Fate of Utah amendments comes down to missed publication requirements
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Two controversial amendments are being held up due to a misstep. Photo: Ron Buskirk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
With one controversial constitutional amendment voided ahead of the Nov. 5 election and another likely headed that way, one question remains:
- Why didn't the Utah Legislature publish the proposed amendments in local newspapers as required under the state's constitution?
Why it matters: The procedural missteps have cost taxpayers money, as state lawmakers fight for the proposed amendments' inclusion on the ballot in court.
- Voters could also be confused if both are voided but still appear on the ballot.
Catch up quick: The Utah Supreme Court in September voided Amendment D, which sought to give state lawmakers greater power to alter or repeal citizen initiatives, in part because the publishing requirements weren't met.
- Amendment A, which would allow lawmakers to spend income tax revenue for purposes besides public education, is all but certain to meet a similar fate.
- The Legislature also failed to meet the publishing requirements for that proposed amendment, the Utah Education Association, the state's largest teachers' union, noted in a complaint filed Sept. 18.
Between the lines: The oversight raises questions about the relevance of posting public notices in newspapers, even though many no longer print daily due to changing business models and because more readers are consuming news online.
What they're saying: A spokesperson for the lieutenant governor's office, which oversees state elections, referred Axios to the state constitution outlining that the state Legislature must publish proposed amendments "in at least one newspaper in every county of the state, where a newspaper is published, for two months immediately preceding the next general election."
- A Senate spokesperson declined to comment on why state lawmakers did not meet the newspaper publication requirements, citing pending litigation regarding Amendment A.
Follow the money: Under SJR 401, which was the proposal to place Amendment D on the ballot, state legislators included a $8,600 fiscal note for the governor's office "to submit the proposed amendment to voters."
- Per state law, the lieutenant governor has to publish the full text of the amendment on the Utah Public Notice Website and the relevant public body's or official's website no more than 60 days and no less than 14 days before the election.
- The statute does not specify the lieutenant governor's office placing the text in newspapers.
- A spokesperson for the lieutenant governor did not immediately answer Axios' query about what the fiscal note covered.
The intrigue: The state's most prominent newspapers — Deseret News and The Salt Lake Tribune — list basic steps on their sites to submit public notices.
- The publications require providing the contact information of the billing party, the desired publication dates and a document showing the preferred text and format.
The other side: During a recent Utah Supreme Court hearing over Amendment D, an attorney for the state argued that legislators satisfied the requirement because they posted a public notice of the measure on their website and that local news outlets featured it in their coverage.
The bottom line: The constitutional requirement to publish amendments in newspapers "permits the voter time to consider the merits or demerits of the proposed change," Judge Dianna Gibson wrote in September in her original decision voiding Amendment D, quoting a ruling from 1948.
- In that case, an amendment was thrown out because one clerk omitted the effective date in their posting of the text.
- "All voters throughout the state are entitled to notice," that ruling states.