North Dakota voters would be asked to approve development of a system for electronically signing ballot measure petitions if legislators endorse House Concurrent Resolution 3031, which is set for a hearing Friday.

The resolution sets up a November 2024 ballot measure that would seek approval for the Secretary of State to implement an electronic signature gathering system by the end of 2025. Using the system, voters could electronically sign petitions for initiated and referred measures and for recalls and candidate nominations.

The resolution includes other constitutional changes that also would go before voters. It changes the threshold for placing a constitutional amendment on the ballot to 10% of the state’s population in the last federal census and changes the threshold to 5% for all other measures. Currently, constitutional amendments require signatures of 4% of the population and other measures require 2%.

Statutory and referred measures would continue to be approved with a majority vote of the electorate. However, constitutional amendments would require a majority vote of the electorate and a majority vote of the majority of counties in both a primary election and the following general election. In addition, any initiated measure can contain no more than one subject.

The changes would take effect Jan. 1, 2026, and would not apply to measure petitions approved for circulation before that date.

Sen. Bob Paulson and Rep. Jeff Hoverson, both R-Minot, have joined five other Republican representatives on the resolution. Lead sponsor is Rep. Steve Vetter, R-Grand Forks.

“I support efforts to raise the bar in the requirements to change our constitution. I believe that the bar to change the U.S. Constitution is high for a reason, and our state constitution should have similar protections,” Paulson said. “I like the fact that the proposed measure provides for an electronic signature process. There have been some questionable activities in signature gathering, and it would be good to be able to confirm identity, citizenship, residency, etc. The person would have to care enough to go through the process through the Secretary of State, and hopefully will be more informed in the process. I also like the fact that the measure will have to pass on the ballot twice and achieve more of a statewide acceptance in order to pass.”

The House Government and Veterans Affairs Committee is scheduled to take testimony on the resolution Friday at 10:30 a.m. in the state Capitol.

The Senate already has passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 4013, which proposes to have voters decide on changes to the initiated measures process, including limiting a measure to one subject. Petitions for a constitutional measure could be circulated only by voters who have lived in the state at least 120 days, and circulators cannot be paid anything of value. A constitutional measure would need a majority vote in both the primary and general election for passage.