At least three bills have been introduced in Missouri to make it more difficult for initiatives to get on the ballot.
HJR 63 increases the number of signatures. Existing law requires constitutional changes to obtain signatures of 5% of the last gubernatorial vote, in each of six U.S. House districts. The bill would increase that to 10%. For Constitutional amendments, existing law now requires 8% of the last gubernatorial vote; the bill makes it 15%. Even if this bill passes, it can’t take effect unless the voters approve it, since it is a proposed state constitutional amendment.

SB 796 is Senator Joan Bray’s new attempt to outlaw paying initiative circulators on a per-signature basis.

HB 1441, by Representative J. C. Kuessner, is a strange bill that says, “Every in-state entity that is not a natural person that wishes to circulate any petition for any initiative or referendum shall register with the secretary of state. No such in-state entity that has not been registered with the secretary of state under this section for at least one year shall circulate any petition for any initiative or referendum. No out-of-state entity shall circulate any petition for any initiative or referendum.” Presumably this bill relates to organizations that sponsor initiative or referendum petitions. The bill’s wording is strange, because organizations don’t circulate petitions, individual people circulate petitions.