Pubdate: Tue, 10 May 2011 Source: Missoulian (MT) Copyright: 2011 Missoulian Contact: http://www.missoulian.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/720 Author: Charles S. Johnson, Missoulian State Bureau MEDICAL MARIJUANA PETITIONS WON'T REQUIRE AS MANY SIGNATURES AS EXPECTED HELENA - Medical marijuana advocates preparing to mount a signature-gathering effort to suspend a soon-to-enacted law restricting the industry won't need to collect nearly as many names as they initially believed. They will need to obtain between 31,238 and 43,247 signatures, depending on which state House districts they use, but they don't need to gather a total of 73,010 signatures as some originally believed. Once Gov. Brian Schweitzer lets Senate Bill 423, by Sen. Jeff Essmann, R-Billings, become law without his signature, they can take the initial steps needed to launch a signature-gathering effort. Suspension backers first must file documents with the secretary of state's office, which triggers a review by several state offices. Secretary of State Linda McCulloch's office concluded Tuesday that any efforts to suspend laws need only the signatures of at least 15 percent of the registered voters in at least 51 of the state House districts as the Montana Constitution specifies. They do not also need to obtain the signatures of 15 percent of the total number of people who voted for governor in 2008, said Jorge Quintana, the office's chief legal counsel. That will make a huge difference in the signature-gathering efforts. To get the 15 percent of the 51 districts will take between 31,238 signatures for the 51 House districts with the lowest number of voters to 43,247 signatures for the 51 districts with the most voters, McCulloch's election staff calculated. The state constitution empowers citizens to undertake referendum efforts to put a state law on the ballot if they get enough signatures so voters can decide whether to keep it or reject it. That takes the signatures of 5 percent of the registered voters in at least 34 House districts. The total number of signers also must equal at least 5 percent of the state's registered voters. A suspension goes one step beyond a referendum and requires considerably more signatures by stopping a law from being implemented until Montanans vote on it. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.