20A-7-607. Evaluation by the local clerk — Determination of election for vote on referendum.
(1)
In relation to the manual referendum process, when the local clerk receives a referendum packet from a county clerk, the local clerk shall record the number of the referendum packet received.
Terms Used In Utah Code 20A-7-607
Ballot: means the storage medium, including a paper, mechanical, or electronic storage medium, that records an individual voter's vote. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Certified: means that the county clerk has acknowledged a signature as being the signature of a registered voter. 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
Election officer: means :
(a)
the lieutenant governor, for all statewide ballots and elections;
Land use law: means a law of general applicability, enacted based on the weighing of broad, competing policy considerations, that relates to the use of land, including land use regulation, a general plan, a land use development code, an annexation ordinance, the rezoning of a single property or multiple properties, or a comprehensive zoning ordinance or resolution. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
Local clerk: means the county clerk, city recorder, or town clerk in whose jurisdiction a local initiative or referendum petition is circulated. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
Local tax law: means a law, passed by a political subdivision with an annual or biannual calendar fiscal year, that increases a tax or imposes a new tax. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
Manual referendum process: means the process for gathering signatures for a referendum using paper signature packets that a signer physically signs. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
Municipality: means a city, town, or metro township. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Official ballot: means the ballots distributed by the election officer for voters to record their votes. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
qualified: means to take the oath of office and begin performing the duties of the position for which the individual was elected. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
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 packet: means a copy of the referendum petition, a copy of the law being submitted or referred to the voters for their approval or rejection, and the signature sheets, all of which have been bound together as a unit. 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
Sponsors: means the legal voters who support the initiative or referendum and who sign the initiative application or referendum application. See Utah Code 20A-7-101
post the names, voter identification numbers, and dates of signatures described in Subsection 20A-7-105(6)(a)(iii) on the lieutenant governor’s website, in a conspicuous location designated by the lieutenant governor, for at least 45 days; and
(ii)
update on the local clerk’s website the number of signatures certified as of the date of the update; or
(b)
in relation to the electronic referendum process:
(i)
post the names, voter identification numbers, and dates of signatures described in Subsection 20A-7-616(3) on the lieutenant governor’s website, in a conspicuous location designated by the lieutenant governor, for at least 45 days; and
(ii)
update on the lieutenant governor’s website the number of signatures certified as of the date of the update.
(3)
The local clerk:
(a)
shall, except as provided in Subsection (3)(b), declare the referendum petition to be sufficient or insufficient:
(i)
in relation to the manual referendum process, no later than 111 days after the day of the deadline, described in Subsection 20A-7-105(5)(a)(iv), to submit a referendum packet to the county clerk; or
(ii)
in relation to the electronic referendum process, no later than 111 days after the day of the deadline, described in Subsection 20A-7-616(2), to collect a signature; or
(b)
may declare the referendum petition to be insufficient before the day described in Subsection (3)(a) if:
(i)
in relation to the manual referendum process, the total of all valid signatures on timely and lawfully submitted referendum packets that have been certified by the county clerk, plus the number of signatures on timely and lawfully submitted referendum packets that have not yet been evaluated for certification, is less than the number of names required under Section 20A-7-601;
(ii)
in relation to the electronic referendum process, the total of all timely and lawfully submitted valid signatures that have been certified by the county clerks, plus the number of timely and lawfully submitted valid signatures received under Subsection 20A-21-201(6)(b) that have not yet been evaluated for certification, is less than the number of names required under Section 20A-7-601; or
(iii)
a requirement of this part has not been met.
(4)
(a)
If the total number of names certified under Subsection (3) equals or exceeds the number of names required under Section 20A-7-601, and the requirements of this part are met, the local clerk shall mark upon the front of the referendum petition the word “sufficient.”
(b)
If the total number of names certified under Subsection (3) does not equal or exceed the number of names required under Section 20A-7-601 or a requirement of this part is not met, the local clerk shall mark upon the front of the referendum petition the word “insufficient.”
(c)
The local clerk shall immediately notify any one of the sponsors of the local clerk’s finding.
(d)
After a referendum petition is declared insufficient, a person may not submit additional signatures to qualify the referendum for the ballot.
(5)
(a)
If the local clerk refuses to declare a referendum petition sufficient, any voter may, no later than 10 days after the day on which the local clerk declares the referendum petition insufficient, apply to the appropriate court for an order finding the referendum petition legally sufficient.
(b)
If the court determines that the referendum petition is legally sufficient, the local clerk shall mark the referendum petition “sufficient” and consider the declaration of sufficiency effective as of the date on which the referendum petition should have been declared sufficient by the local clerk’s office.
(c)
If the court determines that a referendum petition filed is not legally sufficient, the court may enjoin the local clerk and all other officers from:
(i)
certifying or printing the ballot title and numbers of that referendum on the official ballot for the next election; or
(ii)
as it relates to a local tax law that is conducted entirely by mail, certifying, printing, or mailing the ballot title and numbers of that referendum under Section 20A-7-609.5.
(6)
A referendum petition determined to be sufficient in accordance with this section is qualified for the ballot.
(7)
(a)
Except as provided in Subsection (7)(b) or (c), if a referendum relates to legislative action taken after April 15, the election officer may not place the referendum on an election ballot until a primary election, a general election, or a special election the following year.
(b)
The election officer may place a referendum described in Subsection (7)(a) on the ballot for a special, primary, or general election held during the year that the legislative action was taken if the following agree, in writing, on a timeline to place the referendum on that ballot:
(i)
the local clerk;
(ii)
the county clerk; and
(iii)
the attorney for the county or municipality that took the legislative action.
(c)
For a referendum on a land use law, if, before August 30, the local clerk or a court determines that the total number of certified names equals or exceeds the number of signatures required in Section 20A-7-601, the election officer shall place the referendum on the election ballot for:
(i)
the next general election; or
(ii)
another election, if the following agree, in writing, on a timeline to place the referendum on that ballot:
(A)
the affected owners, as defined in Section 10-9a-103 or 17-27a-103, as applicable;
(B)
the local clerk;
(C)
the county clerk; and
(D)
the attorney for the county or municipality that took the legislative action.
Amended by Chapter 107, 2023 General Session Amended by Chapter 116, 2023 General Session
