A supermajority of Republicans in the Utah Legislature are seeking to add the constitutional amendment to voters’ ballots in November.
The language would give the Legislature the power to significantly rewrite voter-approved ballot initiatives.
The special session comes after the Utah Supreme Court unanimously ruled last month that the Legislature went beyond its authority by rewriting a 2018 voter-approved ballot initiative establishing an independent redistricting process.
Republican legislative leaders have called the recent ruling “one of the worst outcomes we have ever seen from the Utah Supreme Court.”
In a statement, Democratic lawmakers say Wednesday’s special session is a “blatant power grab.”
If approved by lawmakers and voters in November, the amendment will grant the Legislature the ability to change or repeal ballot initiatives.
Park City resident Katie Wright is the executive director of Better Boundaries, the group that led the successful 2018 ballot initiative establishing an independent commission to draw maps in Utah’s redistricting process.
State lawmakers subsequently passed a bill limiting the power of the commission, making it advisory and not legally-binding. The Utah Supreme Court’s decision last month found that the bill violated Utahns’ rights to reform their government.
Wright with Better Boundaries says Wednesday’s special session is lawmakers’ next attempt to usurp power.
“Essentially this is one more step in an incremental effort by the state Legislature to amass all powers,” Wright said. “We see this supermajority state Legislature really creating a situation where we don’t have the checks and balances and the balance of our three branches of government that are fundamental to a thriving republic and democracy.”
Republican state lawmaker Kera Birkeland, who represents a portion of Summit County, says they don’t aim to limit the voice of the people with the new amendment.
In a statement posted on X, Birkeland says it’s important that lawmakers retain the ability to refine ballot initiatives for the government to run efficiently.
There is a lot of misinformation regarding the Special Session, with some claiming we are “diminishing the people's voice.” Let me share my perspective. Right now, when a citizens' initiative becomes law, a recent Supreme Court ruling prevents the legislature from making any…
— KeraBirk (@KeraBirk) August 21, 2024
Lawmakers are expected to convene at the Utah Capitol in Salt Lake City shortly after 1 p.m. Wednesday.
