The FindLaw Legal Dictionary – free access to more than 8260 definitions of legal terms. Search for a definition or browse our legal glossaries. In Brazil, a popular bill initiative requires that two conditions be met before being sent to the National Congress: the signatures of at least 1% of registered national voters and at least 0.3% of those authorized to vote from one of the 27 federal entities (the 26 states plus the Federal District). If both conditions are met, Congress is required to discuss and vote on the implementation of the initiative. The United States does not have a national initiative process, but the initiative is used at the state government level in 24 states and the District of Columbia,[4] and is also widely used at the local government level. The popular referendum is a measure that appears on the ballot as a result of an election petition and is similar to the initiative in that both are triggered by petitions, but there are important differences. The popular referendum allows voters to approve or repeal an act of legislative activity. If the legislature passes a law that voters do not approve, they can collect signatures to demand a referendum on the law. In general, there is a period of 90 days after the passage of the law during which the petition must take place. Once enough signatures are collected and verified, the new law will appear on the ballot for a referendum. Between its adoption and the referendum, the law cannot enter into force.

If voters approve the law, it will come into force as planned. If voters reject the law, it will be rescinded and will not come into force. 24 states have the popular referendum. Most of them are also states of initiative. All federal states have the right of initiative. [17] However, there is no constitutional citizens` initiative at the federal level in Germany. An agenda initiative is a measure that is petitioned to a legislator for consideration. The legislator may decide to approve or reject the proposal without a public vote. [1] This form or initiative is more common than a legally binding direct or indirect initiative. Since 1 March 2012, groups of at least 50,000 Finnish citizens with the right to vote have the constitutional right to send a citizens` initiative (Finnish: Kansalaisaloite, Swedish: medborgarinitiativ) to the Finnish Parliament. Parliament has the right to consider and discuss any initiative and the possibilities of it becoming new laws. The first initiative to surpass the 50,000 mark did so just a few months after the “Kansalaisaloit” became possible for the first time.

The initiative called for an end to Finland`s fur industry, but failed in parliament. The first initiative adopted by Parliament was the Citizens` Initiative, known in Finland as the “Equal Marriages Act” and also known as the campaign slogan #Tahdon2013 (#IDo2013). This initiative was adopted by Parliament during the 2011-2015 parliamentary session, although political debate, decision-making and drafting of the new law continued until the next parliamentary session. The new law entered into force on 1 March 2017[circular reference]. To date, a total of 24 citizens` initiatives have reached the 50,000 mark, of which 20 have been rejected or adopted by parliament – so far only two have been passed: the “Marriage Equality Act” and the “Maternity Act” of 2015/16 [Circular Reference]. [15] [16] For more information on citizens` initiatives, referendums, and state laws, see the NCSL Initiative and Referendum Processes resource. There were, however, unsuccessful attempts to take initiatives, but since the proposals were bills and not constitutional amendments, despite the passage of the bills, it would probably not have been possible to legitimately vote on an initiative. The first attempt to secure national voting initiatives occurred in 1907, when Joint House Resolution 44 was introduced by Representative Elmer Fulton of Oklahoma; The proposal was never put to the vote.

In 1977, the Aburetsk-Hatfield National Voters` Initiative and the Hunt Resolutions never left the committee. Senator Mike Gravel was part of that effort. The rejected Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TEC) contained a limited indirect right of initiative (Article I-46(4)). The proposal to introduce the European Citizens` Initiative (ECI) provided that 1,000,000 citizens from a minimum number of different Member States could invite the executive body of the European Union (EU), the European Commission, to examine any proposal “on matters where citizens consider that a legal act of the Union is necessary for the purposes of implementing the Constitution”. The exact mechanism had not been agreed. Critics pointed to the weakness of this right of initiative, which ultimately did not result in a vote or referendum. At FindLaw.com, we are proud to be the leading source of free legal information and resources on the Internet. Contact us. An indirect initiative is voted by a legislator after enough signatures have been collected from the voting population.

In most regions, the measure will only be the subject of a subsequent referendum if it is amended by the legislator. In political terminology, the initiative is a process that allows citizens to circumvent their state`s laws by putting proposed laws and, in some states, constitutional amendments on the ballot. The first state to take the initiative was South Dakota in 1898. Since then, 23 other states have included the initiative process in their constitutions, the most recent being Mississippi in 1992. This represents a total of 24 States with an initiative process. The popular initiative to propose constitutional amendments is enshrined in the Philippine Constitution of 1987 under Article XVII, Section 2, which states that the federal popular initiative was incorporated into the Swiss Federal Constitution in 1891, so that a number of citizens (currently 100,000 signatures within 18 months[36]) could request an amendment to a constitutional article. or even to include a new article in the Constitution. The right of initiative is also used at cantonal and communal level in Switzerland (all cantons, all municipalities from which direct democratic citizen participation originates); Many cantons allow initiatives to regularly enact unconstitutional laws, but not the federal system. A similar system with the same name, the European Citizens` Initiative (ECI), was introduced into the now ratified European Treaty of Lisbon (1. December 2009), which allows a limited indirect right of initiative. [7] It follows rules very similar to those laid down in the European Constitution, which require the signature of 1,000,000 European nationals. These citizens would therefore have the same right to ask the Commission to present a legislative proposal, as the Council has done since the creation of the European Communities in 1957.

[8] However, this assumes that the signatures come from a “significant number” of Member States. It is estimated that this large number must represent around a quarter of the Member States, with at least 1/500 of the citizens of these Member States supporting the initiative. With the diversity of languages within the European Union, this creates a significant obstacle for people to navigate. The Treaty also specifies that the right of initiative should not be confused with the right of petition, especially since a petition is addressed to Parliament[9], while a citizens` initiative is addressed to the Commission; While a petition is a method of remonstrance that usually focuses on perceived violations of European law, an initiative is a fundamental proposal for new legislation.