SENATE BILL REPORT

                            SB 5976

                     AS OF APRIL 19, 1993

Brief Description:  Establishing the requirements for advertising state measures.

SPONSORS: Senator Rinehart; by request of Office of Financial Management

SENATE COMMITTEE ON WAYS & MEANS

Staff:  Steve Jones (786‑7440)

Hearing Dates:

BACKGROUND:

The state Constitution requires a notice to be published in every legal newspaper in the state announcing that a constitutional amendment is to be voted on during the next election.  The notice must be published four times during the four weeks before the election (Article XXIII, Section 1).  State statutes assign this task to the Office of the Secretary of State and require a similar notice to be published regarding a state referendum authorizing state debt (RCW 29.27.072).  These notices are in addition to the information regarding the measures that must appear in the state voters' pamphlet.

SUMMARY:

The notice that the Secretary of State must publish regarding a proposed constitutional amendment or bill authorizing state debt is altered.  It contains a brief explanatory statement regarding the ballot measure in lieu of an explanation of current statutory or constitutional law and an explanation of the effect of the ballot measure.  It no longer needs to identify the vote in each house of the Legislature on the measure.

Appropriations:  none

Revenue:  none

Fiscal Note:  none requested

Effective Date:  The bill contains an emergency clause and takes effect July 1, 1993.