§ 309. The referendum.

(a)

Scope of the referendum. The people of Baltimore County reserve to themselves the power known as "The Referendum," by petition to have submitted to the registered voters of the county, to approve or reject at the polls, any enacted law or ordinance or part of any such law or ordinance of the county council. The referendum petition against any such law or ordinance shall be sufficient if signed by ten per cent of the qualified voters of the county calculated upon the whole number of votes cast in the county for Governor at the last preceding gubernatorial election. Such petition shall be filed with the board of supervisors of elections of Baltimore County within forty-five days after the enactment of the laws to be referred to the voters at the next general election. If such a petition is filed as aforesaid, such law or ordinance or part thereof to be so referred shall not take effect until thirty days after its approval by a majority of the qualified voters of the county voting thereon at the said next general election; provided, however, that if more than one-third but less than the full number of signatures required to complete any referendum petition against such law or ordinance is filed within forty-five days after the date of its enactment, the time for the law to take effect and the time for filing the remainder of the signatures to complete the petition shall be extended for an additional thirty days with like effect. An "emergency measure," or a law or ordinance declared to be effective on a date earlier or later than forty-five (45) days after enactment, shall remain in force from the date of its enactment notwithstanding the filing of such petition, but shall stand repealed thirty days after having been rejected by a majority of the qualified voters voting thereon. No law making any appropriation for maintaining the county government, or for maintaining or aiding any public institution, not exceeding the next previous appropriation for the same purpose, shall be subject to rejection or repeal under this section. This increase in any such appropriation for maintaining the county government or for maintaining or aiding any public institution shall take effect only as in the case of other laws, and such increase, or any part thereof, specified in the petition may be referred to a vote of the people of the county upon petition as above provided. (Bill No. 79, 1978, § 1; approved by voters Nov. 7, 1978; effective Dec. 8, 1978; Bill No. 101, 1988, § 1; approved by voters Nov. 8, 1988; effective Dec. 9, 1988)

(b)

Form of petition. A petition may consist of several papers, but each paper shall contain the full text of the Act or the part of the Act petitioned upon; and there shall be attached to each such paper an affidavit of the person procuring the signature thereon that each signature was signed before him, that, to the best of the said person's knowledge, information and belief, each signature thereon is genuine and bona fide and the signers are registered voters in the State of Maryland and Baltimore County, as set opposite their names; and no other verification shall be required of the person procuring the signatures. (Bill No. 79, 1978, § 1) (Approved by voters Nov. 7, 1978; effective Dec. 8, 1978)

(c)

Verification and challenge. Within 90 days of the filing of a petition, the board of supervisors of elections of Baltimore County shall verify the registration of each signator and the form of the petition, and shall report the results of its verification investigation to the county council. Any court proceedings to challenge the findings of the board of supervisors of elections must be commenced within 90 days of the date of the report. (Bill No. 79, 1978, § 2) (Approved by voters Nov. 7, 1978; effective Dec. 8, 1978)

(d)

Furthering legislation. The provisions of this section shall be self-executing; provided, however, that legislation in furtherance hereof and not in conflict herewith may be enacted by the county council. (Bill No. 104, 1970, § 1; Bill No. 79, 1978, § 3; approved by voters Nov. 7, 1978; effective Dec. 8, 1978)

  Annotation— Where County Charter designated Board of Supervisors of Elections as agency to receive petitions for referendum, such board had responsibility to determine validity of signatures thereon. Gittings v. Board of Supervisors of Elections for Baltimore County, 38 Md. App. 674, 382 A.2d 349 (1978).

Editor's note

The publisher corrected a former reference to "investigation of the county council" in subsection (c) of this section to read "investigation to the county council" to conform with the language as adopted by the County Council in Bill No. 79, 1978.