in 2020. Last month, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) also ordered the measure to appear on the state's primary ballot on June 30 rather than the Nov. 3 general election ballot.
May 29:
- Louisiana Amendment 2, Include Oil and Gas Value in Tax Assessment of Wells Amendment (2020) - The Louisiana Legislature referred this amendment to the Nov. 3 ballot through a unanimous vote in both chambers. The measure would allow the presence or production of oil or gas to be taken into account when determining the fair market value of an oil or gas well for ad valorem taxes.
June 1:
The Louisiana Legislature referred four constitutional amendments to the Nov. 3 ballot on June 1, the last day of the regular legislative session.
- Louisiana Amendment 3, Use of Budget Stabilization Fund for Declared Disasters Amendment (2020)
- Louisiana Amendment 5, Payments in Lieu of Property Taxes Option Amendment (2020)
- Louisiana Amendment 4, Expenditures Limit Growth Formula Amendment (2020)
- Louisiana Amendment 6, Homestead Exemption Special Assessment Income Limit Amendment (2020)
- This brought the total number of measures on the Nov. 3 ballot in Louisiana to six, including the amendment referred on May 29 and an amendment referred to the ballot during the 2019 legislative session that would add language to the Louisiana Constitution stating that "nothing in this constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion."
June 8:
- Colorado Proposition 115, 22-Week Abortion Ban Initiative (2020) - This initiative would prohibit abortions after a fetus reaches 22 weeks gestational age as calculated from the first day of the woman's last menstrual period. Gestational age would be assessed and determined by the physician performing the abortion. Under the initiative, abortions after 22 weeks would be lawful if the physician believes it is immediately necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman. Under the initiative, performing a prohibited abortion would be a Class 1 misdemeanor, which would be punishable by a fine ranging from $500 to $5,000. A woman who has a prohibited abortion could not be charged with a crime under the initiative. Medical professionals who are found to have performed a prohibited abortion would have their medical licenses suspended by the Colorado Medical Board for at least three years.
- The campaign submitted 137,624 signatures on March 4, and on April 3 the Colorado Secretary of State's office announced that 114,647 of the signatures were valid, while 124,632 were required. Proponents needed to submit an additional 9,985 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot during the 15-day cure period allowed by state law. Due Date Too Late sued the Colorado Secretary of State's office to give the group more time beyond a 15-day window starting on April 3 because of the coronavirus pandemic and the state's stay-at-home order. Denver District Court Judge Martin Egelhoff granted an emergency stay to allow Due Date Too Late to collect additional signatures during a cure period from May 15 through May 29 after the state's emergency stay-at-home order expired. On June 8, the secretary of state announced that the measure qualified for the ballot after proponents submitted an additional 38,557 valid signatures, bringing the total number of valid signatures submitted to 153,204.
June 12:
- Colorado Amendment B, Gallagher Amendment Repeal and Property Tax Assessment Rates Measure (2020) - This constitutional amendment would repeal the Gallagher Amendment of 1982, which limited the residential and non-residential property tax assessment rates so that residential property taxes amounted to 45% of the total share of state property taxes and non-residential property taxes amounted to 55% of the total share of state property taxes. The limits under the Gallagher Amendment dictated property assessment rates for residential and non-residential property. The state legislature referred this amendment to the Nov. 3 ballot, with the final House vote on June 12.
June 15:
The Colorado Legislature referred two measures to the Nov. 3 ballot on June 15. One was a state statute and one was a constitutional amendment.
- California Proposition 23, Dialysis Clinic Requirements Initiative (2020) - This ballot initiative would require chronic dialysis clinics to (a) have an on-site physician while patients are being treated; (b) report data on dialysis-related infections; (v) obtain consent from the state health department before closing a clinic; and (d) not discriminate against patients based on the source of payment for care. In 2018, the campaign behind this 2020 initiative—Californians for Kidney Dialysis Patient Protection—supported a ballot initiative to require dialysis clinics to issue refunds to patients or patients' payers for revenue above 115 percent of the costs of direct patient care and healthcare improvements. In 2018, 59.9 percent of voters rejected the proposal, which was on the ballot as Proposition 8.
- Colorado Proposition EE, Tobacco and E-Cigarette Tax Increase for Health and Education Programs Measure (2020) - This measure would create a tax on nicotine products such as e-cigarettes, increase cigarette and tobacco taxes, and dedicate revenues to various health and education programs. Due to the Colorado TABOR law, statewide voter approval is required to enact any legislation to increase government revenue at a faster rate than the combined rate of population increase and inflation. The legislature approved the measure for the ballot largely along party lines, with all Democrats in favor and most Republicans opposed.
- Colorado Amendment C, Charitable Bingo and Raffles Amendment (2020) - This constitutional amendment would lower the minimum age of an organization from five years to three years before it can obtain a charitable gaming license and allow charitable organizations to hire managers and operators of gaming activities so long as they are not paid more than the minimum wage.
Idaho passes single-subject rule and fiscal impact statement requirements
On July 1, two bills passed by the Idaho Legislature and signed by Gov. Brad Little (R) in March will go into effect.
- Idaho Senate Bill 1350 adds a requirement that fiscal impact and funding source statements be added to voter information pamphlets for ballot initiatives.
- Idaho House Bill 548 requires that initiatives be limited to a single subject and require those who pay signature gatherers to report such activity to the secretary of state.
- Fifteen (15) of the 26 states that provide for at least one type of statewide ballot initiative have a single-subject rule.
As of June 15, Ballotpedia has tracked 153 legislative proposals considered during 2020 legislative sessions in 33 states concerning ballot initiatives, veto referendums, referrals, local ballot measures, and recall. Thirteen bills have been approved in eight states.
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Ballotpedia is covering changes to ballot measure signature petition drives, campaign activities, elections, procedures, and policies made in response to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as lawsuits filed over ballot measure deadlines and requirements.
- Ballotpedia has tracked 23 statewide initiative petition drives that suspended signature gathering.
- Seven states and D.C. changed ballot measure procedures.
- At least 15 lawsuits were filed in 12 different states seeking court orders suspending or changing signature requirements and deadlines. Rulings or settlements have been issued for eleven.
- At least two initiative campaigns reported they had enough signatures but are delaying signature submission so their measures appear on the ballot in 2022 instead of 2020.
Click here to read more.
See also
- 2020 ballot measures
- List of ballot measures by state
- List of ballot measures by year
- Ballot Measure Scorecard, 2020
- Ballotpedia's Tuesday Count for 2020
Related articles
Footnotes
- ↑ The numbers in the second column indicate how many ballot measures were certified for the ballot in the last month; for example a "+3" means that three measures were certified in the last month.
- ↑ This number includes citizen-initiated measures, legislative referrals, and an automatically referred measure.
- ↑ This was current as of June 1, 2020.
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