than eight per centum of the legal vo ers of the entire state, or five per per centum of the legal voters in each of two-thirds of the counties, shall be necessary to propose any general measure by initiative petition, except amendments to this Constitution; and not more than fifteen per centum of the legal voters of any county or municipality shall be necessary to propose any local law authorized by this Constitution for such respective locality; but every such initiative petition, whether general or local, shall include the full text of the measure so proposed.

Par. 3. Direction and filing of initiative petitions. Initiative petitions, for all laws but municipal ordinances, shall be directed to the General Assembly, and shall be filed with the governor at least twenty days before any regular session of the General Assembly; and the Governor shall transmit the same to the General Assembly as soon as it convenes and organizes.

Par. 4. Precedence in General Ascembly-How enacted or rejected. Such initiative measures shall take precedence over all other measures in the General Assembly, except laws necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety; and they shall be enacted or rejected, without change or amendment, by the General Assembly within thirty days after its organization; and the ayes and nays thereon shall be recorded.

Par. 5. Referendum for initiative measures. When any such initiative measure shall have been enacted by the General Assembly, it shall be subject to referendum petition as any other measure, or it may be referred by the General Assembly to the people of the State, or of the locality to be affected thereby, for their approval or rejection; but no local measure shall be referred to the people of the entire state except where so ordered by a general referendum petition, or by a two-thirds majority vote of all the members elect

ed to both houses of the General Assembly.

Par. 6. The same. If any such initiative measure shall be rejected by the General Assembly, or if no action be taken upon it within said thirty days, or if it be vetoed by the Governor, it shall then be submitted to the people of the State, or of the locality to be affected thereby, for their approval or rejection at the next ensuing regular general election, as proposed amendments to this Constitution are now submitted for ratification.

Par. 7. Competing measures, how made up. The General Assembly may reject any measure so proposed by initiative petition, whether general or local, and propose a different one on the same subject; and in such event, both measures shall be submitted to the people for their approval or rejection.

Par. S. Competing measures, how ballotted on. The ballots for such competing measures shall be so worded that each voter may show, first, whether or not he is opposed to both measures, and, second, which of the two measures he prefers. If one-half or a majority of the total vote on such competing measures is cast against both measures, neither shall become operative; but otherwise, that measure receiving the greater vote shall become law.

Par. 9. The referendum, when applicable. The second power reserved by the people is the referendum; and it may be ordered, except as to laws necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, as to any measure passed by the General Assembly, whether such measure be proposed by initiative petition or by bill in the General Assembly.

Par. 10. Number of petitioners for referendum. Not more than five per centum of the legal voters of the entire state, or three per centum of the legal voters in each of two-thirds of the counties, shall be required to sign and make a valid general referendum peti

tion for any measure. If a local referendum petition is filed for submitting a local measure to the people of the locality to be affected thereby, not more than ten per centum of the voters of the county or municipality affected shall be required to sign and make a valid local referendum petition; but no local referendum shall be had where a general referendum is ordered.

Par. 11. Referendum by order of the General Assembly. The General Assembly may provide as a part of any measure originated and passed by it that such measure shall not become operative until approved by the people upon a referendum vote.

Par. 12. Direction and filing of referendum petitions. Referendum petitions against measures passed by the General Assembly shall be directed to and filed with the Governor not later than ninety days after the final adjourn ment of the session of the General Assembly which passed the measure on which the referendum is demanded; and the measure shall thereupon be submitted to the people of the entire state, or of the locality to be affected thereby, as the case may be, for their approval or rejection at an election to be held not sooner than four months after the filing of such petition, as proposed amendments to this Constitution. are now submitted for ratification.

Par. 13. Effect on remainder of act when part only referred. The filing of a referendum petition against one or more items, sections, or parts of an act or ordinance shall not delay the remainder of the act or ordinance from becoming operative, except where, in the opinion of the Attorney-General, the remainder of the act as passed is clearly dependent on the part referred for its intended purpose and effect.

Par. 14. Advertisement of measure and other procedure. Whenever it becomes necessary to submit any measure to a general referendum, all the provisions of this Constitution with

reference to proposed amendments hereto shall apply to such referred measure, except where herein otherwise specifically provided. Local acts referred to the people of any locality need be published only once a week for four weeks immediately preceding the election in the official gazette of the county to be affected thereby. Legislation may be enacted providing for the publication in book or pamphlet form of any or all measures referred to the people, together with a brief argument for and against such measure, in sufficient quantity to furnish one copy free to each qualified voter entitled to a vote thereon; whereupon the provisions of this paragraph as to the advertisement of such referred measures shall become inoperative.

Par. 15. Time of referendum elections. All elections on measures referred to the people of the entire state, or of any locality, by the Governor shall be had at biennial regular general elections, unless otherwise specially provided by the General Assembly with respect to each separate measure to be voted on at any other election: Provided, That this Paragraph shall not be construed to prevent the ballotting on any number of laws at the same election.

