FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Contact: Communications Department, (573) 526-0949

Four initiative petitions approved for circulation for 2014 ballot

Jefferson City, MO — Secretary of State Robin Carnahan today announced that four initiative petitions relating to eminent domain met state standards for circulation.

The official ballot title for the first two petitions relating to eminent domain, which would be a Constitutional Amendment to Article I, reads:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to restrict the use of eminent domain by:

• Allowing only government entities to use eminent domain;
• Prohibiting its use for private purposes, with certain exceptions for utilities;
• Requiring that any taking of property be necessary for a public use while continuing to provide just compensation;
• Requiring that the intended public use be declared at the time of the taking;
• Permitting the original owners to repurchase the property if it is not so used within five years or if the property is offered to a private entity within twenty years?

The total cost or savings to state or local governmental entities is unknown. The estimated costs, if any, to state and local governmental entities could be significant.

The official ballot title for the second two petitions relating to eminent domain, which would be a Constitutional Amendment to Article VI, reads:

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to change the power of the General Assembly and constitutionally chartered cities or counties to:

• Prohibit the use of eminent domain to acquire and resell property found to be blighted, substandard or unsanitary for the purpose of clearance, redevelopment or rehabilitation; and
• Allow them to require owners of property found to be a public nuisance to abate or clean up the nuisance and, if the property owner fails to do so in a reasonable time, allow the local government to pay for the abatement and impose a lien to recover the cost?

The total cost or savings to state or local governmental entities is unknown. Most state governmental entities estimate the proposal results in no fiscal impact; however, some state entities reported potential unknown fiscal impact or costs. The estimated costs, if any, to local governmental entities could be significant.

All four petitions relating to eminent domain were submitted by Mr. Ron Calzone, Missouri Citizens for Property Rights, 33867 Highway E, Dixon, MO 65459, (573) 759-3585.

Before any constitutional changes can be brought before Missouri voters in the November 2014 election, signatures must be obtained from registered voters equal to eight (8) percent of the total votes cast in the 2012 governor's election from six of the state's eight congressional districts.

Signatures on behalf of all initiative petitions for the 2014 ballot are due to the secretary of state’s office by no later than 5 p.m. on May 4, 2014.

Before circulating petitions, state law requires that groups must first have the form of their petition approved by the secretary of state and attorney general. The secretary of state then prepares a summary statement of no more than 100 words and the state auditor prepares a fiscal impact statement, both of which are subject to the approval of the attorney general. When both statements are approved, they become the official ballot title.

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To find out more about Missouri's secretary of state's office, visit www.sos.mo.gov.

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