Missouri Supreme Court backs lower court ruling against attorney general on abortion question
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Missouri Supreme Court on Thursday backed a lower court's ruling that ordered the attorney general to approve a financial note on an abortion-related ballot question.
The attorney general's office and petition organizers argued their points in court on Tuesday.
In their decision, the supreme court judges wrote that the attorney general did not perform the duties of his office.
"If the Attorney General had complied with his duty to approve the Auditor's fiscal note summaries ... the Secretary would have filed the ballot titles ... nearly 100 days ago," Judge Paul C. Wilson wrote in the opinion, which was joined by all but one judge, who did not participate in the case.
An initiative petition on abortion access was stalled as Attorney General Andrew Bailey and State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick disagreed on the fiscal note. The ACLU filed a lawsuit asking the judge to force the certification process to move forward.
The initiative petition aims to codify abortion rights in the Missouri Constitution. There are 11 total rights it outlines, including access to abortion, birth control and miscarriage management. The petition also outlines parameters for each of those rights.
In June, Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beteem ruled the attorney general must approve the fiscal note on a proposed initiative petition within 24 hours, allowing the petition to move forward. However, the attorney general's office appealed the decision, moving the case to the Missouri Supreme Court.
The attorney general has a "clear, ministerial duty to approve the summaries and notify the Auditor of this approval," Wilson wrote in the high court's opinion.
