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EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
and is intended to be omitted in the law.
SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 78
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR MOSLEY .
3812S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
JOINT RESOLUTION
Submitting to the qualified voters of Missouri, an amendment repealing sections 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 16,
18, 20, 20(a), 20(b), 31, and 32 of article III of the Constitution of Missouri, and
adopting eleven new sections in lieu thereof relating to the general assembly.
Be it resolved by the Senate, the House of Representatives concurring therein:
That at the next general election to be held in the 1
state of Missouri, on Tuesday next following the first Monday 2
in November, 2026, or at a special election to be called by 3
the governor for that purpose, there is hereby submitted to 4
the qualified voters of this state, for adoption or 5
rejection, the following amendment to article III of the 6
Constitution of the state of Missouri:7
Section A. Sections 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 16, 18, 20, 20(a), 1
20(b), 31, and 32, article III, Constitution of Missouri, are 2
repealed and eleven new sections adopted in lieu thereof, to be 3
known as sections 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 16, 18, 20, 20(a), 31, and 32, 4
to read as follows:5
Section 3. (a) The house of representatives shall 1
consist of [one hundred sixty-three] members elected at each 2
general election and redistricted as provided in this 3
section. 4
(b) The [house] general assembly independent 5
bipartisan citizens commission shall redistrict each house 6
of the [house of representatives] general assembly using the 7
following methods, listed in order of priority: 8
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(1) Districts shall be as nearly equal as practicable 9
in population, and shall be drawn on the basis of one 10
person, one vote. Districts are as nearly equal as 11
practicable in population if no district deviates by more 12
than one percent from the ideal population of the district, 13
as measured by dividing the number of districts into the 14
statewide population data being used, except that a district 15
may deviate by up to three percent if necessary to follow 16
political subdivision lines consistent with subdivision (4) 17
of this subsection; 18
(2) Districts shall be established in a manner so as 19
to comply with all requirements of the United States 20
Constitution and applicable federal laws, including, but not 21
limited to, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (as amended). The 22
following principles shall take precedence over any other 23
part of this constitution: no district shall be drawn in a 24
manner which results in a denial or abridgment of the right 25
of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of 26
race or color; and no district shall be drawn such that 27
members of any community of citizens protected by the 28
preceding clause have less opportunity than other members of 29
the electorate to participate in the political process and 30
to elect representatives of their choice; 31
(3) Subject to the requirements of subdivisions (1) 32
and (2) of this subsection, districts shall be composed of 33
contiguous territory as compact as may be. Areas which meet 34
only at the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous. 35
In general, compact districts are those which are square, 36
rectangular, or hexagonal in shape to the extent permitted 37
by natural or political boundaries; 38
(4) To the extent consistent with subdivisions (1) to 39
(3) of this subsection, communities shall be preserved. 40
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Districts shall satisfy this requirement if district lines 41
follow political subdivision lines to the extent possible, 42
using the following criteria, in order of priority. First, 43
each county shall wholly contain as many districts as its 44
population allows. Second, if a county wholly contains one 45
or more districts, the remaining population shall be wholly 46
joined in a single district made up of population from 47
outside the county. If a county does not wholly contain a 48
district, then no more than two segments of a county shall 49
be combined with an adjoining county. Third, split counties 50
and county segments, defined as any part of the county that 51
is in a district not wholly within that county, shall each 52
be as few as possible. Fourth, as few municipal lines shall 53
be crossed as possible. Fifth, no house of representatives 54
district shall cross a senate district line or be in more 55
than one senate district; 56
(5) Districts shall be drawn in a manner that achieves 57
both partisan fairness and, secondarily, competitiveness, 58
but the standards established by subdivisions (1) to (4) of 59