Par. 16. Emergency measures. Whenever it becomes necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety that a law shall become effective without delay, such necessity and the facts creating the same may be stated in one section of the bill, and if upon aye and nay vote in each house of the General Assembly two-thirds of all the members elected to each house shall vote on a separate roll call in favor of said law going into instant operation for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, such law shall become operative upon approval by the Governor. Should such measure be vetoed by the Governor, it shall not become a law

unless it shall be approved by the votes of three-fourths of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly, taken by roll call of ayes and nays.

ar. 17. Apportionment of referendum vote. In order to preserve the balance of power on measures enacted by the people as on measures enacted by the General Assembly, the total vote on all measures referred to the people of the entire state shall be apportioned among the several counties according to their representation in the House of Representatives, each county being counted for or against such measure, according to the majority of legal votes cast thereon in each respective county, as many times as it has representatives. A measure receiving a majority of such apportioned vote shall become law immediately upon the official declaration of the total vote, unless a later date be expressly provided in such act as the date on which it shall become operative. Any measure so referred and receiving less than a majority of such apportioned vote shall not become law. A county failing to give a majority either for or against any particular measure shall not be counted either for or against such measure.

Par. 18. Enactment of local measures referred. Any local measure referred to the people of the locality to be affected thereby shall become law when approved by a majority of the legal votes cast thereon in the said locality, and not otherwise, and shall take effect from the official declaration of the vote, unless a later date be expressly provided as the date on which it shall become operative.

Par. 19. Constitutional amendments by initiative. Initiative petitions to amend this Constitution shall require the signatures of twice as many voters as other general initiative petitions, and must be filed at least twelve months before the election at which they are to be voted upon, and must be referred to the people of the entire state qualified to vote thereon at a regular gen

eral election. In all other particulars, the rules for the enactment of statutory law by general initiative petition shall apply to amendments to this Constitution proposed by initiative petition.

Par. 20. Direct legislation for munici palities. The initiative and referendum powers of the people are hereby further reserved to the legal voters of each municipality as to all municipal legislation of every character whatever authorized by the municipal charter and the Constitution and laws of this state. Cities and towns may provide for the manner of exercising the initiative and referendum powers as to municipal ordinances, including the time of filing petitions for the initiative or referendum and the basis on which to count the number of their legal voters necessary to sign such petitions, and all other details not expressly provided for by uniform legislative enactment; but no city or town of this state shall require more than ten per centum of their legal voters to order the referendum, nor more than fifteen per centum to propose any municipal measure by initiative petition.

Par. 21. Governor's veto power limited. The veto power of the governor, or mayor, shall not extend to measures referred to the people; nor shall a veto preclude a referendum thereafter by order of either the people or the legislative body passing the vetoed measure.

Par. 22. Basis for determining requisite number of petitioners. The number of duly qualified voters according to the registration lists at the regular election last preceding the filing of any petition with the governor, for the initiative or for the referendum, shall be the basis on which the number of legal voters necessary to sign such a petition shall be counted, the total number of such voters being the basis for the entire state and the number in any county being the basis for that county.

Par. 23. Style of bills. The style of

all bills shall be: "Be it enacted by the people of the State of Georgia," and of municipal ordinances: "Be it ordained by the people of " (name of municipality).

Par. 24. Referendum laws, how altered. No law or ordinance enacted by referendum vote shall be repealed, altered, or amended without a referendum vote on the repealing, altering, or amending measure.

Par. 25. Conflicting laws. If two or more conflicting measures or amendments to the Constitution shall be approved by the people at the same election, the measure or amendment receiving the greatest number of affirmative votes shall prevail in all particulars as to which there is conflict.

Par. 26. General provisions. All the provisions of this Constitution with reference to laws enacted by the General Assembly shall apply with equal force to laws enacted by the people; and wherever in this Constitution the General Assembly is empowered to enact law, that power is granted by the people to the General Assembly subject to their approval under the referendum provisions of this Section.

Par. 27. Limit to initiative. Any measure rejected by the people through the powers of the initative and referendum can not be again proposed by the initiative within three years thereafter by less than twenty-five per centum of the legal voters.

Par. 28. Duplicate petitions. Any number of petitions identical in substance may be circulated with reference to the same measure, whether for the initiative or for the referendum, and may be filed together as one petition in so far as the number of signatures thereto is concerned, and each signer of said petition shall also sign his address and occupation.

Par. 29. Verification of signatures. Every sheet of every initiative or referendum petition containing signatures shall be verified by the affidavit of the

person who circulated said sheet or petition, setting forth that each of the names on said sheet was signed in the presence of the affiant and that in the belief of the affiant each signer was a qualified elector of the state, or in the case of a local law, of the locality affected by the measure so proposed to be initiated or referred to the people.

Par. 30. False signatures penalized. It shall be a felony for any person to sign any initiative or referendum petition with any name other than his own; or to sign his name more than once for the same measure; or to sign such petition when he is not a qualified elector of the state, or if the measure in question is local, of the locality proposed to be affected; or to wilfully sign an address or occupation which is not his own; provided, that nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the writing thereon of the name, address, and occupation of any person who can not write and who signs the same with his mark after the petition has been correctly read to him. Until legislation is enacted to effectually enforce this paragraph, any person convicted of a violation of any of the foregoing provisions shall be imprisoned at hard labor in the penitentiary for twelve months. This Paragraph shall be printed or written in pica type, or larger, on the back or back cover of every initiative or referendum petition before the same is circulated for signatures, and the signer's attention shall be called to its provisions or he shall be requested to read it.

Par. 31. Laws Laws become operative, when. No law passed by the General Assembly shall become operative until after the expiration of ninety days immediately following the final adjournment of the session at which such law is enacted, save alone. the emergency measures provided for in Paragraph 16 of this Section; but every measure passed by the General Assembly and approved by the Governor, or passed by