Representative Kerry Benninghoff (R-Bellefonte) is circulating his ballot access bill among all members of the State House, asking for co-sponsors. It would abolish mandatory petitions for all candidates, and provide a choice of paying a filing fee. No fee would be higher than $2,000. The bill applies equally to candidates seeking a place on a primary ballot, and candidates seeking a place on the general election ballot. UPDATE: thanks to Ken Krawchuk for pointing out that I mis-read the bill. The bill provides higher filing fees for independent and minor party candidates than for Democrats and Republicans. That provision of the bill would be unconstitutional, under the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision Davis v FEC. The Court said that states cannot have different contribution limits for different candidates for the same office. It follows logically that states can’t have different filing fee amounts for different candidates for the same office either.

The bill already has several co-sponsors. After that process of seeking co-sponsors is complete, probably by July 18, the bill will receive a bill number.

The Institute of Government Studies has released this report on how California could provide for petitioning via computer. The report specifically is concerned with qualifying initiatives with electronic signatures, instead of paper signatures. The report, by Walter Baer and Roy Ulrich, is here. Thanks to ElectionUpdates for the link.

On June 30, Indiana Republican State Senator John Waterman turned in signatures to be the Taxpayer Party candidate for Governor. The party has no other nominees (except for Lieutenant Governor). No one knows how many signatures he turned in, since separate turn-ins were made to various counties. The signatures must be checked by July 15. The requirement is 32,742 signatures. If Waterman qualifies, this will be the first statewide minor party or independent petition to succeed in Indiana since 2000, when Pat Buchanan qualified as the Reform Party presidential nominee. The Libertarian Party has been on the ballot automatically in Indiana since 1994, but the Green and Constitution Parties have never been on for statewide office.