PETITION CIRCULATOR; MODIFY S.B. 529 – 531 (S-1):

SUMMARY OF BILL

REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE

Senate Bills 529 and 530 (as reported without amendment)

Senate Bill 531 (Substitute S-1 as reported)

Sponsor: Senator Jeremy Moss (S.B. 529 & 530)

Senator Jeff Irwin (S.B. 531)

Committee: Elections and Ethics

CONTENT

Senate Bill 531 (S-1) would amend the Michigan Election Law to do the following:

-- Require that, if an elector signed a petition, nominating petition, qualifying petition for a candidate without political party affiliation, a petition to form a new State political party, or a recall petition more than once, only the first valid signature of that elector would be counted.

-- Modify various petition headings and warnings in accordance with the requirement above.

Senate Bill 529 would amend the Michigan Election Law to prohibit an individual employed to circulate a petition, a nominating petition, a qualifying petition, or a recall petition from being paid a fixed rate or amount for each petition signature collected or for each completed petition signature sheet.

Senate Bill 530 would amend the Michigan Election Law to require the circulator of a petition to read to or allow an individual to read the summary of the purpose of a petition’s proposed amendment or question before the individual signed the petition.

MCL 168.483b & 168.957a (S.B. 529)

Proposed MCL 168.482g (S.B. 530)

MCL 168.482 et al. (S.B. 531)

BRIEF RATIONALE

In 2022, Michigan’s gubernatorial race faced increased scrutiny after the Bureau of Elections disqualified five primary candidates for failing to meet required signature thresholds. Though each candidate submitted a nominating petition with the required number of signatures, the Bureau found that many, an estimated 68,000 signatures, submitted across 10 nominating petitions were fraudulent, an unprecedented number.¹ Testimony before the Senate Committee on Elections and Ethics indicates that other, less prominent instances of signature fraud also exist. Some believe the law permits fraud by allowing petition circulators to be paid per signature and that petition circulators may engage in deceit by misrepresenting the nature of a petition to convince electors to sign a petition. Accordingly, it has been suggested that the Law be amended to remove these incentives and penalize bad actors for spreading misinformation.

Legislative Analyst: Abby Schneider

[1] Mauger, Craig, "Board of canvassers deadlocks, blocking 5 candidates for governor from ballot", The Detroit News, May 26, 2022.

FISCAL IMPACT

Senate Bills 529 and 530 would have no fiscal impact on State or local government.

Senate Bill 531 (S-1) could have a positive fiscal impact on the State and local units of government. The bill would impose a civil fine of up to $1,500. Revenue collected from civil fines is used to support local libraries. Additionally, $10 of the civil fine would be deposited into the State Justice System Fund, which supports justice-related activities across State government in the Departments of Corrections, Health and Human Services, State Police, and Treasury. The Fund also supports justice-related issues in the Legislative Retirement System and the Judiciary. The amount of revenue to the State or for local libraries is indeterminate and dependent on the actual number of violations.

Date Completed: 9-11-25 Fiscal Analyst: Joe Carrasco, Jr.

Bobby Canell

SAS\Floors2526\sb529

This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.