JEFFERSON CITY — The Missouri Supreme Court said Friday it would hear oral arguments July 18 in a fight over a ballot initiative to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.
Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem on Tuesday ordered Attorney General Andrew Bailey to sign off on the abortion initiative’s cost estimate prepared by a fellow Republican, State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick. Bailey has refused to do so.
Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick, left, and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey.
Beetem ordered Bailey to approve the fiscal note summary within 24 hours of the ruling. That deadline passed Wednesday with no such action from Bailey.
Bailey instead asked the Missouri Supreme Court to intervene in the case. The Supreme Court on Friday scheduled oral arguments for 3 p.m. on July 18.
Anna Fitz-James, represented by the ACLU of Missouri, originally filed the lawsuit May 4.
After Bailey failed to sign off on the summary this week, the ACLU asked Beetem to issue an order enforcing his order, arguing Bailey couldn’t automatically stay Beetem’s ruling by appealing the case, the Missouri Independent reported.
The outlet reported the attorney general argued his notice of appeal was sufficient to stay Beetem’s order.
The legal conflict stems from a March determination by Fitzpatrick that passage of the amendment would have an estimated cost to state and local governments of at least $51,000 annually.
In response, Bailey said the price tag could be $51 billion, including the possibility of losing all federal Medicaid health insurance funding, which is about $12 billion per year.
Fitzpatrick rejected the claim, arguing that submitting an inaccurate fiscal note would violate his duty as state auditor.
During arguments before Beetem on June 7, ACLU attorney Anthony Rothert said the stand-off has left his client unable to move forward with the collection of signatures needed to place the amendment on the November 2024 ballot.
Beetem acknowledged that Bailey’s delay tactics had impacted the group’s ability to collect signatures, saying his involvement deprived the process of 50 days.
Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who has refused to sign off on the amendment’s potential cost estimate, will have to do so, the judge ordered
The face-off is part of a lawsuit brought by the Missouri ACLU, which is representing a client seeking to restore abortion rights in the state after the procedure was banned last June.
The case is scheduled for trial on Wednesday morning, with the ACLU asking a judge to order the secretary of state to finalize the summary.
Key lawyers who worked to advance Eric Schmitt’s agenda quit in the first five months of Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s tenure.
Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick refused to acquiesce to a demand by Attorney General Andrew Bailey to increase the estimated cost of the proposed amendment
Supporters of an abortion-rights initiative petition contend the attorney general acted unlawfully when he pressed the state auditor to increase the projected cost of the proposal.
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