County clerk outlines interlocal election agreement, $4-per-voter fee for Spring City

Linda Christiansen, Sanpete County clerk, told the Spring City Council she brought an updated interlocal election agreement and asked the council to review it before signatures are requested. "The base election administration fee is $4 per registered voter for each election," she said, explaining the county handles ballot printing, mailing, signature verification and high‑tech tabulation while municipalities retain local responsibilities such as posting notices and participating in chain-of-custody steps.

Christiansen said the $4-per-voter figure does not fully cover the county’s costs but represents a fair price for shared services; she urged the council to include a primary contingency in next year’s budget because primaries are triggered when candidate filings exceed twice the number of open seats. "Spring City, you have 690 registered voters as of today," she said, urging local officials to remain engaged in poll-worker training, ballot pickup and verification duties to protect statutory chain-of-custody requirements.

The clerk walked the council through key calendar items and statutory canvass windows, noting that municipal canvass cannot occur sooner than seven days after an election and must be completed within 14 days. She offered to send the final agreement via DocuSign in December and asked for feedback before a planned April 2027 return deadline for signed interlocal agreements.

Why it matters: the fee and the county’s role affect Spring City’s election budget and operational responsibilities; a misbudgeted election line could force last-minute adjustments or special appropriations. The clerk emphasized that timely city participation in ballot handling and training is required by state statutes.