HB263 Alabama 2012 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Patricia Todd

Democrat

Co-Sponsors

Mike HillMac McCutcheonMike Ball

Session

Regular Session 2012

Title

Initiative, constitutional amendments, proposed by people, authorized, Legislature may offer alternate proposal, const. amend.

Summary

HB263 would let Alabama voters initiate general laws and constitutional amendments, with the Legislature able to offer an alternative proposal.

What This Bill Does

It creates an initiative process for enacting general laws and constitutional amendments, subject to the same limits as the Legislature and with the Legislature able to propose an alternate. It sets signature thresholds and filing rules, including 1,000 preliminary signatures and a $1,000 fee to start, plus final petition requirements of 7% of governor votes for general laws (with at least 1% from each congressional district) or 10% for constitutional amendments. It requires the Secretary of State to publish full text and a summary, the Alabama Law Institute to draft the full text, and, if not enacted by the Legislature, to place the measure on the ballot; election timing and impartial ballot language are specified, and no governor’s signature is required for initiative measures. The Legislature may sponsor an alternative proposal; if both initiative and legislative proposals reach ballots, the one with more votes wins; no more than two pieces of legislation may be enacted under this mechanism in a single session.

Who It Affects

• Qualified Alabama voters: may sign preliminary and final petitions and vote on the initiated measures.
• Registered agents for initiatives: individuals who file and represent the proposal, responsible for disclosures and future filings.
• Secretary of State: processes filings, publishes texts and summaries, and handles ballot placement.
• Alabama Law Institute: prepares the full text and official summary of the initiative proposal.
• Legislature: may sponsor an alternative proposal and must consider initiatives under the new process.
• Governor: not required to sign initiative measures; governors are not involved in approving such initiatives.
• Legislative Reference Service and Legislative Fiscal Office: provide impartial review and fiscal analysis for initiative proposals.

Key Provisions

• Creates an initiative process to enact general laws or constitutional amendments, with the Legislature allowed to offer an alternate proposal.
• Preliminary filing requires 1,000 qualified voter signatures and a $1,000 filing fee; a registered agent will be the point of contact and responsible for disclosures.
• Final petition thresholds: 7% of governor votes for general laws (plus at least 1% of signatures from each congressional district); 10% of governor votes for constitutional amendments; signatures must come from qualified voters and match voter list data.
• Alabama Law Institute drafts the full text and official summary; Secretary of State publishes the materials online for set periods (text at least 90 days, summary through the next regular session).
• If the Legislature does not enact the proposal by a set deadline, it goes to a statewide ballot; the Legislature may also adopt an alternate proposal; ballot questions present both options if applicable.
• If the initiative and an alternate proposal both appear and pass, the measure with the highest affirmative votes prevails; no more than two initiative-derived measures may be enacted in a single session.
• General-law initiatives become law upon delivery to the Secretary of State (not via Governor’s signature); constitutional amendments require voter approval to become part of the Constitution.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Constitutional Amendments