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Senate rejects mandate to shift initiative signature gathering entirely online
Summary
The Utah Senate debated and rejected the House’s substitute to House Bill 223, which would have phased in an electronic signature-gathering system to reach 100% electronic signatures by 2032; senators cited privacy, implementation and fiscal-note concerns before the bill failed 11–18.
The Utah Senate on its floor day voted down the third substitute to House Bill 223, a bill that would phase in electronic signature gathering for initiatives, referendums and candidate nomination petitions, with a final deadline of 2032.
Sponsor Senator Stevenson, speaking to the chamber, described a staged transition and an administrative framework he said would lower costs and improve verification: “By 2028, at least 10% of the signatures gathered must be electronic. By 2030, at least 50% of the signatures would be electronic, and then they would go to a 100% by 2032,” he said, adding the bill would require devices and security standards set by the lieutenant governor’s office.
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