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2019 Utah Code
Title 20A - Election Code
Chapter 7 - Issues Submitted to the Voters
Part 5 - Local Initiatives - Procedures
Section 503 - Form of initiative petitions and signature sheets.
Universal Citation: UT Code § 20A-7-503 (2019)
Effective 5/9/2017
20A-7-503. Form of initiative petitions and signature sheets.
Amended by Chapter 291, 2017 General Session
20A-7-503. Form of initiative petitions and signature sheets.
- (1)
- (a) Each proposed initiative petition shall be printed in substantially the following form:
"INITIATIVE PETITION To the Honorable ____, County Clerk/City Recorder/Town Clerk:
We, the undersigned citizens of Utah, respectfully demand that the following proposed law be submitted to: the legislative body for its approval or rejection at its next meeting; and the legal voters of the county/city/town, if the legislative body rejects the proposed law or takes no action on it.
Each signer says:
I have personally signed this petition;
I am registered to vote in Utah or intend to become registered to vote in Utah before the certification of the petition names by the county clerk; and
My residence and post office address are written correctly after my name."
- (b) If the initiative petition proposes a tax increase, the following statement shall appear, in at least 14-point, bold type, immediately following the information described in Subsection (1)(a):
"This initiative petition seeks to increase the current (insert name of tax) rate by (insert the tax percentage difference) percent, resulting in a(n) (insert the tax percentage increase) percent increase in the current tax rate."
- (c) The sponsors of an initiative shall attach a copy of the proposed law to each initiative petition.
- (a) Each proposed initiative petition shall be printed in substantially the following form:
- (2) Each signature sheet shall:
- (a) be printed on sheets of paper 8-1/2 inches long and 11 inches wide;
- (b) be ruled with a horizontal line three-fourths inch from the top, with the space above that line blank for the purpose of binding;
- (c) contain the title of the initiative printed below the horizontal line, in at least 14-point, bold type;
- (d) be vertically divided into columns as follows:
- (i) the first column shall appear at the extreme left of the sheet, be five-eighths inch wide, be headed with "For Office Use Only", and be subdivided with a light vertical line down the middle with the left subdivision entitled "Registered" and the right subdivision left untitled;
- (ii) the next column shall be 2-1/2 inches wide, headed "Registered Voter's Printed Name (must be legible to be counted)";
- (iii) the next column shall be 2-1/2 inches wide, headed "Signature of Registered Voter";
- (iv) the next column shall be one inch wide, headed "Birth Date or Age (Optional)"; and
- (v) the final column shall be 4-3/8 inches wide, headed "Street Address, City, Zip Code";
- (e) spanning the sheet horizontally beneath each row on which a registered voter may submit the information described in Subsection (2)(d), contain the following statement printed or typed in not less than eight-point type:
"By signing this petition, you are stating that you have read and understand the law proposed by this petition."; and
- (f) at the bottom of the sheet, contain in the following order:
- (i) the title of the initiative, in at least 14-point, bold type;
- (ii) the initial fiscal impact estimate's summary statement issued by the budget officer in accordance with Subsection 20A-7-502.5(2)(b) and the cost estimate for printing and distributing information related to the initiative petition in accordance with Subsection 20A-7-502.5(3), in not less than 12-point, bold type;
- (iii) the word "Warning," followed by the following statement in not less than eight-point type:
"It is a class A misdemeanor for an individual to sign an initiative petition with a name other than the individual's own name, or to knowingly sign the individual's name more than once for the same measure, or to sign an initiative petition when the individual knows that the individual is not a registered voter and knows that the individual does not intend to become registered to vote before the certification of the petition names by the county clerk.";
- (iv) the following statement: "Birth date or age information is not required, but it may be used to verify your identity with voter registration records. If you choose not to provide it, your signature may not be verified as a valid signature if you change your address before petition signatures are verified or if the information you provide does not match your voter registration records."; and
- (v) if the initiative petition proposes a tax increase, spanning the bottom of the sheet, horizontally, in not less than 14-point, bold type, the following statement:
"This initiative petition seeks to increase the current (insert name of tax) rate by (insert the tax percentage difference) percent, resulting in a(n) (insert the tax percentage increase) percent increase in the current tax rate."
- (3) The final page of each initiative packet shall contain the following printed or typed statement:
"Verification
State of Utah, County of ____
I, _______________, of ____, hereby state that:
I am a resident of Utah and am at least 18 years old;
All the names that appear in this initiative packet were signed by the individuals who professed to be the individuals whose names appear in it, and each of the individuals signed the individual's name on it in my presence;
I believe that each individual has printed and signed the individual's name and written the individual's post office address and residence correctly, and that each signer is registered to vote in Utah or intends to become registered to vote before the certification of the petition names by the county clerk.
_____________________________"
- (4) The forms prescribed in this section are not mandatory, and, if substantially followed, the initiative petitions are sufficient, notwithstanding clerical and merely technical errors.
Amended by Chapter 291, 2017 General Session
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