The following is an explanatory list of the issues on the Missouri ballot for Nov. 5 from the Missouri Secretary of State’s office, with further editor’s notes from The Heartlander.
No-excuse absentee voting, open for two weeks prior to Election Day, starts Tuesday. Absentee voting has been going on for a few weeks.
Editor’s note: Amendments 1 and 4 were voted on in August.
The following ballot measures have been certified for the November 5, 2024 general election.
Official Ballot Title
Amendment 2
[View Certificate of Sufficiency]
Proposed by Initiative Petition
Official Ballot Title:
Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
- allow the Missouri Gaming Commission to regulate licensed sports wagering including online sports betting, gambling boats, professional sports betting districts and mobile licenses to sports betting operators;
- restrict sports betting to individuals physically located in the state and over the age of 21;
- allow license fees prescribed by the Commission and a 10% wagering tax on revenues received to be appropriated for education after expenses incurred by the Commission and required funding of the Compulsive Gambling Prevention Fund; and
- allow for the general assembly to enact laws consistent with this amendment?
State governmental entities estimate onetime costs of $660,000, ongoing annual costs of at least $5.2 million, and initial license fee revenue of $11.75 million. Because the proposal allows for deductions against sports gaming revenues, they estimate unknown tax revenue ranging from $0 to $28.9 million annually. Local governments estimate unknown revenue.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to permit licensed sports wagering regulated by the Missouri Gaming Commission and restrict sports betting to individuals physically located in the state and over the age of 21. The amendment includes a 10% wagering tax on revenues received to be appropriated for educational institutions in Missouri.
A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution regarding licensed regulated sports wagering.
If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.
Official Ballot Title
Amendment 3
[View Certificate of Sufficiency]
Proposed by Initiative Petition
Official Ballot Title:
Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
- establish a right to make decisions about reproductive health care, including abortion and contraceptives, with any governmental interference of that right presumed invalid;
- remove Missouri’s ban on abortion;
- allow regulation of reproductive health care to improve or maintain the health of the patient;
- require the government not to discriminate, in government programs, funding, and other activities, against persons providing or obtaining reproductive health care; and
- allow abortion to be restricted or banned after Fetal Viability except to protect the life or health of the woman?
State governmental entities estimate no costs or savings, but unknown impact. Local governmental entities estimate costs of at least $51,000 annually in reduced tax revenues. Opponents estimate a potentially significant loss to state revenue.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote establishes a constitutional right to make decisions about reproductive health care, including abortion and contraceptives, with any governmental interference of that right presumed invalid; removes Missouri’s ban on abortion; allows regulation of reproductive health care to improve or maintain the health of the patient; requires the government not to discriminate, in government programs, funding, and other activities, against persons providing or obtaining reproductive health care; and allows abortion to be restricted or banned after Fetal Viability except to protect the life or health of the woman.
A “no” vote will continue the statutory prohibition of abortion in Missouri.
If passed, this measure may reduce local taxes while the impact to state taxes is unknown.
Editor’s note:
Many are concerned the amendment as written would actually eliminate the right to sue abortion providers for malpractice – a privilege no other health-care providers receive.
Indeed, the amendment says “Nor shall any person assisting a person in exercising their right to reproductive freedom with that person’s consent be penalized, prosecuted, or otherwise subjected to adverse action for doing so.”
James S. Cole, general counsel for Missouri Right to Life, notes that attorneys speaking to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch say the language is ambiguous.
“Their statements reflect that the language is indeed susceptible to the meaning that abortionists will be immunized if the proposed amendment is adopted,” Cole concludes.
Another concern about Amendment 3 is vague language that may open the door to transgender treatments and surgeries on minors, which are currently illegal. Amendment 3 says, “The Government shall not deny or infringe upon a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom, which is the right to make and carry out decisions about all matters relating to reproductive health care.”
Because “reproductive health care” is not well defined in the amendment, many are concerned the courts could declare that reproductive health care includes sex changes for minors.
Official Ballot Title
Amendment 5
[View Certificate of Sufficiency]
Proposed by Initiative Petition
Official Ballot Title:
Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
- allow the Missouri Gaming Commission to issue one additional gambling boat license to operate on the portion of the Osage River from the Missouri River to the Bagnell Dam;
- require the prescribed location shall include artificial spaces that contain water and are within 500 feet of the 100-year base flood elevation as established by the Federal Emergency Management Agency; and
- require all state revenues derived from the issuance of the gambling boat license shall be appropriated to early-childhood literacy programs in public institutions of elementary education?
