Bill > HJR37

This joint resolution proposes a comprehensive amendment to the West Virginia State Constitution that establishes the people's rights to initiative, referendum, and recall. The initiative power allows registered voters to propose and enact statutes or constitutional amendments through petition procedures, requiring signatures from at least 10% of voters in each district and in two-thirds of counties, with limitations on the types of legislation that can be proposed. The referendum power enables voters to challenge and potentially reject newly enacted legislative statutes through similar petition processes, with restrictions on which types of legislation can be referred. The recall power permits voters to remove elected officials from office by gathering signatures from 20% of voters in the official's electoral district, with constraints such as preventing recall elections less than one year before an official's term ends and limiting recalls to once per term. The resolution mandates that the Legislature establish detailed procedures for these processes, emphasizes transparency through contribution disclosures, and stipulates that these powers should be "liberally construed" to ensure citizens can meaningfully participate in governance. The amendment is designed to empower voters while maintaining reasonable limitations to prevent potential abuse of these democratic mechanisms.