Missouri Motor Fuel Tax Increase Initiative (2018)

Missouri Motor Fuel Tax Increase Initiative
Election date November 6, 2018
Topic Taxes
Status Not on the ballot
Type State statute	Origin Citizens
List of Missouri measuresMissouri Proposition A - AugustMissouri Amendment 1Missouri Amendment 2Missouri Amendment 3Missouri Amendment 4Missouri Proposition BMissouri Proposition CMissouri Proposition DSubmit

The Missouri Motor Fuel Tax Increase Initiative was not on the ballot in Missouri as an initiated constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018.

Terry Briggs proposed two versions of the ballot initiative: Initiative #324 and Initiative #325. The proposals were designed to increase the motor fuel tax and provide revenue from the tax for constructing and maintaining the state's highway system.

Initiative #324 would have increased the 17 cents per gallon state motor fuel tax by 2 cents each year beginning on January 1, 2019, until reaching 27 cents in 2023.

Initiative #325 would have increased the 17 cents per gallon state motor fuel tax by 2.5 cents each year beginning on January 1, 2019, until reaching 29 cents in 2023.

Text of measure

Ballot title

As two versions of this initiative were filed for circulation, the secretary of state crafted a ballot title for each one.

Measure 2018-324

Do you want to amend Missouri law to: increase the current 17 cents per gallon state motor fuel tax by two cents per gallon each year beginning on January 1, 2019, so that in 2023 the tax will be 27 cents per gallon; require that all motor vehicle fuel tax revenues are used only for constructing and maintaining an adequate system of connected state highways; and require the state auditor to annually audit the state motor vehicle fuel tax revenues to ensure they are being used properly? When fully implemented, the proposal is estimated to annually increase state revenue by $293 million and local government revenue by $128 million. State government entities expect initial setup costs of $83,000 and increased annual costs of $46,000. Local governments expect increased annual costs of at least $61,000.

Measure 2018-325

Do you want to amend Missouri law to: increase the current 17 cents per gallon state motor fuel tax by two and one-half cents per gallon each year beginning on January 1, 2019, so that in 2023 the tax will be 29 and one-half cents per gallon; require that all motor vehicle fuel tax revenues are used only for constructing and maintaining an adequate system of connected state highways; and require the state auditor to annually audit the state motor vehicle fuel tax revenues to ensure they are being used properly? When fully implemented, the proposal is estimated to annually increase state revenue by $366 million and local government revenue by $160 million. State government entities expect initial setup costs of $83,000 and increased annual costs of $46,000. Local governments expect increased annual costs of at least $76,000.

Path to the ballot

See also: Laws governing the initiative process in Missouri

The state process

In Missouri, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated state statute for the ballot is equal to 5 percent of the votes cast for governor in the previous gubernatorial election in six of the eight state congressional districts. Signatures must be filed with the secretary of state six months prior to the election.

The requirements to get an initiated state statute certified for the 2018 ballot:

• Signatures: The smallest possible requirement was 100,126 valid signatures. The actual requirement depends on the congressional districts in which signatures were collected.
• Deadline: The deadline to submit signatures was May 6, 2018.

Once the signatures have been filed with the secretary of state, the secretary copies the petition sheets and transmits them to county election authorities for verification. The secretary of state may choose whether the signatures are to be verified by a 5 percent random sample or full verification. If the random sampling projects between 90 percent and 110 percent of required signatures, a full check of all signatures is required. If more than 110 percent, the initiative is certified, and, if less than 90 percent, the initiative fails.

Details about the initiative

Terry Briggs filed two versions of the initiative on December 15, 2017. The initiatives were approved for circulation on January 26, 2018. Signatures were not filed for the initiatives.

See also

2018 measures

• 2018 ballot measures
• Taxes on the ballot
• Transportation on the ballot

Missouri

• Missouri ballot measures
• Missouri ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Petition 2018-324
• Petition 2018-325