Proponents of State Question 820 asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court to place the question on the November 2022 ballot without having completed the required statutory 10-day period for challenges on the sufficiency of collected signatures or the ballot title. This would upend the legally required process initiative petitions must take to be placed on the ballot.
The State Chamber Research Foundation filed a brief, along with the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Legal Foundation and the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association, requesting the court require proponents to adhere to state statute.
"We engaged in Nichols, et al v. Ziriax, et al, not based on the subject matter of the question but rather the vital right of Oklahomans to petition the government through an initiative, while maintaining the integrity of the rules all Oklahomans must play by." said Ben Lepak, Executive Director of The State Chamber Research Foundation.
“If Oklahomans want a state question placed on the ballot, it should be. But it must get there without taking any shortcuts,” said Lepak.
While we wait on a decision from the Oklahoma Supreme Court, you can read the order issued by the Court, Tuesday, requiring the 10-day challenged period be followed and pushing pause on the litigation until such time.
Ben Lepak explains more about The State Chamber Research Foundation Legal Center’s involvement in an interview with KFOR here.
The State Chamber Research Foundation (SCRF) is the business community’s think tank. Through high quality research and analysis, SCRF educates policymakers and the public about the virtues of the free enterprise system, the public policy ideas that enable free enterprise to thrive, and the positive contributions of the business community to the prosperity and welfare of the people of Oklahoma. As a non-profit, non-partisan research and education organization, SCRF is dedicated to advancing free markets, increasing opportunity, and growing prosperity.
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