SB 796 - Petition circulators shall not be paid based on the number of signatures they obtain. Persons who have broken laws that would constitute forgery in this state shall not qualify as petition circulators. Currently, persons who misrepresent themselves on petitions are guilty of a misdemeanor. Under this act, those who knowingly do so are guilty of a class one election offense. Currently, before a petition may be circulated for signatures, a sample sheet must be submitted to the Secretary of State who then sends a copy to the Attorney General and State Auditor. This act delays the delivery of the petition to the State Auditor until after the petitioner successfully collects between one and two thousand sponsoring signatures. Currently, the Secretary of State has 30 days within which to send notice to the person submitting a petition sheet for approval after submission. This act shortens that time to 15 days. If the form of petition is approved, the petitioner has 45 days from being notified of approval to submit between one and two thousand sponsoring signatures in support of the initiative or the petition shall be rejected. Within 5 days of receipt, the Secretary of State may send copies of the signature pages to election authorities for verification. This act is similar to SB 598 (2007), SB 934 (2008), SB 1003 (2008), SB 954 (2008), SB 909 (2008), HB 1763 (2008), HB 837 (2009), HB 228 (2009), and SB 115 (2009). CHRIS HOGERTY