Information Packet and Legal References

• An initiative petition is the process that people, instead of the legislature, may use to introduce and enact a law.


• An initiative may not be proposed to dedicate revenue, to make or repeal appropriations, to create courts, to define the jurisdiction of courts or prescribe their rules, or to enact local or special legislation.


• View or print the Initiative Public Information Packet that summarizes the statutes and regulations. This packet includes frequently asked questions, common errors, sample pages for application signature gathering and the number of signatures required.


• The initiative petition procedures appear in Article XI of the Alaska Constitution, Alaska Statutes 15.45.010 through 15.45.245 and Title 6 Alaska Administrative Code 25.240. The information contained on this page should not be considered a substitute for reading the statutes and regulations in their entirety.


• Many past attorney general opinions for ballot initiatives can be located on the division's Initiative Petition Status webpage or at the Department of Law Resources page.

Initiative Petition Timeline

• A three member initiative committee files an initiative petition with the lieutenant governor with the proposed bill, signatures of 100 qualified registered voters to serve as sponsors and a $100 deposit.


• Within 60 calendar days after receipt, the lieutenant governor notifies the initiative committee if the application is denied or certified.


• If certified, signature petition booklets are prepared by the Division of Elections. Upon notification that booklets are available, the initiative committee has 365 days to collect signatures from qualified registered voters.


• Signatures must be equal in number to 10 percent of those who voted in the preceding general election, are residents in at least three-fourths of the house districts and who, in each of the house districts, are equal in number to seven percent of those who voted in the preceding general election in the house district.


• Once the initiative committee files the petition booklets with the Division of Elections, the division reviews and verifies signers in the booklets. The lieutenant governor notifies the initiative committee if the petition was properly or improperly filed within 60 days of receipt of the booklets.


• If properly filed, the ballot title and proposition will appear on the ballot of the first statewide primary, general or special election held after a legislative session has convened and adjourned and a period of 120 days has expired since the adjournment of the legislative session.