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House overrides governor on SB 115, limits special elections to two dates
Summary
The Utah House on April 26, 2004 voted 50–22 to override Gov. Olene S. Walker’s veto of Senate Bill 115, narrowing the state’s special election dates from five to two — the fourth Tuesday in June and the Tuesday after the first Monday in November — after debate about cost, turnout and local control.
The Utah House of Representatives voted 50–22 on April 26 to override Gov. Olene S. Walker’s veto of Senate Bill 115, a measure that pares the state’s special-election calendar from five permitted dates to two.
Representative Harper, the bill’s House floor sponsor, told colleagues the change “takes it down to 2 dates” — the fourth Tuesday in June and the Tuesday after the first Monday in November — and argued the move would save taxpayers and improve turnout for contests such as bond elections. Harper said consolidating dates reduces repeated advertising and the need for special election judges, which “saves school districts money.”
Opponents raised concerns about local authority and emergency needs. Representative Holdaway read a letter from a Granite School District official saying a leeway election in February had allowed the district to avoid class-size increases; she warned HB 115 could prevent similar responses to budget emergencies. Representative Murray said local entities should retain the right to schedule elections when needed, calling the measure a constraint on local decision-making.
Fiscal staff and members sought clarity on how overriding related line items would affect funding. Staff explained that overriding the veto on a particular line item (item 65) would make funds available to item 85, which had been intended for the Jean Massey school, but if item 85 were not overridden its funding would remain with the State Office of Education and could be used under existing designations through June 30.
After roughly an hour of debate that included questions about whether the change would blunt the ability of municipalities and school districts to react to time-sensitive issues, the House sustained the motion to override. The vote was announced as 50 yes and 22 no; the veto on SB 115 was overridden in the House.
The House did not provide a roll-call list of individual yes/no votes in the transcript readout; the announced tally is reported above.
What’s next: The override sends SB 115 back to the process governed by the Legislature’s veto-override rules and, absent further legal action, the statute will take effect according to the state’s lawmaking timetable.
