I suspect that in the past, people had their petition forms prepared by a commercial printer, but if you've got Microsoft Word on your computer, you can do your own, like I did. Here are links to templates (prepared by me) that you can download and then add your own initiative or referendum language:

• Initiation of Legislation

• Constitutional Amendment

• Referendum

The only difference between the 3 templates is the vertical "heading" in the left margin.

By the way, the heading does not have to be printed vertically in the left margin. It can be printed horizontally at the top. The option of printing it vertically in the left margin is to save space, as stated on page 2 of this letter from the Director of Elections. At the time we prepared our petitions, we thought the heading had to be vertical. We didn't know how to print vertically in Word, so what we did is print the heading on a sheet all by itself (at the highest resolution possible), scan it, open the scanned .jpg file with Microsoft Picture Manager, crop out all but the heading, rotate it to vertical, and then insert the picture into our Word document.

Note: An alert reader tells me there IS a way to print vertically in Microsoft Word. When you are in a table, a tab called Layout appears. Under that tab there is box called "Text Direction" which provides several options. You can then center using the choices within the "Alignment" box.

For examples of actual petitions, see below. Sorry, we don't have an example of a referendum petition.

Repeal PERA. This the one of our 4 petitions that initiates legislation rather than amend the Constitution, and since it repeals a statute, it is really simple. We were not required to present the text of the statute being repealed, so it is just one page, with nothing on the back.

End Collective Bargaining for State Employees. This is a good example of a constitutional amendment that alters existing language - good because the alterations fit on the back. Here is the front and the back.

Right to Work. This is a constitutional amendment that adds a section and does not change existing language. Here is the front and the back.

The official instructions for preparing petitions are within a document called Initiative and Referendum Petitions on the Secretary of State's website, which addresses petition drives in general. The instructions are based on Section 482 of Act 116 of 1954, Michigan Election Law. The instructions strongly suggest that after you've drafted your petition, you have it reviewed by staff at the Bureau of Elections. We did so, and made about 4 trips before we got it right. It took over a month.

Here are some areas of the instructions that confused us:

After and Before. If you are amending the Constitution and your amendment changes or deletes existing language, you must present your amendment first, with language deleted struck through and new language in capitals. This is to be followed by a repeat in full of the original text, this time without the changes, preceded by this statement:

Provisions of existing constitution altered or abrogated by the proposal if adopted:

Introduction. At the top of the signature side of the petition for an amendment to the Constitution, the first item to appear is an "introduction" that specifies the provision or provisions of the State Constitution which the proposal is designed to alter, eliminate or create. If the full amendment doesn't fit on the signature side, the introduction is to be repeated on the back.

Summary. The instructions say that if the amendment doesn't fit at the top of the signature side of the petition, the introduction shall be followed by a brief synopsis of the proposal and reference shall be made to the reverse side of the sheet for the full text of the proposal. The synopsis is not repeated on the back.

When voted on.  According to the letter from the Director of Elections (page 2), a statement saying when the proposal would be voted on is optional:

This proposal is to be voted on at the November 6, 2012 General Election.

Presentation of changes. We don't remember seeing this in the instructions, either, but when an amendment alters or deletes existing language, we were told to include this parenthetical statement:

(New language capitalized. Language to be deleted struck through.)

Paid for with . . . One more item not in the instructions: Any printed campaign material must include a statement telling who paid for it. We put this statement at the bottom of the signature side of each petition:

Paid for with regulated funds by the Committee to Transform Michigan, P.O. Box 80978, Lansing, MI 48908-0978

Examples:

The text of our petition to ban collective bargaining for state employees was too long to fit on the front of the petition, but did fit on the back Here is what we said at the top of the signature side:

On the back, under the heading (printed horizontally this time) and just before we present the amendment, is this:

Our petition to repeal PERA was the simplest. We were not required to present the text of the statute being repealed, so there is nothing on the back, and this was all that was needed at the top of the signature side:

Our right-to-work proposal adds a new section to the Constitution. Here is what we say at the top of the signature side:

On the back, under the heading and just before we present the amendment, is this:

If you need help or have questions, call me at 517-505-2696 or email me at steve_harry@yahoo.com.

Printers Affidavit. The "printer's affidavit" is a requirement of the Board of State Canvassers. It is mentioned in the Initiative and Referendum Petitions document and it is "attached" to that document. (I'd tell you the page number, but that document has no page numbers.) I assumed that it had to be completed by a commercial printer, and went to the trouble of finding one willing to verify that the format of my petitions met the requirements, fill out the affidavit, and have his signature notarized (by a Notary Public who met us at the printer's office). Turns out that wasn't necessary. The affidavit is necessary, but since in this case the "printer" was me, I could have signed it myself. But I still would have had my signature notarized.

I complained about this requirement - and several others - in a letter to Secretary of State Ruth Johnson (bottom of page 5). The Director of Elections responded on her behalf, and he addressed the affidavit issue at the bottom of page 2.

The printer's affidavit is NOT required if you don't want your petition approved by the Board of State Canvassers. That approval is not necessary. They don't actually look at your petition anyway - they just go by the recommendation of the Bureau of Elections. It is a good idea to have your petition reviewed by the Bureau of Elections to make sure it meets legal requirements, but the only reason to have it OK'd by the Board of State Canvassers is that it provides free publicity. Several days before the Board's scheduled meeting, the Bureau of Elections notifies the media of the agenda, and you can send out your own press release just to make sure you get a good media turnout. Here are some of the stories that came out about my initiatives.