this subsection shall take precedence over partisan fairness 60
and competitiveness. "Partisan fairness" means that parties 61
shall be able to translate their popular support into 62
legislative representation with approximately equal 63
efficiency. "Competitiveness" means that parties' 64
legislative representation shall be substantially and 65
similarly responsive to shifts in the electorate's 66
preferences. 67
To this end, the average electoral performance of the 68
two political parties receiving the most votes in the three 69
preceding general elections for governor, for United States 70
Senate, and for President of the United States shall be 71
calculated. This index shall be defined as the total votes 72
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received by each party in the three preceding general 73
elections for governor, for United States Senate, and for 74
President of the United States, divided by the total votes 75
cast for both parties in these elections. Using this index, 76
the total number of wasted votes for each party, summing 77
across all of the districts in the plan shall be 78
calculated. "Wasted votes" are votes cast for a losing 79
candidate or for a winning candidate in excess of the 80
threshold needed for victory. In any redistricting plan and 81
map of the proposed districts, the difference between the 82
two parties' total wasted votes, divided by the total votes 83
cast for the two parties, shall not exceed fifteen percent. 84
To promote competitiveness, the electoral performance 85
index shall be used to simulate elections in which the 86
hypothetical statewide vote shifts by one percent, two 87
percent, three percent, four percent, and five percent in 88
favor of each party. The vote in each individual district 89
shall be assumed to shift by the same amount as the 90
statewide vote. In each of these simulated elections, the 91
difference between the two parties' total wasted votes, 92
divided by the total votes cast for the two parties, shall 93
not exceed fifteen percent. 94
(c) Within sixty days after the adoption of this 95
section and within sixty days after the population of this 96
state is reported to the President for each decennial census 97
of the United States or, in the event that a redistricting 98
plan has been invalidated by a court of competent 99
jurisdiction, within sixty days that such a ruling has been 100
made, the state committee and the congressional district 101
committees of each of the two political parties casting the 102
highest vote for governor at the last preceding general 103
election shall meet and the members of each committee shall 104
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nominate, by a majority vote of the elected members of the 105
committee present, provided that a majority of the elected 106
members is present, members of their party, residents in 107
that district, in the case of a congressional district 108
committee, as nominees for the [house] general assembly 109
independent bipartisan citizens commission. Each member of 110
the committee shall be entitled to only one vote 111
notwithstanding the number of offices or titles that the 112
member may have or the manner in which the member became a 113
member of the committee. No party shall select more than 114
one nominee from any one state legislative district. The 115
congressional district committees shall each submit to the 116
governor their list of two elected nominees. The state 117
committees shall each submit to the governor their list of 118
five elected nominees. Within thirty days thereafter, the 119
governor shall appoint a [house] general assembly 120
independent bipartisan citizens commission consisting of one 121
nominee from each list submitted by each congressional 122
district committee and two nominees from each list submitted 123
by each state committee to redistrict [the state into one 124
hundred and sixty-three representative districts] each house 125
of the general assembly and to establish the numbers and 126
boundaries of said districts. [No person shall be appointed 127
to both the house independent bipartisan citizens commission 128
and the senate independent bipartisan citizens commission 129
during the same redistricting cycle.] 130
If any committee fails to submit a list within such 131
time, the governor shall appoint a member of his or her own 132
choice from the political party of the committee failing to 133
submit a list, provided that in the case of a congressional 134
district committee failing to submit a list, the person 135
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appointed to the commission by the governor shall reside in 136
the congressional district of such committee. 137
Members of the commission shall be disqualified from 138
holding office as members of the general assembly for four 139
years following the date of the filing by the commission of 140
its final redistricting plan. 141
For the purposes of this Article, the term 142
congressional district committee or congressional district 143
