Michigan Compiled Laws

Mich. Comp. Laws § 168.472 (2026)

Initiative petitions; filing.

✓ current as of July 2026
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MICHIGAN ELECTION LAW


Act 116 of 1954


168.472 Initiative petitions; filing.

Sec. 472.

    Petitions to initiate legislation shall be filed with the secretary of state not less than 10 days before the beginning of a session of the legislature.

History: 1954, Act 116, Eff. June 1, 1955

Constitutionality Notes:

    The requirements of this section constitute an unnecessary and unreasonable restraint on the constitutional right to initiate legislation, as provided for by Const 1963, art 2, § 9. Wolverine Golf Club v Secretary of State, 384 Mich 461; 185 NW2d 392 (1971).

PopularName Notes:

Election Code
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1970–2022 · leading case: Wolverine Golf Club v. Sec'y of State, 180 N.W.2d 820 (Mich. Ct. App. 1970).
Wolverine Golf Club v. Sec'y of State, 180 N.W.2d 820 (Mich. Ct. App. 1970). · cites it 6× “MCLA §168.472 (Stat Ann 1956 Rev § 6.1472), provides: “Petitions to initiate legislation shall be filed with the Secretary of State not less than 10 days before the beginning of a session of the legislature.”
Wolverine Golf Club v. Sec'y of State, 185 N.W.2d 392 (Mich. 1971). · cites it 4× “The defendant replied on February 16, 1970 that MCLA § 168.472 (Stat Ann 1956 Rev § 6.1472) required the filing of the petitions not less than ten *464 days before the start of the legislative session and since the 1970 legislative session had already commenced the petitions…”
Senate v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2020). · cites it 4× “We reverse the Court of Claims ruling that the affidavit requirement passes constitutional muster and strike the pre-circulation affidavit requirement of MCL 168.472(2). Affirmed in part and reversed in part.”
League Of Women Voters Of Michigan V Sec'y Of State (Mich. 2022). · cites it 2× “MCL 168.472. But circumstances have changed since 1908—the Legislature has gone from meeting for a few months every other year to nearly the entire calendar year of every year.”
League Of Women Voters Of Michigan V Sec'y Of State (Mich. 2022). · cites it 2× “MCL 168.472. But circumstances have changed since 1908—the Legislature has gone from meeting for a few months every other year to nearly the entire calendar year of every year.”
League of Women Voters of Michigan v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2021). · cites it 2× “472(7), and we reverse the Court of Claims to the extent it found constitutional the precirculation affidavit requirement of MCL 168.472(2). The parties shall bear their own costs.”
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 168.472(2) — 2 cases
Senate v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2020). “We reverse the Court of Claims ruling that the affidavit requirement passes constitutional muster and strike the pre-circulation affidavit requirement of MCL 168.472(2). Affirmed in part and reversed in part.”
League of Women Voters of Michigan v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2021). “472(7), and we reverse the Court of Claims to the extent it found constitutional the precirculation affidavit requirement of MCL 168.472(2). The parties shall bear their own costs.”
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 168.472(7) — 2 cases
Senate v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2020). “We reverse the Court of Claims ruling that the affidavit requirement passes constitutional muster and strike the pre-circulation affidavit requirement of MCL 168.472(2). Affirmed in part and reversed in part.”
League of Women Voters of Michigan v. Sec'y of State (Mich. Ct. App. 2021). “472(7), and we reverse the Court of Claims to the extent it found constitutional the precirculation affidavit requirement of MCL 168.472(2). The parties shall bear their own costs.”
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