20A-7-313.  Electronic referendum process — Form of referendum petitionCirculation requirements — Signature collection.

(1)  This section applies only to the electronic referendum process.

Attorney's Note

Under the Utah Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class A misdemeanorup to 364 daysup to $2,500
For details, see Utah Code § 76-3-204

Terms Used In Utah Code 20A-7-313

  • Approved device: means a device described in Subsection 20A-21-201(4) used to gather signatures for the electronic initiative process, the electronic referendum process, or the electronic candidate qualification process. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
  • Circulation: means the process of submitting an initiative petition or a referendum petition to legal voters for their signature. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
  • Election: means a regular general election, a municipal general election, a statewide special election, a local special election, a regular primary election, a municipal primary election, and a special district election. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
  • Electronic referendum process: means :
    (a) as it relates to a statewide referendum, the process, described in Sections 20A-7-313 and 20A-21-201, for gathering signatures; or
    (b) as it relates to a local referendum, the process, described in Sections 20A-7-614 and 20A-21-201, for gathering signatures. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
  • Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Referendum: means a process by which a law passed by the Legislature or by a local legislative body is submitted or referred to the voters for their approval or rejection. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
  • Referendum petition: means :
    (a) as it relates to a statewide referendum, using the manual referendum process, the form described in Subsection 20A-7-303(2)(a), petitioning for submission of a law passed by the Legislature to legal voters for their approval or rejection;
    (b) as it relates to a statewide referendum, using the electronic referendum process, the form described in Subsection 20A-7-313(2), petitioning for submission of a law passed by the Legislature to legal voters for their approval or rejection;
    (c) as it relates to a local referendum, using the manual referendum process, the form described in Subsection 20A-7-603(2)(a), petitioning for submission of a local law to legal voters for their approval or rejection; or
    (d) as it relates to a local referendum, using the electronic referendum process, the form described in Subsection 20A-7-614(2), petitioning for submission of a local law to legal voters for their approval or rejection. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
  • Signature: includes a name, mark, or sign written with the intent to authenticate an instrument or writing. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Special election: means an election held as authorized by Section 20A-1-203. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Voter: means an individual who:
    (a) meets the requirements for voting in an election;
    (b) meets the requirements of election registration;
    (c) is registered to vote; and
    (d) is listed in the official register book. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
    (2) 

    (a)  The first screen presented on the approved device shall include the following statement:
         “This REFERENDUM PETITION is addressed to the Honorable ____, Lieutenant Governor:
         The citizens of Utah who sign this petition respectfully order that Senate (or House) Bill No.____, entitled (title of act, and, if the petition is against less than the whole act, set forth here the part or parts on which the referendum is sought), passed by the Legislature of the state of Utah during the ____ Session, be referred to the people of Utah for their approval or rejection at a regular general election or a statewide special election.”

    (b)  An individual may not advance to the second screen until the individual clicks a link at the bottom of the first screen stating, “By clicking here, I attest that I have read and understand the information presented on this screen.”

    (3) 

    (a)  The second screen presented on the approved device shall include the entire text of the law that is the subject of the referendum petition.

    (b)  An individual may not advance to the third screen until the individual clicks a link at the bottom of the second screen stating, “By clicking here, I attest that I have read and understand the entire text of the law that is the subject of the referendum petition.”

    (4) 

    (a)  The third screen presented on the approved device shall include a statement indicating whether persons gathering signatures for the referendum petition may be paid for gathering signatures.

    (b)  An individual may not advance to the fourth screen until the individual clicks a link at the bottom of the first screen stating, “By clicking here, I attest that I have read and understand the information presented on this screen.”

    (5)  The fourth screen presented on the approved device shall include the following statement, followed by links where the individual may click “yes” or “no”:
         “I have personally reviewed the entirety of each statement presented on this device;
         I am personally signing this referendum petition;
         I am registered to vote in Utah; and
         All information I enter on this device, including my residence and post office address, is accurate.
         It is a class A misdemeanor for an individual to sign a referendum petition with a name other than the individual’s own name, or to knowingly sign the individual’s name more than once for the same referendum petition, or to sign a referendum petition when the individual knows that the individual is not a registered voter.
         WARNING
         Even if your voter registration record is classified as private, your name, voter identification number, and date of signature in relation to signing this referendum petition will be made public.
         Do you wish to continue and sign this referendum petition?”

    (6) 

    (a)  If the individual clicks “no” in response to the question described in Subsection (5), the next screen shall include the following statement, “Thank you for your time. Please return this device to the signature-gatherer.”

    (b)  If the individual clicks “yes” in response to the question described in Subsection (5), the website, or the application that accesses the website, shall take the signature-gatherer and the individual signing the referendum petition through the signature process described in Section 20A-21-201.

    Amended by Chapter 107, 2023 General Session