Committee Defeats Measure Aimed at Initiated Measures

A bill has been narrowly defeated that would have taken a proposed amendment to the November election that would require legislative approval of any vote initiated constitutional amendments.

The resolution was killed in House State Affairs Committee on 7-6 vote.

The measure was the idea of House speaker Mark Mickelson of Sioux Falls.

Representative David Lust of Rapid City spoke against the proposal. He called the measure a “bridge too far”.

At Mickelson’s request, the committee voted to table his plan that would have ended citizen’s ability to gather signatures to propose constitutional amendments.

(Brookings Radio)