Amendment B asks Utah voters to require 60% voter approval for statewide citizen initiatives that raise taxes. Current Utah law requires a simple majority for those to pass.
A citizen initiative is the state right for the people to propose a ballot measure.
Amendment supporters, including Utah’s Credit Unions President and CEO Rusty Cannon, say citizen initiatives that increase taxes should require broader voter support.
“If your policy is a good one, and there's a meaningful need to raise taxes, surely you can get six out of 10 people to agree with you,” Cannon said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Oct. 31. “And we think that's a fair hurdle.”
Opponents argue the Amendment B would give citizen initiatives a higher hurdle than tax measures passed by the Legislature.
Better Boundaries Executive Director Elizabeth Rasmussen called the proposal a restriction on voters’ initiative power.
“This is something that just affects the citizens' ability to pass meaningful policy that can help us in our everyday lives when it does nothing to affect the Legislature and their ability to tax us,” Rasmussen said on KPCW's "Local News Hour" Oct. 31. “And so we see this as a power grab, just covered up by scary tax language.”
She said citizen initiatives like medical marijuana and Utah’s 2018 Medicaid expansion, which both had tax implications but were not explicitly tax-related, would not have passed if Amendment B were in place. Both secured about 53% of the vote.
Amendment A focuses on how the public is notified about proposed constitutional amendments.
Currently, proposed amendments must be published in newspapers around the state for two months before an election. The law is meant to facilitate transparency.
Amendment A would remove the newspaper requirement and instead require publication for 60 days in a manner set by state law.
Under legislation that would take effect if Amendment A passes, the full text would be posted on the Utah Public Notice website and the lieutenant governor’s website.
Cannon said he supports the change, saying it would modernize the process.
“In today’s world, it’s outdated. It doesn’t have anything against newspapers, it’s just that there aren’t any left,” Cannon said.
Opponents argue a number of communities, many rural, continue to rely on printed newspapers to stay informed.
The amendment unanimously passed the Legislature in 2025.
Constitutional amendments must be approved by a two-thirds majority in the legislature and are then sent to voters who decide in a general election.
Election Day is Tuesday.
For more information, visit the KPCW voter guide.