refers to the congressional district committee or the 144
congressional district from which a congressman was last 145
elected, or, in the event members of congress from this 146
state have been elected at large, the term congressional 147
district committee refers to those persons who last served 148
as the congressional district committee for those districts 149
from which congressmen were last elected, and the term 150
congressional district refers to those districts from which 151
congressmen were last elected. Any action pursuant to this 152
section by the congressional district committee shall take 153
place only at duly called meetings, shall be recorded in 154
their official minutes and only members present in person 155
shall be permitted to vote. 156
(d) The commissioners so selected shall, on the 157
fifteenth day, excluding Sundays and state holidays, after 158
all members have been appointed, meet in the capitol 159
building and proceed to organize by electing from their 160
number a chairman, vice chairman and secretary. The 161
commission shall adopt an agenda establishing at least three 162
hearing dates on which hearings open to the public shall be 163
held to hear objections or testimony from interested 164
persons. A copy of the agenda shall be filed with the clerk 165
of the house of representatives and the secretary of senate 166
within twenty-four hours after its adoption. Executive 167
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meetings may be scheduled and held as often as the 168
commission deems advisable. 169
(e) Not later than five months after the appointment 170
of the commission, the commission shall file with the 171
secretary of state a tentative redistricting plan and map of 172
the proposed districts and during the ensuing fifteen days 173
shall hold such public hearings as may be necessary to hear 174
objections or testimony of interested persons. The 175
commission shall make public the tentative redistricting 176
plan and map of the proposed districts, as well as all 177
demographic and partisan data used in the creation of the 178
plan and map. 179
(f) Not later than six months after the appointment of 180
the commission, the commission shall file with the secretary 181
of state a final statement of the numbers and the boundaries 182
of the districts together with a map of the districts, and 183
no statement shall be valid unless approved by at least 184
seven-tenths of the members. 185
(g) After the final statement is filed, members of 186
[the house of representatives] each house of the general 187
assembly shall be elected according to such districts until 188
a new redistricting plan is made as provided in this 189
section[, except that if the final statement is not filed 190
within six months of the time fixed for the appointment of 191
the commission, the commission shall stand discharged and 192
the house of representatives shall be redistricted using the 193
same methods and criteria as described in subsection (b) of 194
this section by a commission of six members appointed from 195
among the judges of the appellate courts of the state of 196
Missouri by the state supreme court, a majority of whom 197
shall sign and file its redistricting plan and map with the 198
secretary of state within ninety days of the date of the 199
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discharge of the house independent bipartisan citizens 200
commission. The judicial commission shall make public the 201
tentative redistricting plan and map of the proposed 202
districts, as well as all demographic and partisan data used 203
in the creation of the plan and map. Thereafter, members of 204
the house of representatives shall be elected according to 205
such districts until a redistricting plan is made as 206
provided in this section]. 207
(h) Each member of the commission shall receive as 208
compensation fifteen dollars a day for each day the 209
commission is in session but not more than one thousand 210
dollars, or such compensation as is otherwise provided by 211
law, and, in addition, shall be reimbursed for his or her 212
actual and necessary expenses incurred while serving as a 213
member of the commission. 214
[(i) No redistricting plan shall be subject to the 215
referendum. 216
(j) Any action expressly or implicitly alleging that a 217
redistricting plan violates this Constitution, federal law, 218
or the United States Constitution shall be filed in the 219
circuit court of Cole County and shall name the body that 220
approved the challenged redistricting plan as a defendant. 221
Only an eligible Missouri voter who sustains an individual 222
injury by virtue of residing in a district that exhibits the 223
alleged violation, and whose injury is remedied by a 224
differently drawn district, shall have standing. If the 225
court renders a judgment in which it finds that a completed 226
redistricting plan exhibits the alleged violation, its 227
