Georgia Senate - 1995/1996 Sessions

SR 236 - Initiative Petition - power of people to propose laws

Page Numbers - 1/ 2/ 3/ 4

1. Farrow  54th           2. McGuire  30th           3. Thompson  33rd
4. Isakson  21st          5. Hill  4th


Senate Comm: Judy       /         House Comm:            /                                          
Senate Vote: Yeas       Nays                                                                        
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              Senate          Action          House                                                 
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             2/20/95   Read 1st time                                                                
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Code Sections amended:                                                                              


SR 23695                                          LC 21 3335

      SENATE RESOLUTION 236

      By:  Senators Farrow of the 54th, McGuire of the 30th,
           Thompson of the 33rd, Isakson of the 21st and
           Hill of the 4th
                             A RESOLUTION

  1- 1  Proposing an amendment to the Constitution so as to reserve
  1- 2  to the people of the state the power to propose laws and to
  1- 3  enact or reject the same; to provide procedures and
  1- 4  restrictions connected therewith; to provide for the
  1- 5  submission of this amendment for ratification or rejection;
  1- 6  and for other purposes.

  1- 7       BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

                         SECTION 1.

  1- 8  Article III of the Constitution is amended by adding at the
  1- 9  end thereof a new Section XI to read as follows:

                        "SECTION XI
  1-10                       PUBLIC INITIATIVE

  1-11      Paragraph I.  Power vested in the people. (a) The
  1-12    legislative power of the state shall be vested in the
  1-13    General Assembly which shall consist of a Senate and House
  1-14    of Representatives, both to be elected by the people, but
  1-15    the people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws
  1-16    and to enact or reject the same at the polls independent
  1-17    of the General Assembly and also reserve power at their
  1-18    own option to approve or reject at the polls any Act or
  1-19    item, section, or part of any Act of the General Assembly.

  1-20      (b) The first power hereby reserved by the people is the
  1-21    initiative, by which laws are proposed and voted upon by
  1-22    the people. Initiative petitions in the nature of general
  1-23    Acts, in such form as may be prescribed pursuant to law,
  1-24    shall be filed with the Secretary of State not later than
  1-25    three months prior to the general election at which they
  1-26    are to be voted on.  The General Assembly may, at the
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  1-28    initiative petition is approved, repeal the law by
  1-29    enacting legislation introduced for that purpose in either
  1-30    house of the General Assembly.  If the General Assembly
  1-31    does not repeal the law or fails to act on the law, it
  1-32    shall become effective on July 1 of the year immediately
  1-33    following the election at which it was passed by the


                             S. R. 236
                                 -1- (Index)

                                                  LC 21 3335

  2- 1    people.  Thereafter, the law shall have the same dignity
  2- 2    as and shall be treated as any general law.

  2- 3      (c) The second power hereby reserved is the referendum,
  2- 4    and it may be ordered against any general Act or any item,
  2- 5    section, or part of any general Act of the General
  2- 6    Assembly.  Referendum petitions, in such form as may be
  2- 7    prescribed pursuant to law, shall be addressed to and
  2- 8    filed with the Secretary of State not more than 270 days
  2- 9    after the final adjournment of the session of the General
  2-10    Assembly that passed the bill on which the referendum is
  2-11    demanded.  The filing of a referendum petition against any
  2-12    item, section, or part of any general Act shall not delay
  2-13    the general Act from becoming operative.

  2-14      (d) Statutory initiatives must be signed by at least 5
  2-15    percent of the total number of votes cast for all
  2-16    candidates for the office of Secretary of State at the
  2-17    previous general election in at least seven of the United
  2-18    States congressional districts in the state in order to be
  2-19    placed on the ballot.

  2-20      (e) The veto power of the Governor shall not extend to
  2-21    measures initiated by or referred to the people.  All
  2-22    elections on measures initiated by or referred to the
  2-23    people of the state shall be held at the biennial regular
  2-24    general election. This section shall not be construed to
  2-25    deprive the General Assembly of the power to enact any
  2-26    measure.

  2-27      (f) The original draft of the text of proposed initiated
  2-28    laws shall be submitted to the Office of Legislative
  2-29    Counsel of the General Assembly for review and comment.
  2-30    No later than two weeks after submission of the original
  2-31    draft, unless withdrawn by proponents, the Office of
  2-32    Legislative Counsel shall render its comments to the
  2-33    proponents of the proposed measure at a meeting open to
  2-34    the public which shall be held only after full and timely
  2-35    notice to the public.  Such meeting shall be held prior to
  2-36    the fixing of a ballot title.  Neither the General
  2-37    Assembly nor its committees or agencies shall have any
  2-38    power to require the amendment, modification, or other
  2-39    alteration  of the text of any such proposed measure or to
  2-40    establish deadlines for the submission of the original
  2-41    draft of the text of any proposed measure.

  2-42      (g) The petition shall consist of sheets having such
  2-43    general form printed or written at the top thereof as


                             S. R. 236
                                 -2- (Index)

                                                  LC 21 3335

  3- 1    shall be designated or prescribed by the Secretary of
  3- 2    State; such petition shall be signed by registered
  3- 3    electors in person only and shall have attached the
  3- 4    residence address of such persons and the date of signing.
  3- 5    To each of such petitions, which may consist of one or
  3- 6    more sheets, shall be attached an affidavit of some
  3- 7    registered elector that each signature thereon is the
  3- 8    signature of the person whose name it purports to be and
  3- 9    that, to the best of the knowledge and belief of the
  3-10    affiant, each of the persons signing said petition was, at
  3-11    the time of signing, a registered elector.  Such petitions
  3-12    shall be verified by the Secretary of State's office as
  3-13    prescribed pursuant to law as to the signatures thereon
  3-14    being genuine and true and that the persons signing the
  3-15    same are registered electors.

  3-16      (h) The Secretary of State shall submit all measures
  3-17    initiated by or referred to the people for adoption or
  3-18    rejection at the polls in compliance with this Paragraph.
  3-19    The text of all measures to be submitted shall be
  3-20    published as constitutional amendments are published; and,
  3-21    in submitting the same and in all matters pertaining to
  3-22    the form of all petitions, the Secretary of State and all
  3-23    other officers shall be guided by general law.

  3-24      (i) It shall be a misdemeanor to pay in money or other
  3-25    valuable considerations for the signing of petitions or
  3-26    ballots and each such payment to a voter shall constitute
  3-27    a separate offense, but it shall not be illegal to pay for
  3-28    the work of collecting initiative signatures."

                         SECTION 2.

  3-29  The above proposed amendment to the Constitution shall be
  3-30  published and submitted as provided in Article X, Section I,
  3-31  Paragraph II of the Constitution.

  3-32  The ballot submitting the above proposed amendment shall
  3-33  have written or printed thereon the following:

  3-34    "(  ) YES Shall the Constitution be amended so as to
  3-35              provide that the people of this state may
  3-36     (  ) NO  propose laws and vote on such laws as well as
  3-37              laws enacted by the General Assembly in
  3-38              state-wide referenda?"

  3-39  All persons desiring to vote in favor of ratifying the
  3-40  proposed amendment shall vote "Yes."  All persons desiring



                             S. R. 236
                                 -3- (Index)

                                                  LC 21 3335

  4- 1  to vote against ratifying the proposed amendment shall vote
  4- 2  "No."

  4- 3  If such amendment shall be ratified as provided in said
  4- 4  Paragraph of the Constitution, it shall become a part of the
  4- 5  Constitution of this state.










































                             S. R. 236
                                 -4- (Index)