Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt (R) signed Senate Bill 1027 (SB 1027) on May 27, enacting changes to the state’s initiative and referendum processes. The bill passed in the Oklahoma State Legislature with all Democrats voting against and all but six Republicans in favor.
Oklahoma is one of 26 states with an initiative process. Citizens in Oklahoma can propose initiated state statutes, initiated constitutional amendments, and veto referendums.
Senate Bill 1027
The Oklahoma Senate voted 36-8 along partisan lines to pass SB 1027. The House voted 69-23 to pass the bill, with all Democrats voting against and Republicans split, with 69 in favor and six opposed.
Changes made by Senate Bill 1027 include enacting signature distribution requirements, prohibiting payments to signature gatherers based on the number of signatures collected, and requiring signature gatherers to be residents of the state.
A total of 64 bills have been passed in 49 states to change ballot measure processes during 2025 legislative sessions, including six that were vetoed. Senate Bill 1027 is one of 40 bills changing initiative processes that were passed in state legislatures in 2025 with majority support from Republicans. Two bills passed with majority support from Democrats. An additional 22 bills were passed with bipartisan support.
Petition sheet statement
Prior to the new law, petition sheets had to include a “simple statement of the gist of the proposition.” The new bill requires the statement included on petition sheets to explain the effect of the proposition in basic words and not contain any words that have special meaning for members of a particular profession or trade that are not commonly known to the citizens of the state. Under the new law, the statement could not contain euphemisms or words that are code words or an apparent attempt to deceive voters. The statement must be neutral, not contain supporting or opposing arguments, and indicate whether the proposition will have a fiscal impact and describe funding sources, tax increases, or eliminations of existing services. The statement would be required to include a disclaimer that all signatures on a petition are public records subject to the state open records act. The secretary of state could remove any gists that do not meet the requirements and direct proponents to submit a gist that complies.
Distribution requirements
In Oklahoma, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiative is based on the number of votes cast for governor in the preceding election: 15% for constitutional initiatives (172,993 for 2026), 8% for statutory initiatives (92,263 for 2026), and 5% for veto referendum petitions (57,664 for 2026).
Prior to SB 1027, Oklahoma did not have any distribution requirements dictating that certain amounts of signatures come from certain counties or districts.
Senate Bill 1027 established a distribution requirement limiting the number of signatures collected from a single county to 11.5% of the number of votes cast in the county in the last gubernatorial election for statutory petitions and 20.8% for constitutional petitions.
Oklahoma is the 17th out of the 26 states with an initiative process to enact a signature distribution requirement. Sixteen other states require signature distribution requirements for initiatives and referendums, including:
- Seven states with distribution requirements based on counties;
- Five states with distribution requirements based on state legislative districts; and
- Four states with distribution requirements based on congressional districts.
Sen. David Bullard (R-6), who sponsored the legislation in the Senate, said, “This forces them out to 18-to-20 different counties. It doesn’t even force them to all 77 counties.” Bullard also said “These changes are long overdue to protect Oklahoma’s laws from being hijacked by out-of-state special interest groups pushing an agenda that goes against our local values. … It’s time to ensure that rural Oklahomans have a voice in this process and that our laws reflect the will of the people, not the wealthy outside influences trying to buy their way onto the ballot.”
State Rep. Mickey Dollens (D-93) proposed an amendment to the bill to extend the signature collection period from 90 to 180 days, which was ultimately not included in the final bill. Dollens said, “It just proves that this has nothing to do about getting more rural votes or signatures. This is simply about silencing the people’s constitutional right to petition their government. And it should be noted that signatures make no effect on the outcome of a state question on the ballot. All that does is simply gain and question access to the ballot, and then everyone has the opportunity to vote for it in a general election, just like we do statewide elected officials.”
Residency requirements
The bill also made Oklahoma the ninth state with an initiative process to enact a residency requirement for signature gatherers, requiring signature gatherers to be registered voters in the state.
The other states with residency requirements are Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, and Utah. Along with Oklahoma, Florida also enacted a residency requirement in 2025.
Pay-per-signature ban
Senate Bill 1027 also prohibits signature gatherers from being paid per signature, making Oklahoma the 10th state to enact such a ban.
Nine other states—Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming—ban paying signature gatherers per signature.
Out-of-state signature collection funding ban
Under the new law, entities funding initiative signature gathering campaigns must submit weekly reports to the secretary of state detailing the expenditures and attesting that the funds are not from out of state.
Arguments from state legislators
House Speaker Kyle Hilbert (R-29), who sponsored the legislation in the House, said, “For too long, rural Oklahomans have been left out of deciding what state questions appear on the ballot. That ends now. This critical legislation improves the integrity of the initiative petition process by empowering voters from all parts of the state to stay engaged every step of the way.”
State Sen. Carri Hicks (D-40) said the bill “threatens something fundamental, our freedom as Oklahomans to decide on what kind of state we want to live in.”
Initiatives in Oklahoma
Two initiatives have been filed targeting the 2026 ballot in Oklahoma. State Question 836 would establish in the constitution an open primary system for statewide and county offices. State Question 837 would create a constitutional right for people aged 21 and older to purchase, possess, and consume marijuana in any form.
Margaret Kobos, founder and CEO of Oklahoma United, the sponsor of State Question 836, said, “SB 1027 is bad policy. It suppresses voter input, makes it harder for Oklahomans to hold their elected officials accountable, and sends the message that those in power don’t trust the people who put them there. SB 1027 does nothing but prove that Oklahomans’ long held distrust of state government is well-earned.” Kobos said Oklahoma United was preparing a legal challenge to Senate Bill 1027.
One initiative has been certified for the ballot in Oklahoma for June 16, 2026. State Question 832 would gradually increase the state minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2029.
From 2014 to 2024, eight citizen initiatives appeared on the ballot, of which four were approved and four were defeated.
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