INITIATIVES MAY CROWD STATE'S VOTE IN NOVEMBER (LAST OF TWO PARTS)

JEFFERSON CITY -- Missouri's statewide elections are months away, but nine initiative petitions have been registered with the secretary of state, and more are reportedly on the way.

The purpose of initiatives is to change, modify or replace existing statutes or change the Missouri Constitution.

To modify or change existing state law, signatures from at least 5 percent of the vote for governor at the last election must be collected from registered voters in two-thirds (six) of Missouri's nine congressional districts.

Amending the Constitution requires signatures from 8 percent of the last governor's election instead of 5 percent and from six congressional districts.

Dr. John Ballard, a retired University of Missouri professor and a political adviser to local and county government officials, observes that a number of proposed measures often fail to collect sufficient qualifying signatures.

"A number of problems are common in these efforts," Ballard said.

People who sign aren't always registered voters, and would-be signers are often reluctant to admit they are not registered, he said.

"Another common problem is a citizen who signs with a different name than the one on registration records," Ballard said. "Still another difficulty is unreadability, and despite the fact the name must be printed on the line where it is signed, some signatures are beyond identifying by election officials."

Signatures are then sorted by county, each one on a separate page, and then by congressional district.

"Many of the signers on every petition drive do not seem to know which district they live in, and some put down the wrong county," Ballard stated.

Missouri has made the process still more difficult by enacting and enforcing tougher rules and regulations on paid signature collectors.

This correction was made after it was discovered that bogus signatures were copied from telephone books. Collectors must now register and be identified or the signatures they collect are not counted.

Thus far the collectors of all of the proposed amendments and statutory propositions have been certified by the deputy secretary's office.

Ballard points out that it is possible to collect sufficient signatures without leaving Missouri's two urban areas, but he cautions this has its drawbacks. Greater St. Louis has parts of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd congressional districts, while greater Kansas City has portions of the 4th, 5th and 6th districts.

"While at a glance, this would seem to simplify the process," he points out, "in truth it complicates the matter because of overlapping districts and county lines, voter uncertainty about location, and even signers who live in Kansas or Illinois."

In the outstate area, the problem is different because signature gatherers have difficulty finding sufficient numbers of qualified signers.

Despite the numerous problems encountered, Dr. Ballard said, "Having in the hands of the public the ability to act when the Legislature refuses to, to reverse decisions they make and to change our underlying basic document is democracy at its purest. Even if you oppose the measure the circulators are touting, cheer their right to do so."