judgment shall adjust only those districts, and only those 228
parts of district boundaries, necessary to bring the map 229
into compliance. The supreme court shall have exclusive 230
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appellate jurisdiction upon the filing of a notice of appeal 231
within ten days after the judgment has become final.] 232
Section 5. The senate shall consist of thirty-four 1
members elected by the qualified voters of the senatorial 2
districts for a term of four years. Senatorial districts 3
shall be [apportioned] redistricted as provided for in 4
Article III, Section [7] 3. 5
Section 7. (a) [Within sixty days after the 1
population of this state is reported to the President for 2
each decennial census of the United States, or within sixty 3
days after a redistricting plan has been invalidated by a 4
court of competent jurisdiction, the state committee and the 5
congressional district committees of each of the two 6
political parties casting the highest vote for governor at 7
the last preceding general election shall meet and the 8
members of each committee shall nominate, by a majority vote 9
of the elected members of the committee present, provided 10
that a majority of the elected members is present, members 11
of their party, residents in that district, in the case of a 12
congressional district committee, as nominees for the senate 13
independent bipartisan citizens commission. No party shall 14
select more than one nominee from any one state legislative 15
district. The congressional district committees shall each 16
submit to the governor their list of two elected nominees. 17
The state committees shall each submit to the governor their 18
list of five elected nominees. Within thirty days 19
thereafter the governor shall appoint a senate independent 20
bipartisan citizens commission consisting of two nominees 21
from each list submitted by each state committee and one 22
nominee from each list submitted by each congressional 23
district committee, to redistrict the thirty-four senatorial 24
districts and to establish the numbers and boundaries of 25
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said districts. No person shall be appointed to both the 26
house independent bipartisan citizens commission and the 27
senate independent bipartisan citizens commission during the 28
same redistricting cycle. 29
If any committee fails to submit a list within such 30
time, the governor shall appoint a member of his or her own 31
choice from the political party of the committee failing to 32
submit a list, provided that in the case of a congressional 33
district committee failing to submit a list, the person 34
appointed to the commission by the governor shall reside in 35
the congressional district of such committee. 36
Members of the commission shall be disqualified from 37
holding office as members of the general assembly for four 38
years following the date of the filing by the commission of 39
its final redistricting plan. 40
(b) The commissioners so selected shall, on the 41
fifteenth day, excluding Sundays and state holidays, after 42
all members have been appointed, meet in the capitol 43
building and proceed to organize by electing from their 44
number a chairman, vice chairman and secretary. The 45
commission shall adopt an agenda establishing at least three 46
hearing dates on which hearings open to the public shall be 47
held to hear objections or testimony from interested 48
persons. A copy of the agenda shall be filed with the 49
secretary of the senate within twenty-four hours after its 50
adoption. Executive meetings may be scheduled and held as 51
often as the commission deems advisable. 52
(c) The senate independent bipartisan citizens 53
commission shall redistrict the senate using the same 54
methods and criteria as those required by subsection (b), 55
section 3 of this Article for the redistricting of the house 56
of representatives. 57
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(d) Not later than five months after the appointment 58
of the senate independent bipartisan citizens commission, 59
the commission shall file with the secretary of state a 60
tentative redistricting plan and map of the proposed 61
districts and during the ensuing fifteen days shall hold 62
such public hearings as may be necessary to hear objections 63
or testimony of interested persons. The commission shall 64
make public the tentative redistricting plan and map of the 65
proposed districts, as well as all demographic and partisan 66
data used in the creation of the plan and map. 67
(e) Not later than six months after the appointment of 68
the commission, the commission shall file with the secretary 69
of state a final statement of the numbers and the boundaries 70
of the districts together with a map of the districts, and 71
no statement shall be valid unless approved by at least 72
seven-tenths of the members. 73
(f) After the final statement is filed, senators shall 74
be elected according to such districts until a new 75
