This bill amends Michigan election law to enhance the petition process by introducing specific requirements and clarifications. It mandates that petitions must be sized at 8-1/2 inches by 14 inches and include defined headings for initiatives, constitutional amendments, or referendums, along with a summary of the proposed amendment or question. A new section (482f) is added to state that if a petition contains multiple signatures from the same elector, only the first valid signature will be counted. The bill also updates terminology, replacing "person" with "individual," and emphasizes compliance with petition circulator requirements, invalidating signatures obtained by non-compliant circulators. Penalties for violations include misdemeanors for certain infractions and felonies for signing with multiple names.

In addition to general petition processes, the bill specifically addresses recall petitions, requiring that all signatures be collected in the presence of the petition's responsible individual, who must certify the qualifications of the signers. It clarifies that recall petition sheets can only include signatures from qualified and registered electors of the relevant city or township, and allows for signatures to be collected wherever the petition is available. Notably, the bill ensures that a recall petition remains valid even if it contains signatures from unqualified electors, and reiterates that only the first valid signature from an elector will be counted if they sign multiple times. The amendments will take effect 90 days after the bill is enacted.

Statutes affected:
Substitute (S-1): 168.482
Senate Introduced Bill: 168.482