HB14 Alabama 2026 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Marilyn LandsRepresentative

Democrat

Session

2026 Regular Session

Title

Referendum measures; authorize general laws and constitutional amendments to be initiated through public petition process

Summary

HB14 would let Alabama voters initiate general laws and constitutional amendments by petition, with the Legislature able to offer an alternative, and require voter approval to take effect.

What This Bill Does

It creates an initiative process to allow the people to propose general laws and constitutional amendments, subject to the same limits as the Legislature and with the Legislature able to offer an alternative proposal. It sets filing requirements, signature thresholds, a refundable filing fee, and verification steps, and requires the Alabama Law Institute to draft the full text and an official summary. If an initiative advances, it moves through the Legislature for consideration; if the Legislature does not enact it, the measure goes to a statewide ballot for voters to approve or reject; general laws would take effect when delivered to the Secretary of State, while constitutional amendments take effect if approved by voters. It also limits initiatives to two enacted measures per session and outlines how multiple or conflicting proposals are handled.

Who It Affects

• Qualified Alabama voters who may sign petitions to place general laws or constitutional amendments on the ballot and participate in the initiative process.
• State officials and lawmakers who administer and implement the process (Secretary of State, Legislative Services Agency, Alabama Law Institute, Legislature, Governor), including drafting, reviewing, and presenting measures and ballot language.

Key Provisions

• Creates the Alabama We The People Act to allow voter-initiated general laws and constitutional amendments, with the Legislature allowed to offer an alternative proposal.
• Preliminary petition for general laws requires 1,000 signatures and a refundable $1,000 filing fee; the named individual becomes the registered agent responsible for filings and disclosures.
• Final petition thresholds for general laws require at least 7% of the governor's votes, with a minimum of 1% of signatures from each congressional district; for constitutional amendments, 10% of the governor's votes with a minimum of 1.3% from each district.
• Processing steps include 90 days for the Alabama Law Institute to draft full text and official summaries, publication on the Secretary of State's website for at least 90 days, and two-year signature collection windows; proposals are filed for consideration in regular legislative sessions.
• The Legislature may sponsor or modify proposals; if not enacted by the 30th legislative day, the initiative is placed on the ballot; if an alternative proposal is approved, both appear on the ballot; no governor’s signature is required for initiative measures.
• If more than two initiative measures relate to the same subject are proposed, the two with the most signatures may be enacted or placed on the ballot; conflicting measures are resolved by the one with the highest votes.
• No more than two initiative-enacted measures may be enacted in a single legislative session; if a two-year window expires, the proposal may be restarted with new signatures.
• Ballot language must be impartial and clear, with Yes/No options and, if applicable, a comparison between the initiative and legislative alternative, and ballot descriptions are prepared by nonpartisan review.
• Constitutional amendments proposed by initiative require majority approval by voters to become part of the Constitution.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 11, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Constitutional Amendments Statewide