redistricting plan is made as provided in this section, 76
except that if the final statement is not filed within six 77
months of the time fixed for the appointment of the 78
commission, the commission shall stand discharged and the 79
senate shall be redistricted using the same methods and 80
criteria as described in subsection (b) of section 3 of this 81
Article by a commission of six members appointed from among 82
the judges of the appellate courts of the state of Missouri 83
by the state supreme court, a majority of whom shall sign 84
and file its redistricting plan and map with the secretary 85
of state within ninety days of the date of the discharge of 86
the senate independent bipartisan citizens commission. The 87
judicial commission shall make public the tentative 88
redistricting plan and map of the proposed districts, as 89
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well as all demographic and partisan data used in the 90
creation of the plan and map. Thereafter, senators shall be 91
elected according to such districts until a redistricting 92
plan is made as provided in this section. 93
(g) Each member of the commission shall receive as 94
compensation fifteen dollars a day for each day the 95
commission is in session, but not more than one thousand 96
dollars, and, in addition, shall be reimbursed for his or 97
her actual and necessary expenses incurred while serving as 98
a member of the commission] If the general assembly 99
independent bipartisan citizens commission final statement 100
is not filed within six months of the time fixed for the 101
appointment of the commission, the commission shall stand 102
discharged and the general assembly shall be redistricted 103
using the same methods and criteria as described in 104
subsection (b) of section 3 of Article III, by a commission 105
of six members appointed equally from among the judges of 106
each of the districts of the appellate courts of the state 107
of Missouri by the presiding judge of the state supreme 108
court, a majority of whom shall sign and file its tentative 109
redistricting plan and map with the secretary of state 110
within thirty days of the date of the discharge of the 111
general assembly independent bipartisan citizens commission 112
to which the public may submit objections or comments. 113
Within sixty days of the date of discharge of the general 114
assembly independent bipartisan citizens commission, the 115
judicial commission shall submit to the secretary of state 116
and make public the final redistricting plan and map of the 117
proposed districts, as well as all demographic and partisan 118
data used in the creation of the plan and map. Thereafter, 119
members of each house of the general assembly shall be 120
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elected according to such districts until a redistricting 121
plan is made as provided in Article III, Section 3. 122
[(h)] (b) No redistricting plan shall be subject to 123
the referendum. 124
[(i)] (c) Any action expressly or implicitly alleging 125
that a redistricting plan violates this Constitution, 126
federal law, or the United States Constitution shall be 127
filed in the circuit court of Cole County and shall name the 128
body that approved the challenged redistricting plan as a 129
defendant. Only an eligible Missouri voter who sustains an 130
individual injury by virtue of residing in a district that 131
exhibits the alleged violation, and whose injury is remedied 132
by a differently drawn district, shall have standing. If 133
the court renders a judgment in which it finds that a 134
completed redistricting plan exhibits the alleged violation, 135
its judgment shall adjust only those districts, and only 136
those parts of district boundaries, necessary to bring the 137
map into compliance. The supreme court shall have exclusive 138
appellate jurisdiction upon the filing of a notice of appeal 139
within ten days after the judgment has become final. 140
Section 8. (a) No one shall be elected to serve [more 1
than] as a member of: 2
(1) The house of representatives for two years after 3
serving eight consecutive years in such house; 4
(2) The senate for four years after serving eight 5
consecutive years [total] in [any one] such house [of the 6
General Assembly nor more than]; or 7
(3) Either house of the general assembly for four 8
years after serving sixteen consecutive years [total] in 9
both houses of the General Assembly. 10
(b) In applying this section, service in the General 11
Assembly [resulting from an election prior to December 3, 12
SJR 78 14
1992, or service] of less than one year, in the case of a 13
member of the house of representatives, or two years, in the 14
case of a member of the senate, by a person elected after 15
the effective date of this section to complete the term of 16
another person, shall not be counted. 17
Section 9. Until the convening of the [seventy-fourth] 1
one hundred seventh General Assembly the House of 2
