In the past, the Commission has considered proposed summaries of amendments submitted by members of the public. We are again offering citizens the opportunity to submit proposed summaries for consideration by the Commission.

Commission members will be provided with the proposed language. Commission members will have access to every suggested summary delivered before the deadline of 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 25. However, the Commission is not required to use language from any proposed summary that it receives

A Commission meeting is not a public hearing. There will be no opportunity for the public to speak at the Commission’s meeting. This is not an advocacy forum.

Please be aware that proposed summaries submitted by the public for consideration by the Commission are public records. Each suggested Constitutional Amendment summary will be treated as a public record, even if confidential status is requested by the person sending it.

The Commission does not have the authority to advise citizens on how to vote on ballot questions about constitutional changes.

1. Draft a summary for the amendment. North Carolina law says that the summary must be “an explanation of the amendment . . . in simple and commonly used language”. G.S. 147-54.10(a). You can view examples of summaries adopted by the Commission in the past for proposed amendments by clicking here. Summaries adopted by the Commission in the past have been 250-300 words in length.
2. Submit a Proposed Summary by sending an email to: [email protected] . NOTE: To help us organize the materials for access by the Commission, we have created a separate email account for each amendment. Please use the email address for the specific amendment for which you are submitting a summary.

   If you wish to submit a summary on paper, please be aware that the deadline for receipt of summaries is 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 25, 2018. Using first class mail may, therefore, result in your summary not being received by the Commission by the deadline. If you wish to submit a paper summary:

   Mailing Address:
   Attention: Constitutional Amendments Publication Commission
   NC Department of the Secretary of State
   PO Box 29622
   Raleigh, NC 27626-0622

   Street Address (for USPS express mail or other express delivery service):
   Attention: Constitutional Amendments Publication Commission
   NC Department of the Secretary of State
   2 South Salisbury St.
   Raleigh, NC 27601-2903