13-27-501. Secretary of state to certify ballot form. (1) The secretary of state shall furnish to the official of each county responsible for preparation of the ballots, at the same time as the election administrator certifies the names of the persons who are candidates for offices to be filled at the election, a certified copy of the form in which each statewide ballot issue to be voted on by the people at that election is to appear on the ballot.

Terms Used In Montana Code 13-27-501

  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • Ballot: means a paper ballot counted manually or a paper ballot counted by a machine, such as an optical scan system or other technology that automatically tabulates votes cast by processing the paper ballots. See Montana Code 13-1-101
  • Election: means a general, special, or primary election held pursuant to the requirements of state law, regardless of the time or purpose. See Montana Code 13-1-101
  • issue: means a proposal submitted to the people at an election for their approval or rejection, including but not limited to an initiative, referendum, proposed constitutional amendment, recall question, school levy question, bond issue question, or ballot question. See Montana Code 13-1-101
  • Petition: means a petition for a statewide initiative or a statutory referendum prepared pursuant to the requirements of this chapter. See Montana Code 13-27-110
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
  • Statewide ballot issue: means a statewide initiative or a statewide referendum. See Montana Code 13-27-110

(2)The secretary of state shall list for each ballot issue:

(a)the number;

(b)the method of placement on the ballot;

(c)the title;

(d)the attorney general’s explanatory statement, if applicable;

(e)the fiscal statement, if applicable;

(f)the statement of purpose and implication if not otherwise listed as the title pursuant to 13-27-212;

(g)the yes and no statement; and

(h)a statement that the statewide ballot issue conflicts with one or more issues, referenced by number, that also appear on the ballot, if applicable.

(3)When required to do so, the secretary of state shall use for each ballot issue the title of the legislative act or legislative constitutional proposal or the title provided by the attorney general or district court. Following the number of the ballot issue, the secretary of state, when required to do so, shall include one of the following statements to identify why the issue has been placed on the ballot:

(a)an act referred by the legislature;

(b)an amendment to the constitution proposed by the legislature;

(c)an act of the legislature referred by referendum petition; or

(d)a law or constitutional amendment proposed by initiative petition.