H 4479 Session 111 (1995-1996)
H 4479 Joint Resolution, By Vaughn, Allison, J.M. Baxley, J. Brown, A.W. Byrd,
B.D. Cain, Cato, C.D. Chamblee, Cooper, Cotty, J.L.M. Cromer, Dantzler,
Davenport, Easterday, L.L. Elliott, Fleming, R.C. Fulmer, Gamble, H.M. Hallman,
P.B. Harris, Haskins, M. Hines, H.G. Hutson, Keegan, Kelley, Klauber, Knotts,
Koon, L.H. Limbaugh, Littlejohn, Mason, Quinn, Rhoad, Rice, Meacham, Riser,
Robinson, T.F. Rogers, Seithel, Sharpe, Simrill, R. Smith, Spearman, Stille,
Stuart, P.H. Thomas, Townsend, Tripp, Trotter, D.C. Waldrop, Walker, C.C. Wells,
Whatley, Witherspoon, S.S. Wofford, Young-Brickell and W.J. Young
A Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of South
Carolina, 1895, by adding Section 15 to Article XVII so as to establish a
specified procedure for the enactment or repeal of laws and constitutional
amendments by initiative petition or referendum and provide exceptions.
01/23/96 House Introduced and read first time HJ-3
01/23/96 House Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-4
A JOINT RESOLUTION
PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF
SOUTH CAROLINA, 1895, BY ADDING SECTION 15 TO
ARTICLE XVII SO AS TO ESTABLISH A SPECIFIED
PROCEDURE FOR THE ENACTMENT OR REPEAL OF LAWS
AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS BY INITIATIVE
PETITION OR REFERENDUM AND PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South
Carolina:
SECTION 1. It is proposed that Article XVII of the
Constitution of this State be amended by adding:
"Section 15. (A) In addition to the provisions of Article
III and Article XVI of this Constitution, relating to the enactment of
laws and constitutional amendments and in order to give meaning to
the right of the people to petition their government for redress of
grievances as guaranteed by Article I, Section 2 of this Constitution,
there is reserved in the people the power to repeal and enact laws
and constitutional amendments by means of initiative petition. This
amendment must be construed consistent with this Constitution and
is an additional method of amending this Constitution, and of
enacting general laws of the State.
(B)(1) Initiative and referendum powers may be invoked by
presenting a petition to the State Election Commission.
(2) An initiative petition must contain a full and correct copy
of the title and text of the proposed law or constitutional
amendment.
(3) A petition concerning constitutional amendments must be
signed by a number of qualified electors, not fewer than eight
percent of the total vote cast for Governor at the last general
election.
(4) A petition concerning a general law must be signed by a
number of qualified electors, not fewer than six percent of the total
vote cast for Governor at the last general election.
(5) A petition must contain qualified signatures
geographically distributed so as to include a minimum of two
percent from at least two thirds of the counties, rounded to the next
higher number, based on the total votes cast for Governor in the last
gubernatorial election held in that county.
(C)(1) A proposition submitted to the voters becomes law or part
of the Constitution, when a majority of the votes cast on it are cast
in favor of the proposition. A proposition enacted by the General
Assembly as provided for in item (3) of subsection (E) becomes
law upon delivery to the Secretary of State. All propositions take
effect according to the terms of the proposition or upon
proclamation by the Governor, which shall take place within thirty
days after the votes have been canvassed. If provisions of two or
more propositions approved at the same election conflict, the
provisions of the proposition receiving the highest affirmative votes
prevail to the extent of the conflict.
(2) The veto power of the Governor does not extend to
initiative and referendum measures enacted by the people pursuant
to the provisions of this section. Initiative and referendum
measures must not be sent to the Governor for his signature and
become law without his signature.
(3) The style of all general laws enacted by the initiative is,
`Be It Enacted by the People of the State of South Carolina'. The
style of all constitutional amendments enacted by the initiative is,
`Be It Resolved by the People of the State of South Carolina that
the Constitution of South Carolina be Amended'.
(D)(1) An initiative and referendum is proposed by submitting an
application containing the full text of the proposed measure with a
one-time fee of fifty dollars. The State Election Commission may
periodically adjust this fee in an amount not to exceed increases in
the consumer price index as calculated by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, or its successor
agency. The application must be signed by five qualified electors
as sponsors and filed with the commission. The commission shall
send a copy of the proposed measure to the Attorney General, State
Budget Office, and the Legislative Council for review and
comment. Review and comment shall include suggestions about
compliance with the single subject rule, preventing conflicts with
existing law, language or drafting problems, and any other relevant
comments. No later than four weeks after submission of the
application, the State Election Commission shall present the official
comments to the sponsors and to the public. Neither the General
Assembly, nor its committees or agencies, has the power to require
amendment or modification of the proposed measure. After review
and comment, the sponsors may withdraw the application, or
modify and refile the application, or request that the State Election
Commission prepare the final petition form. Upon request by the
sponsors, the State Election Commission shall prepare the standard
petition form within seven days of notification, as provided by law,
and send the petition to the sponsors for signature collection.
