Filing a ballot initiative in Missouri could cost you.
A House elections committee had its final work session on a bill about ballot initiative petitions Monday afternoon. The committee decided on a $350 filing fee for initiatives with another fee of $25 per page after 10 pages, and those filing will have to use a standardized form.
Trish Vincent, the Deputy Secretary of State, says some people file initiative petitions with no intentions to get signatures.
“We believe that a filing fee would maybe make those folks think are they really going to go out and get signatures.”
The filing fee would be refunded if the petition is authorized to appear on the ballot, and non-refunded fees will go into the state’s general revenue.
The Secretary of State’s office thinks filing fees will help its overall efficiency by reducing frivolous initiatives.