Issues on the Ballot...

Proposition C would require that minimum percentages of electricity sold in Missouri by investor-owned utilities be derived from renewable sources such as solar, wind, biomass and hydropower. The measure, dubbed the Clean Energy Initiative, was placed on the Nov. 4 ballot via an initiative petition drive spearheaded by a group called Missourians for Cleaner Cheaper Energy, which is funded by various environmental groups and renewable energy advocates. As of Oct. 7, the group had raised $602,808 for the campaign, according to disclosure reports filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission.

Investor-owned utilities provide 76 of the electricity generated in Missouri, according to Missourians for Cleaner Cheaper Energy. Such utilities include AmerenUE, Aquila, Empire District Electric Co. and Kansas City Power & Light.

Proposition C would require that at least 2 percent of the power sold in Missouri by investor-owned utilities, whether that power be generated in the state or purchased from elsewhere, be derived from renewable sources by 2011. That percentage would increase to 5 percent by 2014 and 10 percent by 2018 before topping out at 15 percent by 2021.

The measure would cap rate increases for compliance costs at 1 percent and impose fines on companies that fail to comply. Companies would be prohibited by law from passing on the cost of fines to customers.

The proposal would also require utilities to offer rebates of $2 per installed watt to electric customers who install new or expanded solar electric systems on their property.

Proposition C repeals the Green Power Initiative, which the General Assembly enacted during the 2007 legislative session as part of SB 54. The bill set voluntary targets for renewable energy usage of 4 percent by 2012, 8 percent by 2015 and 11 percent by 2020.

Although they didn't oppose SB 54, some of the groups supporting Proposition C, including the Sierra Club, questioned the bill's effectiveness before a House committee because the targets are strictly voluntary, not mandatory as is the case with the current proposal.

Supporters say Proposition C will gradually reduce Missouri's reliance on increasingly expensive fossil fuels and ultimately could lower consumer energy costs.

The development and use of renewable energy sources will reduce pollution and foster economic development in the state.

The existing voluntary targets for renewable energy usage are meaningless as utility companies can ignore them without consequence. Mandatory targets with financial penalties for noncompliance will encourage utilities to make a real commitment to renewable energy.

So far there has been no public opposition to Proposition C, but opposition arguments could include that the free market - not state law - should determine the extent to which utilities use renewable energy sources.

It might not be financially or technologically feasible for utilities to meet mandatory targets under Proposition C's timetable.

SB 54 only took effect on Jan. 1, 2008, and the first target date is still more than three years away. The existing law should be given a chance to work.

* Amendment 1

Amendment 1 would add a new section to Article I of the Missouri Constitution - the state's Bill of Rights - establishing English as the official language of Missouri government proceedings. The General Assembly placed the measure on the Nov. 4, ballot with the passage of HJR 7 during the 2007 legislative session. HJR 7 passed 25-7 in the Senate and 127-29 in the House of Representatives.

The language of the proposed new section: "Section 34. That English shall be the language of all official proceedings in this state. Official proceedings shall be limited to any meeting of a public governmental body at which any public business is discussed, decided, or public policy formulated, whether such meeting is conducted in person or by means of communication equipment, including, but not limited to, conference call, video conference, Internet chat, or Internet message board. The term "official proceeding" shall not include an informal gathering of members of a public governmental body for ministerial or social purposes, but the term shall include a public vote of all or a majority of the members of a public governmental body, by electronic communication or any other means, conducted in lieu of holding an official proceeding with the members of the public governmental body gathering at one location in order to conduct public business."

Supporters say the proposal would formally reinforce in the Missouri Constitution the reality that English is the language of state and local government.

Opponents say the measure is unnecessary because of the reality that English is the language of state and local government. Amending the constitution to make the statement that English is the state's dominant language is also redundant, they say, because state law already establishes English as Missouri's "common language." (RSMo. 1.028: "The general assembly recognizes that English is the common language used in Missouri and recognizes that fluency in English is necessary for the full integration into our common American culture for reading readiness.")

Opponents further contend that the measure promotes anti-immigrant sentiment and plays on anti-immigrant fears.

* Amendment 4

Amendment 4 on the November general election ballot seeks to modify various provisions of Article III, Section 37h of the Missouri Constitution, which authorizes funding for grants and loans for stormwater control projects in first class counties and the city of St. Louis.

The General Assembly placed Amendment 4 on the Nov. 4 ballot with its passage of SJR 45 on the second-to-last day of the 2008 legislative session. SJR 45, sponsored by state Sen. Dan Clemens, R-Marshfield, passed 30-2 in the Senate and 136-1 in the House of Representatives.

Missouri voters ratified the existing Section 37h in November 1998 with 64.7 percent support as part of a multi-section measure that appeared on the ballot as Amendment 7.

One of the changes in Amendment 4 would clarify that only "public" water and sewer districts can receive grants or loans for stormwater control projects. This could be construed as a superfluous change, however, since the constitution (Article III, Section 38a) already prohibits the state from granting or lending public money to private individuals or corporations.

It also would also eliminate the existing cap of $20 million per fiscal year on legislative appropriations to the stormwater control fund and eliminate the restriction that appropriated money be divided evenly between loans, which must be repaid, and grants, which do not.

Amendment 4 would also eliminate the restriction that state grants can pay for no more than 50 percent of a projects' total cost, thus repealing the existing requirement that local governments or water and sewer districts must pay for the other half. To put it another way, it would allow the state to pay the entire cost of local projects.

The proposal prohibits unexpended money in the stormwater control fund from reverting back to general revenue every two years for other uses, as is currently the case, and requires interest earned on the fund to accrue to the fund.

Supporters of the measure when it was before the legislature as SJR 45 included the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District, the Missouri Municipal League and the Missouri Society of Professional Engineers.

Supporters say Amendment 4 will make it easier for water and sewer districts to obtain tax-free grants and loans from the state.

No public opposition to the measure has yet emerged, but one could argue that it would shift the financial burden of local projects to state taxpayers and eliminate some restrictions on how the money can be spent.