PURPOSE: This rule sets forth the basic procedures for the conduct of a referendum on the establishment or disestablishment of soil and water conservation districts.

1. (1) The local committee and election judges shall—

   1. (A) Publish successive notices of the referendum and selection of supervisors in one (1) or more newspapers in the county where the referendum is being held each of the two (2) weeks immediately preceding the referendum;
   2. (B) Provide sealed ballot boxes and open polls promptly at the time advertised;
   3. (C) Furnish official ballots to each polling place; and
   4. (D) Close the polls promptly at the closing hour designated but allow those who have entered the polling place before this time to complete their ballots.
2. (2) Three (3) official election judges are required for each polling place. They must be residents and landowners within the proposed district. If any elected judge is not present at the polls on the date and time of the referendum, those judges present may select any citizen of the proposed district to serve in his/her place and give him/her the necessary instructions. All instructions to judges must make clear that any person designated to conduct a referendum or assist in a referendum and who thereby gains knowledge as to how any land representative voted and reveals knowledge to any other person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
3. (3) Only one (1) vote is allowed per farm either by the owner or his/her legal representative. A tract of land must be operated as an independent farm enterprise to entitle its land representative to a single vote. Two (2) or more tracts of land that are operated by one
4. (1) management as an independent farm enterprise will be entitled to one (1) vote. The size of each farm must be at least three
5. (3) acres or more.
6. (4) Each farm owner may personally cast as many votes in the soil district referendum and election of supervisors as s/he owns independently operated farms. If it is impossible for the landowner to personally cast his/her eligible vote(s) because of absentee landownership, sickness or for any other reason over which s/he has no control, the soil districts law provides that s/he may give a power of attorney to a taxpayer residing within the county to represent him/her in this referendum and election of supervisors. It is the policy of the commission to require that this taxpayer not be a legal land representative for more than one (1) landowner, unless legal representation has been established previously by reason of professional or paid farm managership.
7. (5) Immediately after closing the polls, the judges shall open the ballot boxes and carefully count the ballots cast. They shall tally on the tally sheet provided for the referendum, the number of “Yes” votes and the number of “No” votes and on the tally sheet provided for the election of supervisors write plainly the names of the nominees in the proper spaces and tally the votes each receives on the lines just below the name. The nominee who receives the largest number of votes will be declared elected a supervisor provided the State Soil and Water Districts Commission finds that the vote constituted a substantial expression of opinion.
8. (6) All blanks on “List of Voters” and all “Referendum” and “Election” tally sheets must be correctly filled in.
9. (7) After the ballots have been counted, they shall be sealed in a package by the judges at the polls and shall not be inspected except in the case of a contested election and then only on order of the proper court. Arrangements should be made to return ballot boxes, “Listing” sheets, “Referendum” and “Election” tally sheets and all supplies to the clerk of the county court within twenty-four (24) hours after polls are closed, where they shall be safely preserved for twelve (12) months. In case arrangements cannot be made with the county clerk, all these materials shall be sent to the chairman of the State Soil and Water Districts Commission. The chairman of the local committee and the clerk of the county court shall certify the total referendum vote by areas and polling places and the total election votes by areas for each nominee and report their results to the director of the Soil and Water Districts Commission.

AUTHORITY: section 278.080, RSMo 1986.* This version of rule filed Dec. 7, 1955, effective Dec. 17, 1955.

*Original authority: 278.080, RSMo 1943 10 CSR 70-2