Representatives shall consist of one hundred sixty-three 3
members elected from [the] one hundred sixty-three 4
representative districts[, as they existed January 1, 5
1965]. Beginning with the one hundred seventh general 6
assembly, the house of representatives shall consist of one 7
hundred seventy members elected from one hundred seventy 8
districts by the qualified voters of such districts for a 9
term of two years. Representative districts shall be 10
redistricted as provided for in Section 3 of this Article. 11
Section 16. [Senators and representatives shall 1
receive from the state treasury as salary such sums as are 2
provided by law.] Until otherwise provided by law, 3
notwithstanding Section 13 of Article VII of this 4
constitution to the contrary, beginning with the first 5
regular session following the adoption of Section 20 of this 6
Article, each senator or representative shall receive from 7
the state treasury as salary three times the sum as is 8
currently provided by law at the time of the passage of this 9
amendment. Senators and representatives shall devote their 10
full time, during their term of office, to their duties as 11
members of the general assembly. No law fixing the 12
compensation of members of the general assembly shall become 13
effective until the first day of the regular session of the 14
general assembly next following the session at which the law 15
was enacted. Upon certification by the president and 16
SJR 78 15
secretary of the senate and by the speaker and chief clerk 17
of the house of representatives as to the respective members 18
thereof, the state comptroller shall audit and the state 19
treasurer shall pay such compensation without legislative 20
enactment. [Until otherwise provided by law] Senators and 21
representatives shall receive [one dollar for every ten 22
miles] such sum as is provided by law for each mile traveled 23
in going to and returning from their place of meeting while 24
the legislature is in session, on the most usual route. 25
[Until otherwise provided by law,] Each senator or 26
representative shall be reimbursed from the state treasury 27
for the actual and necessary expenses incurred by him or her 28
in attending sessions of the general assembly in [the] such 29
sum [of ten dollars ($10.00)] as is provided by law per day 30
for each day on which the journal of the senate or house 31
respectively shows the presence of such senator or 32
representative. Upon certification by the president and 33
secretary of the senate and by the speaker and chief clerk 34
of the house of representatives as to the respective members 35
thereof, the state comptroller shall approve and the state 36
treasurer shall pay monthly such expense allowance without 37
legislative enactment. 38
Section 18. Each house shall appoint its own officers; 1
shall be sole judge of the qualifications, election and 2
returns of its own members; and may determine the rules of 3
its own proceedings, except as herein provided[;]. The 4
lieutenant governor shall cast the deciding vote on equal 5
division in the house of representatives. Each house may 6
arrest and punish by fine not exceeding three hundred 7
dollars, or imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding ten 8
days, or both, any person not a member, who shall be guilty 9
of disrespect to the house by any disorderly or contemptuous 10
SJR 78 16
behavior in its presence during its sessions; may punish its 11
members for disorderly conduct; and, with the concurrence of 12
two-thirds of all members elect, may expel a member; but no 13
member shall be expelled a second time for the same cause. 14
Section 20. The general assembly shall [meet] convene 1
on the first Wednesday after the first Monday in January 2
following each general election. The general assembly may 3
provide by law for the introduction of bills, to be 4
considered in the session commencing the first Wednesday 5
after the first Monday of January following each general 6
election, during the period between the first day of 7
December following each general election and the first 8
Wednesday after the first Monday of January following each 9
general election. The general assembly shall be a 10
continuous body during the term for which members of the 11
house of representatives are elected. 12
[The general assembly shall reconvene on the first 13
Wednesday after the first Monday of January after 14
adjournment at midnight on May thirtieth of the preceding 15
year.] A majority of the elected members of each house 16
shall constitute a quorum to do business, but a smaller 17
number may adjourn from day to day, and may compel the 18
attendance of absent members in such manner and under such 19
penalties as each house may provide. The sessions of each 20
house shall be held with open doors, except in cases which 21
may require secrecy but not including the final vote on 22
bills, resolutions and confirmations. Neither house shall, 23
without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than ten 24
