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House rejects first-substitute on initiative-process bill after extended debate
Summary
A first-substitute to HB220, aiming to set an internal legislative process for handling citizen initiatives, failed in the House (22-49). Sponsors said the measure preserves petitioners’ right to take original language to the ballot while permitting the Legislature to amend when necessary; opponents raised concerns about signatures and fairness.
The Utah House voted down the first-substitute to House Bill 220, a proposal that would create a legislative process for handling initiative petitions that are brought to the Legislature.
Sponsor Tammy J. Rowland argued the bill is designed to give petition sponsors a fair hearing and to allow the Legislature to make permissive technical or constitutional fixes while preserving the right of petitioners to take an original petition to the ballot if they disapprove amendments. Rowland said the bill "allows the legislature to make amendments that would fix constitutional, technical, or legal problems and would then allow the focus to be on the issue, not on any flaw."
Opponents questioned the process for re-gathering signatures if petition language changes while in the legislative process. In discussion, a member asked whether changes would require petitioners to start over with signatures; the sponsor and floor clarified that if petitioners change the original initiative, they would need to collect the full set of signatures again, or they could run a bill that coordinates amendments through the normal legislative process. The House ultimately defeated the first-substitute, 22 yes to 49 no with 4 absent; the measure was filed.
