Planned Parenthood of Alaska v. Campbell

Summary

The Alaska Supreme Court reviewed challenges to an initiative concerning parental involvement in abortions sought by minors. The court held that the initiative petition summary was inaccurate and impartial because it omitted material information, including restrictions on existing law and criminal penalties for physicians. It nevertheless affirmed allowing the initiative to proceed to the ballot with a corrected summary, without requiring recirculation of the petition for new signatures.

Holdings

1. The petition summary was inaccurate and not impartial because it omitted three material features of the initiative: its restriction of current law, its modification and revalidation of the prior parental-consent statute, and the felony penalties applicable to physicians who violated the proposed notification provisions.
2. For any initiative that regulates conduct and creates criminal penalties for violating its code of conduct, both the petition summary and the ballot summary must describe the regulated conduct and the penalties.
3. A court may permit a defective statewide initiative petition summary prepared by the lieutenant governor to be corrected for the ballot without requiring the sponsors to recirculate the petition and obtain new signatures.
4. The initiative could proceed to the ballot only if the summary was corrected and the parental-consent statute and related enforcement provisions were made available to voters along with the initiative.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the initiative petition summary was inaccurate and impartial because it omitted material information about the initiative's legal effect and criminal penalties.
2. Whether a petition summary for an initiative that regulates conduct and creates criminal penalties must describe both the regulated conduct and the penalties.
3. Whether a defective statewide initiative petition summary prepared by the lieutenant governor may be corrected for the ballot without recirculating the petition and obtaining new signatures.
4. What factors a court must consider when deciding whether to permit a statewide initiative to proceed after circulation with a defective summary.

Disposition

affirmed