days at any one time, nor to any other place than that in 25
which the two houses may be sitting. 26
Section 20(a). The general assembly shall adjourn at 1
midnight on [May thirtieth until the first Wednesday after 2
SJR 78 17
the first Monday of January of the following year] December 3
thirty-first after each general election, unless it has 4
adjourned prior thereto. All bills in either house 5
remaining on the calendar after 6:00 p.m. on the [first 6
Friday following the second Monday in May] thirtieth day of 7
November immediately following each general election are 8
tabled. For any bills not enrolled, engrossed, signed, and 9
delivered to the governor, prior to the thirtieth day of 10
November following the general election, the period between 11
the first [Friday following the second Monday in May and May 12
thirtieth] day in December following each general election 13
and the tenth day of December following each general 14
election shall be devoted to the enrolling, engrossing, and 15
the signing in open session by officers of the respective 16
houses of bills passed prior to 6:00 p.m. on [the first 17
Friday following the second Monday in May] the thirtieth day 18
of November following each general election. 19
The general assembly shall automatically stand 20
adjourned sine die at 6:00 p.m. on [the sixtieth calendar 21
day after the date of its convening in special session] the 22
thirty-first day of December following each general 23
election, unless it has adjourned sine die prior thereto. 24
Section 31. Every bill which shall have passed the 1
house of representatives and the senate shall be presented 2
to and considered by the governor, and, within fifteen days 3
after presentment, he shall return such bill to the house in 4
which it originated endorsed with his approval or 5
accompanied by his objections. If the bill be approved by 6
the governor it shall become a law. [When the general 7
assembly adjourns, or recesses for a period of thirty days 8
or more, the governor shall return within forty-five days 9
any bill to the office of the secretary of state with his 10
SJR 78 18
approval or reasons for disapproval.] If any bill shall not 11
be returned by the governor within the time limits 12
prescribed by this section it shall become law in like 13
manner as if the governor had signed it. 14
Section 32. Every bill presented to the governor and 1
returned with his objections shall stand as reconsidered in 2
the house to which it is returned, at any time the general 3
assembly may be in session, in the sole discretion of the 4
general assembly, but not later than thirty days after the 5
bill is returned, with objections, by the governor. If the 6
governor returns any bill with his objections on or after 7
the fifth day before the last day upon which a session of 8
the general assembly may consider bills, the general 9
assembly shall automatically reconvene on the [first 10
Wednesday following the second Monday in September] twenty- 11
seventh day of December following each general election for 12
a period not to exceed [ten] five calendar days for the sole 13
purpose of considering bills returned by the governor. The 14
objections of the governor shall be entered upon the journal 15
and the house shall proceed to consider the question 16
pending, which shall be in this form: "Shall the bill pass, 17
the objections of the governor thereto notwithstanding?" The 18
vote upon this question shall be taken by yeas and nays and 19
if two-thirds of the elected members of the house vote in 20
the affirmative the presiding officer of that house shall 21
certify that fact on the roll, attesting the same by his 22
signature, and send the bill with the objections of the 23
governor to the other house, in which like proceedings shall 24
be had in relation thereto. The bill thus certified shall 25
be deposited in the office of the secretary of state as an 26
authentic act and shall become a law. 27
SJR 78 19
[Section 20(b). Upon the filing with the 1
secretary of state of a petition stating the 2
purpose for which the session is to be called 3
and signed by three-fourths of the members of 4
the senate and three-fourths of the members of 5
the house of representatives, the president pro 6
tem of the senate and the speaker of the house 7
shall by joint proclamation convene the general 8
assembly in special session. The proclamation 9
shall state specifically each matter contained 10
in the petition on which action is deemed 11
necessary. No appropriation bill shall be 12
considered in a special session convened 13
pursuant to this section if in that year the 14
general assembly has not passed the operating 15
budget in compliance with Section 25 of this 16
article. 17
The general assembly shall automatically 18
stand adjourned sine die at 6:00 p.m. on the 19
thirtieth calendar day after the date of its 20
convening in special session under this section 21
unless it has adjourned sine die prior thereto.] 22
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