70% of severance tax petition signatures rejected
by July 19, 2012 5:20 pm 99 views
An effort to raise the severance tax to a flat 7% has failed to meet the signature threshold to be placed on the November ballot, but supporters will be given another 30 days to meet the legal requirement.
The Secretary of State’s office notified Sheffield Nelson, leader of the Committee for a Fair Severance Tax, that of the 69,774 signatures submitted, only 21,347 were valid registered voters in Arkansas. The number of valid signatures represents 30.5% of those submitted, meaning nearly 70% were rejected.
The requirement to qualify for the ballot is 62,507 and state officials said Nelson would have another 30 days to obtain additional signatures or prove that rejected signatures should be counted as valid.
The Secretary of State’s office said Nelson’s group had until August 20, 2012 to meet the 30-day extension.