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Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri Senate Bill 1615 Establishes Court Review Deadlines and Procedures for Ballot Measure Summaries
Last action · February 12, 2026: Second Read and Referred S Local Government, Elections and Pensions CommitteeSponsor: Rick Brattin
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What This Bill Would Do
This bill modifies legal challenge procedures and court timelines for statewide ballot measure summaries in Missouri, establishing specific deadlines for the Secretary of State to submit revised statements in even- and odd-numbered years. It sets rules protecting previously gathered petition signatures from invalidation if a court subsequently orders a change to the official ballot title.
Residents seeking to challenge or place statewide ballot measures before voters face altered court litigation timelines, specific appeal restrictions for appellate courts, and modified rules regarding whether voter signatures collected prior to a ballot title alteration remain valid.
- This legislation modifies ballot measure title challenge procedures following previous judicial rulings addressing Missouri ballot laws. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Citizens
Citizens may bring legal actions in the Cole County circuit court to challenge official ballot titles and fiscal notes.
Secretary of State
The Secretary of State is subject to shortened submission deadlines for revised ballot summary statements depending on whether the year is even or odd.
Key Facts
- The legislation increases the maximum word limit for official summary statements of statewide ballot measures from fifty to one hundred words.
- Challenges to official ballot titles or fiscal notes must be brought in the circuit court of Cole County.
- In challenges to summary statements, the Secretary of State must submit a first revised summary statement within 7 days if originating in an odd-numbered year, or within 3 days in an even-numbered year.
- Appellate courts finding a summary statement insufficient or unfair may offer suggested revisions but do not have the authority to themselves modify or rewrite the summary statement.
Show all 6 facts
- Signatures gathered prior to a court-ordered change altering the content of an official ballot title shall not be invalidated solely because they were gathered prior to the alteration.
- Signatures for statutory initiative petitions must be filed no later than six months prior to the general election and collected no earlier than the day after the previous general election.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where must a citizen bring an action to challenge an official ballot title or fiscal note?
Are petition signatures invalidated if a court orders a change to the official ballot title after collection has started?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Check Your Understanding
1.According to the introduced version of the bill (6928S.03I), what word limit does it establish for the official summary statement approved by the general assembly?
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- Feb 12, 2026SenateFloorSecond Read and Referred S Local Government, Elections and Pensions Committee
- Feb 3, 2026SenateIntroducedS First Read
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. The text on record is the 6928S.03I - Introduced version. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Differentiated Timelines Based on Even/Odd Years
The bill introduces differential submission deadlines for revised summary statements depending on whether the action originates in an even- or odd-numbered year.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.senate.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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