1Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the Commonwealth
2of Pennsylvania, authorizing the use of the indirect
3initiative and referendum as powers reserved to the people.

4The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5hereby resolves as follows:

6Section 1. The following amendment to the Constitution of
7Pennsylvania is proposed in accordance with Article XI:

8That Article III be amended by adding a section to read:

9§ 33. Powers reserved to the people.

10(a) (1) The legislative power of this Commonwealth shall be
11vested in the Senate and the House of Representatives, but the
12people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws and
13amendments to this Constitution at the polls.

14(2) The indirect initiative is the power of the electors to
15propose statutes and amendments to this Constitution and to
16cause the General Assembly to take a vote in each House on the
17approved proposal in the current legislative session or, if the
18proposal is approved at a general election, no later than the

1next legislative session.

2(3) An indirect initiative measure may be proposed by
3presenting to the Secretary of the Commonwealth a petition that
4sets forth the text of the proposed statute or amendment to this
5Constitution and is certified by the Secretary of the
6Commonwealth to have been signed by registered electors equal in
7number to 5% of the votes for all candidates for Governor at the
8last gubernatorial election in each of the 45 counties in this
9Commonwealth.

10(4) The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall only certify a
11measure on which all signatures on petitions are obtained and
12affixed to the petitions for the measure during the same regular
13session of the General Assembly and which is submitted by 5 p.m.
14on Friday after the second Thursday of February in the second
15year of that session.

16(5) An indirect initiative measure embracing more than one
17subject may not be submitted to the electors or have any effect.

18(6) No measure that relates to religion, religious practices
19and institutions; the appointment, qualification, tenure,
20removal, recall or compensation of judges; the reversal of a
21judicial decision; the powers, creation or abolition of courts;
22the making of a specific appropriation of money from the
23treasury; and the naming of a private corporation to perform a
24function or to have a power or duty may be proposed by an
25indirect initiative petition.

26(7) The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall submit the
27measure at the next general, municipal, primary or special
28statewide election held at least 75 days after it qualifies.

29(8) The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall then submit the
30measure to the clerk of the Senate within ten Senate session

1days of its receipt and to the clerk of the House of
2Representatives within ten House session days of its receipt.

3(9) The measure shall be referred to the appropriate
4committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives, and
5the committees shall report out their respective measures for
6consideration by the full Senate and the House of
7Representatives, respectively. The General Assembly shall not
8finally adjourn a legislative session without a vote being taken
9by the Senate and the House of Representatives on an indirect
10initiative measure that is properly before the General Assembly.

11(b) (1) The legislative power of this Commonwealth shall be
12vested in the Senate and the House of Representatives, but the
13people reserve to themselves the power, at their own option, to
14reject statutes or parts of statutes passed by the General
15Assembly.

16(2) The referendum is the power of the electors to reject
17statutes or parts of statutes except urgency statutes or
18statutes calling elections.

19(3) A referendum measure may be proposed by presenting to
20the Secretary of the Commonwealth, within 90 days after the
21enactment date of the statute, a petition certified to have been
22signed by registered electors equal in number to 5% of the votes
23for all candidates for Governor at the last gubernatorial
24election in each of the 45 counties in this Commonwealth asking
25that the statute or part of it be submitted to the electors.

26(4) If a petition is certified to have been signed by
27registered electors equal to 10% of the votes for all candidates
28for Governor at the last gubernatorial election in each of the
2945 counties in this Commonwealth, the effective date of the
30enacted legislation is suspended until the next election at

1which time the measure shall be submitted to the electors.

2(5) The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall submit the
3measure at the next general, municipal, primary or special
4statewide election held at least 75 days after it qualifies.

