The bill amends sections 17-5-1.1, 17-5-3, and 17-5-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-5 entitled "Statewide Referenda Elections" to require that ballot questions, including those for constitutional amendments and other public questions, be written in plain language that is understandable by persons with an eighth-grade reading level. The Secretary of State is authorized to rephrase ballot questions to clearly apprise voters of the matter being voted upon, and the full text of the question as adopted by the General Assembly need not appear on the ballot except for proposed constitutional amendments. The bill also mandates that the Secretary of State send to each residential unit in Rhode Island the full text or a description of each legislative act to be voted on, along with a brief caption, explanation in plain language, and a notice that voter fraud is a felony.

Additionally, the bill specifies that the Secretary of State must include certain information in the notice sent to voters if the public question involves financial obligations such as the issuance of bonds or other long-term commitments. This information includes the estimated total cost of the project, the estimated useful life of the project, and a detailed description of the project or program. For computer ballots, the bill requires a clear and concise statement of the nature of each question in plain language, again understandable by someone with an eighth-grade reading level. The bill takes effect upon passage and aims to ensure that ballot questions are accessible and comprehensible to the general electorate.