Can an organization pay people to collect petition signatures?
Yes ‑ per U.S. District Court decision ‑ Ficker vs. Montgomery County, but no one may receive any money or other thing of value in return for signing the petition. Election Law, Section 16-401(a)(2). NOTE: Howard County’s Code requires that on a local referendum petition, the circulator affirm, under penalty of perjury, whether they have been paid to procure the signatures.