5(c) (1) The General Assembly shall provide the manner in
6which petitions shall be circulated, presented and certified and
7require by law measures to insure full disclosure of
8disbursements made and receipts obtained by parties who have an
9interest in indirect initiative and referendum measures and who
10have exceeded a statutory threshold for these disbursements and
11receipts for any one indirect initiative or referendum measure
12in each election. The General Assembly shall also require by law
13reasonable limits on contributions made to parties who have an
14interest in the passage or defeat of an indirect initiative or
15referendum measure for each measure and in each election. The
16General Assembly shall also require by law the full disclosure
17of any disbursements made by a person or corporation from
18another state to advocate the passage or defeat of an indirect
19initiative or referendum measure. The General Assembly shall,
20within 90 days following approval of this section, enact the
21legislation outlined in this paragraph.

22(2) An indirect initiative or referendum petition, in order
23to be eligible for certification by the Secretary of the
24Commonwealth, shall first be signed by 100 registered electors
25of the Commonwealth, the originators, who shall pay an
26administrative fee not exceeding the fee required by law for the
27filing of nomination petitions by candidates for public office
28to be filled by the electors of the State-at-large. If the
29Secretary of the Commonwealth shall certify that the petition
30contains the entire text of the measure, that the measure is

1not, either affirmatively or negatively, substantially the same
2as any measure which has been previously submitted to the
3electors during the same session of the General Assembly and
4that it contains only one subject which is not excluded from
5consideration under this section, then the Secretary of the
6Commonwealth shall provide blanks for the use of subsequent
7signers and shall print at the top of each blank the names of
8the first ten originators and a fair, concise summary, as
9determined by the Secretary of the Commonwealth, of the proposed
10measure as the summary will appear on the ballot.

11(3) The Department of State shall, within ten days of the
12certification of an indirect initiative or referendum petition
13upon which the required number of signatures have been affixed,
14prepare an explanation or argument, or both, for and also an
15explanation or argument, or both, against the same. The
16Secretary of the Commonwealth shall then publish the summary and
17explanations and arguments, together with the entire text of the
18measure, in as many newspapers of general circulation as deemed
19by the Secretary of the Commonwealth to be sufficient to give
20notice throughout this Commonwealth at least 20 days before the
21election in which the measure is presented to the electors. This
22information shall also be made available to the general public
23in printed form.

24(4) The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall certify no more
25than two indirect initiatives or two referendum measures in an
26election. Each measure shall be limited to only one subject. If
27more than two measures are submitted to the Secretary of the
28Commonwealth, the two measures with the largest numbers of
29signatures shall be certified. If two or more measures are
30substantially similar in subject matter, whether or not they

1conflict, only the measure with the largest number of signatures
2shall be certified.

3(5) No more than three indirect initiative and referendum
4measures may be certified by the Secretary of the Commonwealth
5in any two-year period.

6(6) No measure may appear on the ballot in an election more
7often than once during a legislative session.

8(7) The General Assembly may not finally adjourn a
9legislative session without a vote being taken by the Senate and
10the House of Representatives on a referendum statute that is
11properly before the General Assembly. The General Assembly may
12override a referendum statute only upon a vote of two-thirds of
13the members elected to the Senate and the House of
14Representatives.

15Section 2. (a) Upon the first passage by the General
16Assembly of this proposed constitutional amendment, the
17Secretary of the Commonwealth shall proceed immediately to
18comply with the advertising requirements of section 1 of Article
19XI of the Constitution of Pennsylvania and shall transmit the
20required advertisements to two newspapers in every county in
21which such newspapers are published in sufficient time after
22passage of this proposed constitutional amendment.

23(b) Upon the second passage by the General Assembly of this
24proposed constitutional amendment, the Secretary of the
25Commonwealth shall proceed immediately to comply with the
26advertising requirements of section 1 of Article XI of the
27Constitution of Pennsylvania and shall transmit the required
28advertisements to two newspapers in every county in which such
29newspapers are published in sufficient time after passage of
30this proposed constitutional amendment. The Secretary of the

1Commonwealth shall submit this proposed constitutional amendment
2to the qualified electors of this Commonwealth at the first
3primary, general or municipal election which meets the
4requirements of and is in conformance with section 1 of Article
5XI of the Constitution of Pennsylvania and which occurs at least
6three months after the proposed constitutional amendment is
7passed by the General Assembly.