State governmental entities estimate one-time costs of $763,000, ongoing costs of $2.2 million annually, initial fee revenue of $271,000, ongoing admission and other fee revenue of $2.1 million annually, and annual gaming tax revenue of $14.3 million. Local governments estimate unknown revenue.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to allow the Missouri Gaming Commission to issue an additional gambling boat license to operate an excursion gambling boat on the Osage River, between the Missouri River and the Bagnell Dam. All state revenue derived from the issuance of the gambling boat license shall be appropriated to early-childhood literacy programs in public institutions of elementary education.
A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution regarding gambling boat licensure.
If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.
Official Ballot Title
Amendment 6
[Proposed by 102nd General Assembly (Second Regular Session) SS SCS SJR 71]
[View Certificate of Official Ballot Title]
Official Ballot Title:
Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to provide that the administration of justice shall include the levying of costs and fees to support salaries and benefits for certain current and former law enforcement personnel?
State and local governmental entities estimate an unknown fiscal impact.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to levy costs and fees to support salaries and benefits for current and former sheriffs, prosecuting attorneys, and circuit attorneys to ensure all Missourians have access to the courts of justice.
A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to levy costs and fees related to current or former sheriffs, prosecuting attorneys and circuit attorneys.
If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.
Official Ballot Title
Amendment 7
[Proposed by 102nd General Assembly (Second Regular Session) SS SJR 78]
[View Certificate of Official Ballot Title]
Official Ballot Title:
Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:
- Make the Constitution consistent with state law by only allowing citizens of the United States to vote;
- Prohibit the ranking of candidates by limiting voters to a single vote per candidate or issue; and
- Require the plurality winner of a political party primary to be the single candidate at a general election?
State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to specify that only United States citizens are entitled to vote, voters shall only have a single vote for each candidate or issue, restrict any type of ranking of candidates for a particular office and require the person receiving the greatest number of votes at the primary election as a party candidate for an office shall be the only candidate for that party at the general election, and require the person receiving the greatest number of votes for each office at the general election shall be declared the winner. This provision does not apply to any nonpartisan municipal election held in a city that had an ordinance in effect as of November 5, 2024, that requires a preliminary election at which more than one candidate advances to a subsequent election.
A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to make any changes to how voters vote in primary and general elections.
If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.
Editor’s note:
Noncitizens are indeed voting in municipal elections in three states and Washington, D.C., while the matter is being litigated in New York courts..
The Missouri constitution says “all citizens” can vote, but courts have interpreted that to mean noncitizens also can vote. Missouri is one of eight states voting on this provision this year.
A “Yes” vote on the amendment would ban so-called “ranked-choice voting,” which conservative nonprofit Liberty Alliance USA calls a “Left-wing election rigging scheme” that is “confusing, costly” and “makes recounts impossible.”
In ranked-choice voting, voters vote for multiple candidates in order of preference, and the results are a complex system of tallying up voters’ preferences. Nonprofit StopRCV calls it a “‘jungle primary,’ where voters aligned with political parties do not get to choose their own party’s nominee.”
Official Ballot Title
Proposition A
[View Certificate of Sufficiency]
Proposed by Initiative Petition
Official Ballot Title:
Do you want to amend Missouri law to:
- increase minimum wage January 1, 2025 to $13.75 per hour, increasing $1.25 per hour each year until 2026, when the minimum wage would be $15.00 per hour;
- adjust minimum wage based on changes in the Consumer Price Index each January beginning in 2027;
- require all employers to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every thirty hours worked;
- allow the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations to provide oversight and enforcement; and
- exempt governmental entities, political subdivisions, school districts and education institutions?
State governmental entities estimate one-time costs ranging from $0 to $53,000, and ongoing costs ranging from $0 to at least $256,000 per year by 2027. State and local government tax revenue could change by an unknown annual amount depending on business decisions.
Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend Missouri statutes to increase the state minimum wage beginning January 1, 2025 to $13.75 per hour and increase the hourly rate $1.25, to $15.00 per hour beginning January 2026. Annually the minimum wage will be adjusted based on the Consumer Price Index. The law will require employers with fifteen or more employees to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every thirty hours worked. The amendment will exempt governmental entities, political subdivisions, school districts and education institutions from the minimum wage increase.
A “no” vote will not amend Missouri law to make changes to the state minimum wage law.
If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.
Editor’s note:
The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry opposes Proposition A, saying it “would increase the cost of doing business and increase liability for our state’s employers.”