(2) The Legislative Council shall formulate a concise ballot
title and official summary of the proposed measure for use in the
petition. The ballot title may not exceed ten words and the official
summary may not exceed seventy words. Both the title and
summary must be true and impartial statements of the purpose of
the proposed measure and shall not contain editorial comment likely
to create bias for or against the measure. The Attorney General
shall prepare a constitutional analysis of the proposed measure for
use in the petition. The constitutional analysis shall include an
opinion as to whether the proposed measure complies with the
single subject rule. The State Budget Office shall prepare a fiscal
analysis of the effect of the proposed measure on the state finances
for use in the petition. If the State Budget Office projects that the
proposed measure will require substantial expenditure of state funds
in excess of general administrative expenses, the fiscal analysis shall
include projected total increases or decreases in state revenues or
expenditures. If an initiative measure reduces state revenues, the
measure must provide specifically how the reduction in revenue will
be implemented. The State Budget Office shall provide an opinion
as to whether the proposed revenues will cover any expenditures
required by the terms of the initiative. The fiscal analysis and
constitutional analysis shall not exceed fifty words each. The
constitutional and fiscal analysis must be a fair and impartial
statement concerning the effect of the proposed measure.
(3) The petition must be signed by qualified electors in their
own name, and include street address, telephone number, voter
registration number (if available), county, and date of signature.
Each petition shall include an affidavit signed by a qualified elector
stating that, to the best knowledge and belief of the affiant, each
signature is a valid signature of the person whose name it purports
to be and that each person signing the petition is a registered voter.
Signatures on petitions with completed affidavits are presumed
valid. Except as provided for in item (2), subsection (E), signatures
over two years old at the date of filing are invalid. Signatures may
not be removed from petitions.
(E)(1) Initiative and referendum petitions may be filed with the
State Election Commission at any time. The commission shall
verify the signatures of the petition using a method provided by
law. Within thirty days of the filing of the petition, the commission
shall either certify the proposed measure as a ballot proposition or
deny certification. Upon certification, the commission shall submit
the proposition to the voters at the next general election or on a day
to be determined by the State Election Commission in an
odd-numbered year in November, whichever is sooner, unless the
General Assembly adopts a proposed general law as provided for in
item (3) of this subsection. Upon certification of the proposition
for ballot, the Attorney General shall defend the proposed law in
the courts on behalf of the people of South Carolina.
(2) The State Election Commission shall notify the sponsors
of the reasons for denying certification. If certification is denied
due to insufficient valid signatures, the commission shall grant the
sponsors a one-time thirty-day period to file supplemental petitions
needed to meet the signature requirements. Verified valid
signatures shall remain valid during any extension period. Denial
of certification for the ballot are subject to review by the courts.
(3) When a legislative session convenes more than thirty days
before a ballot proposition is voted on, the State Election
Commission shall send ballot propositions proposing general laws
to the General Assembly for consideration at that legislative session.
The Clerk of each House shall prefile the proposition in their
respective houses, if there is a prefiling procedure, and on the first
day of the session the proposition must be introduced by the
President Pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House.
The proposition must be presented in bill form and treated as any
other bill for a general law except as otherwise provided by this
amendment. The General Assembly may not amend or alter the
proposition. Upon enactment of the proposition by the General
Assembly, the act must be delivered to the Secretary of State within
ten days. `Enact' as used in this section means the bill has received
three readings in each body and is voted upon by each house of the
General Assembly, in its original form as proposed, before
adjournment. Ballot propositions submitted to special legislative
sessions may be enacted by majority vote. If the General Assembly
does not enact the proposition, the State Election Commission shall
put the proposition on the ballot at the next general election or on a
day to be determined by the State Election Commission in an
odd-numbered year in November, whichever is sooner. Legislative
enactment waives any defect in the signature or petition
requirements.
(F) Propositions must be numbered consecutively and put on the
ballot in the order of the petition certification with the State
Election Commission. No more than fifteen propositions may be
put on the ballot at each election. Any remaining propositions must
be put on the ballot at the next general election or on a day to be
determined by the State Election Commission in an odd-numbered
year in November, whichever is sooner. Propositions must be put
on the ballot in a nonpartisan manner and without any indication of
endorsement by any organization. Only the ballot title and the
official summary may be printed on the ballot. Each ballot
question must be worded so that a `yes' vote on the proposition is a
vote to enact the proposed law and a `no' vote would result in no
change to current law. Referendum ballot questions that seek only
to repeal a general law must be worded so that a `yes' vote is a
vote to repeal the law and a `no' vote would result in the law
remaining in effect.
(G)(1) Except as provided by this section, any constitutional or
technical processes which limit the General Assembly also shall
limit any measure proposed and enacted pursuant to this
amendment. Any initiative measure that requires expenditure of an
amount greater than two-tenths of one percent of the general fund
budget in the immediately preceding fiscal year, shall provide the
funding necessary to cover the cost required from the State.
(2) Initiative powers may not be used to enact laws relating
to the following:
(a) creating courts, prescribing court rules, or altering the
tenure, qualifications, compensation, or removal from office of
judges;
(b) naming or designating any person to hold a public
office.
(H) Any general law or constitutional amendment enacted by the
initiative power under this section may not be repealed or amended
except by a vote of the people, unless the measure provides
otherwise.
(I) The initiative and referendum provisions are self-executing
and mandatory. Legislation may be enacted to facilitate operation
of the measure enacted."
SECTION 2. The proposed amendment must be submitted to the
qualified electors at the next general election. Ballots must be
provided at the various voting precincts with the following words
printed or written on the ballot:
"Must Article XVII of the Constitution of this State be
amended by adding Section 15 so as to establish a specified
procedure for the enactment or repeal of laws and constitutional
amendments by initiative petition or referendum where qualified
electors must sign the petition for the proposed law or constitutional
amendment to be considered by the General Assembly, and if the
General Assembly does not act on the initiative, it is placed on the
ballot in a general election and takes effect if a majority of the
qualified electors vote in favor of it, and provide exceptions?
Yes []
No []
Those voting in favor of the question shall deposit a ballot with a
check or cross mark in the square after the word `Yes', and those
voting against the question shall deposit a ballot with a check or
cross mark in the square after the word `No'."
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