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County attorney outlines draft campaign‑finance ordinance; public hearing set for next month
Summary
The county attorney reviewed a draft ordinance required by Utah Code 17‑70‑43 to set local campaign finance disclosure rules for county and local school board candidates; commissioners agreed to schedule a public hearing next month to adopt the ordinance and asked staff to publish required materials and update county forms to comply.
The county attorney briefed the commission on a draft campaign‑finance ordinance the county must adopt under Utah Code 17‑70‑43. The statute requires counties to adopt local disclosure rules for candidates for county office and local school board positions that reside in the county.
The draft ordinance mirrors statutory minimums and clarifies candidate obligations: candidates must establish a campaign account for all contributions and expenditures; reports must be itemized with dates, amounts, donor names and city/location, recipients and purpose; anonymous cash contributions above $50 must be dispersed to the county treasurer or a 501(c)(3) within 30 days; and reports are public and must be posted to the county website within seven days. The ordinance also sets filing timelines for conventions, primaries and general elections, and sets short cure windows for interim reports before election day (electronic notice and 24 hours to remedy) with potential disqualification for failure to cure.
The county attorney said the draft incorporates recommended language used by other Utah counties and that county clerk staff will update existing reporting forms to meet the ordinance's itemization requirements. Commissioners agreed the ordinance should come back as a public‑hearing item next month; no vote was taken on adoption at the April 8 meeting.
Next steps: staff will schedule and notice a public hearing for the ordinance, update reporting forms, and coordinate posting procedures so the county clerk can place candidate reports on the county website within seven days of filing.
