The Salt Lake Tribune
A citizens group promoting a strict new ethics code for Utah legislators says it has gathered in excess of 110,000 petition signatures ”” well more than the 95,000 required ”” to put the issue on the 2012 election ballot. At a Capitol news conference, leaders of the group Utahns for Ethical Government said they made Thursday’s deadline for putting their proposal before voters in two years.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah will represent aspiring candidate Farley Anderson as he takes his electronic-signature battle to the state Supreme Court on June 2. In March, Lieutenant Governor Greg Bell rejected Anderson as an independent candidate for governor because a small portion of his required 1,000 signatures were gathered online.
The fate of a citizen petition drive to land its expansive ethics-reform initiative on November’s ballot is still unclear, though Thursday was the deadline for the 95,000 valid voter signatures to be turned into county clerks across the state. Leaders of the effort could not say whether they met the threshold or not, only that it was “close.” But a second petition drive fell short — this one to create an independent commission to help in redrawing voting boundaries in the once-a-decade task of redistricting.
A national, nonpartisan foundation chastised Utah’s lawmakers and governor Monday for enacting new laws they say further weaken the people’s constitutional right to petition their government. Over the weekend, Gov. Gary Herbert signed SB275, which makes it easier for people who have signed initiative and referendum petitions to remove their names. That law also gives opponents an extra month after the time for signature-gathering has expired to target the petition drive’s weakest area and take it down.
One initiative and referendum expert finds recent legislative action disturbing. “I am very troubled by it,” said Attorney Lisa Watts Baskin, referring to Sen. Howard Stephenson’s SB275 which passed both chambers in partisan fashion — most Republicans liked it, Democrats did not. Republicans outnumber Democrats more than two to one in Utah’s statehouse, so the measure passed with a two-thirds majority and can take effect as soon as Gov. Gary Herbert signs it — or on April 1 without his signature. A veto could drag the process out further.
Supporters of a citizens ethics-reform initiative contacted Gov. Gary Herbert Thursday, urging him to veto a signature-removal bill that could be used to undermine their petition drive. Utahns for Ethical Government have until April 15 to get the necessary 95,000 valid voter signatures to get its measure on November’s ballot. Sen. Howard Stephenson’s SB275 eliminates the need for regretful signers to get notorized statements to remove their names from petitions. It also gives opponents of UEG’s initiative until May 15 to persuade people they signed in error.
On the steps of the State Capitol, and underneath a threatening March sky, Utahns for Ethical Government announced its last big push —- a “march to the ballot.” The grassroots group now has less than six weeks to finish gathering the 95,000 signatures needed to place a broad ethics reform initiative on November’s ballot. Strategy includes a revamped Web site, a television ad and Saturday gatherings scheduled at local libraries from noon to 3 p.m. More information can be found online at www.utahethics.org.
As ethics-initiative backers scramble to gather enough signatures to place their measure on November’s ballot, opponents hope to make it easier for some of those names to disappear. In a statement last week, Utah’s conservative Sutherland Institute labeled the measure put forward by Utahns for Ethical Government “dangerous” and asked lawmakers to streamline the name-removal process for folks who signed but changed their minds. On Saturday’s Red Meat Radio show on 630 AM, Sen. Howard Stephenson said he would file a bill today to do just that.
The group pushing an initiative to create an independent advisory commission for redrawing boundaries for Utah’s congressional and state legislative districts has hired an executive director. Since organizing in April, Fair Boundaries has functioned on volunteer power. But initiative organizers believed it was time to take the statewide effort to the next level by hiring Curtis Haring to oversee the day-to-day work.
The State Republican Party has issued a formal resolution against an ethics-reform ballot initiative currently in its critical signature-gathering stage. This past weekend, the GOP Central Committee heard a presentation on the initiative from Attorney David Irvine of Utahns for Ethical Government (UEG), countered by opposing remarks from Sen. Lyle Hillyard, R-Logan, now the longest-sitting member in the state Legislature. n a voice vote, 102 of 103 committee members present voted to take a position against the citizen-led legislation, said state GOP Party Chairman Dave Hansen.
Organizers of an ethics reform initiative criticized the Lieutenant Governor’s Office for not releasing petitions Monday for distribution, saying they suspected an 11th-hour delay tactic fueled by opposition from the political establishment. But the petitions could be certified today , Lt. Gov. Greg Bell said during a hastily called meeting with initiative organizers Monday evening. Bell, the state’s chief elections officer, called proponents’ arguments “brilliant” and “very helpful,” adding, “If the initiative is not patently unconstitutional, then it should move forward.”
Republican lawmakers are lining up against a citizens’ initiative effort to impose new, stringent ethics guidelines on the Utah Legislature. Senate leaders said Wednesday that they have serious concerns about the ethics drive, fearing it could deter qualified people from serving in the Legislature out of fear of falling victim to ethics complaints. “If there are people out there who have political intentions they will use this as a club time and time again,” said Senate Majority Leader Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse.
Advocates for an independent redistricting commission spent Labor Day gathering signatures to put the issue on the ballot next fall. The initiative would create an 11-member commission to redraw the state’s legislative districts. That job is currently the sole responsibility of the Republican-controlled Legislature, although under the initiative lawmakers would still get the final say.
Some were thankful, others resigned to the inevitable. But few of the 500 patrons at Tuesday’s Jordan Board of Education meeting were surprised by the board’s unanimous decision to raise property taxes 20 percent. That’s half of the increase originally proposed, a concession to protesting property owners. To plug a $33 million budget shortfall, board members also will carve $21 million from the district’s reserves and called for another $1 million in layoffs of nonteaching staff.