Utah Legislature calls emergency special session hoping to undo Utah Supreme Court ruling on initiatives

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Legislature has announced they will call itself into a special session Wednesday to tackle a Utah Supreme Court ruling that limited lawmakers’ ability to overturn citizen initiatives.

Speaker of the House, Mike Schultz confirmed the session to KSL TV’s Lindsay Aerts Monday, while a spokesperson for the Senate also sent out preliminary details.

“We feel like the (Utah) Constitution has always allowed for that,” Speaker Schultz said. “But for the last 130 years, that’s been the practice. That’s the way — the rules everybody’s lived under.  And so, yeah, the Supreme Court came in and decided to make those changes. And we feel just the opposite. We feel like the the citizens need to weigh in on this and and have the ultimate say, not five unelected Supreme Court justices.”

While language of the ballot measure is still vague, Wednesday’s special session will be for lawmakers to vote to place a Utah Constitutional amendment on the ballot in November that, if passed, would allow them to “alter and amend” ballot measures, ban foreign money in initiatives, and allow for more time for signature gathering on referendums — presumably so laws can more easily be repealed.

In July, the Utah Supreme Court ruled the Utah Legislature may have overstepped when it altered a voter-led ballot initiative that created an independent redistricting commission to draw Congressional maps. The ruling stated that Utah’s constitution protected Utah’s right to “alter and reform” their government.

“We hold that the people’s right to alter or reform the government through an initiative is constitutionally protected from government infringement, including legislative amendment, repeal, or replacement of the initiative in a manner that impairs the reform enacted by the people,” read the court’s opinion.

The ruling also said that the legislature could tweak government-reform initiatives to fit within the scope of the law, so long as it was for a compelling government interest and ultimately didn’t change what the voters intended.

But Schultz said that the ruling was left with enough ambiguity that “big money groups” could come in to Utah and advertise, creating a scenario where Utah is “like California” — which in his opinion means governed by initiatives.

“(Outside groups) take something sexy and the message it out to the public, and inside it there are very huge policy shifts and then they don’t tell the public what the what the (initiativies) do,” Schultz said.

The ballot measure will give #utleg and local gov’ts ability to “amend or repeal” initiatives — though it also allows that for citizens. It also adds 20 days to collect signatures if citizens want to repeal a law (referendums). It also bans foreign money in initiatives. #utpol… pic.twitter.com/AQ9M5A2f8h

— Lindsay Aerts (@LindsayOnAir) August 19, 2024

Why is the special session an emergency?

The Utah Constitution cannot be changed without voter approval, and with the election in November, lawmakers are acting quickly to put the issue on the ballot.

The legislature is only allowed to call themselves into special session in the case of an “emergency in the affairs of the state.” Schultz said they believe this falls under that definition.

“We know there’s voter initiatives coming for the 2026 ballot so I think for everybody, including the voters, I think having the process more clearly defined for when that process comes in 2026 is an emergency, and that needs to be clarified in November.”

The session will be held Wednesday at 4:45 p.m., right after lawmakers meet for interim meetings.

Statements issued

On Monday night, Thom DeSirant, executive director of the Utah Democratic Party, issued the following statement:

The amendment proposed by the Republicans in our legislature has been hand crafted to stop Utahns from changing their government the way the founders of our state intended. It is against the will of the voters, and Utahns will not let it stand this November.

Emma Williams, spokesperson for Gov. Spencer Cox, also issued a statement Monday night.

While the governor does not play an official role in signing or vetoing constitutional amendments, he is supportive of giving the people an opportunity to resolve this important constitutional issue.

On Monday, a letter was sent to Gov. Cox and the Legislature in response. The letter included a list of over 2,500 names who signed in order to “express deep concern regarding calls for a special legislative session to propose a constitutional amendment in response to the Utah Supreme Court’s recent unanimous opinion on ballot initiatives.”

The letter called on Cox, Utah Senate President  J. Stuart Adams and Utah House Speaker Mike Shultz to embrace the ruling instead of “rushing” to amend it.

The list of signatures largely includes citizens who signed the letter, but a portion of the letter’s signatures included names of leaders in the private sector including Mark Miller Subaru, Publik Coffee and Timber Moose Lodge among others. Leaders of non-profit organizations who also signed included the Utah Domestic Violence Coalition, the Utah Education Association, the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah and Equality Utah among others.

Most notably, the list includes names of current and former GOP delegates and party leaders such as former Chief Justice of Utah’s Supreme Court Christine Durham, Democratic Sen. Kathleen Riebe, Democratic Sen. Nate Blouin, Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion D-Salt Lake, Rep. Caol Spackman Moss D-Salt Lake, Utah Democratic Party Chair Diane Lewis among others. The list also includes a number of local leaders.

“The right of citizens to propose and enact laws through ballot initiatives is not a threat; it’s a vital expression of our shared values of self-governance and civic engagement,” it concluded. “We stand ready to work with you to protect and enhance these decorative principles that make Utah strong.”