Lakewood City Charter
Article 13.1
Initiative and Referendum
(a) Any initiated measure shall be in the form of an ordinance, which shall be legislative in character.
(b) An initiated ordinance may be submitted to the City Council by filing a petition with the City Clerk. The petition shall be signed by registered electors of the City in a number at least equal to five percent of the total number of registered electors of the City on the date of the last regular municipal election.
(c) If the petition is found to be sufficient upon examination by the City Clerk, the City Clerk shall present the petition to the City Council at the first regular meeting held more than thirty days after the date the petition was filed or at a special meeting held on the first Monday more than thirty days after the date the petition was filed.
(d) Within thirty days after the petition is presented by the City Clerk, the City Council shall either adopt the initiated ordinance by a majority vote of all members of City Council without any change to the initiated ordinance or submit the initiated ordinance to a vote of the registered electors of the City at a special election to be held within ninety days, but not less than thirty days, after the petition is presented to the City Council; or at any regular municipal election to be held not more than ninety days after presentation of the petition to the City Council.
(e) The initiated ordinance shall be published in full not less than ten days prior to the election. The ballot shall have printed on it the ordinance title and submission clause, and on separate lines under the submission clause, the words, “FOR THE ORDINANCE” and “AGAINST THE ORDINANCE”.
(f) If a majority of the registered electors voting vote “for” the ordinance, it shall be adopted and take effect upon certification of the election results, or at such later date as may be set forth in the ordinance.
(g) In the event that initiated ordinances containing conflicting provisions are approved at the same election, the initiated ordinance receiving the greatest number of votes shall prevail to the extent of the conflict. (Amended November 2, 1999.)