§ 6.3. Petitions; Revocation of Signatures.  


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  • A. Number of Signatures.
    Initiative or referendum petitions must be signed by registered voters equal in number to at least twenty-five percent (25%) of the number of persons who voted in the last regular City election, but by not fewer than fifteen percent (15%) of the registered voters at the time of that same election.

    B. Form and Content.
    All papers of a petition prepared for filing must be substantially uniform in size and style and must be assembled as one instrument. Each signature on the petition must be followed by the address of the person signing and the date the signature is executed. A petition prepared for circulation must contain or have attached thereto throughout its circulation the full text of the ordinance proposed or sought to be reconsidered. The petition filed with the City Clerk need have attached to it only one copy of the ordinance being proposed or referred.

    C. Affidavit of Circulator.
    Each paper of a petition containing signatures must have attached to it when filed an affidavit executed by a registered voter certifying the number of signatures on the paper, that he or she personally circulated it, that all signatures were affixed in his or her presence, that he or she believes them to be genuine signatures of the persons whose names they purport to be and that each signer had an opportunity before signing to read the full text of the ordinance proposed or sought to be reconsidered. Any person filing a false affidavit will be liable to criminal penalties as provided by State law.

    D. Time for Filing Initiative Petitions.
    Signatures on an initiative petition must be secured and the petition filed within six (6) months after the date the affidavit required under Section 6.2A was filed.

    E. Time for Filing Referendum Petitions.
    Referendum petitions may be filed within sixty (60) days after final adoption by the Council of the ordinance sought to be reconsidered, or subsequently at any time more than two (2) years after such final adoption. The signatures on a referendum petition must be secured during the sixty (60) days after such final adoption; however, if the petition is filed more than two (2) years after final adoption, the signatures must be secured within six (6) months after the date the affidavit required under Section 6.2A was filed.

    F. Revocation of Signatures.
    Prior to the time a petition is filed with the City Clerk, a signatory may revoke his or her signature for any reason by filing with the City Clerk a statement of his or her intent to revoke such signature. After a petition is filed, a signatory may not revoke his or her signature. The City Clerk shall cause to be prepared and have available to the public forms suitable for the revocation of petition signatures.