- New bill would require Utah signature gatherers to undergo government training.
- Bill would make it easier for voters to access initiative language on their phones.
- Voters around country have complained about misleading ballot initiative tactics.
Utah lawmakers want to clarify what signature gatherers can and cannot do amid concerns around the country about misleading ballot initiative petitions.
Tensions in the Beehive State have risen as the Utah Republican Party attempts to repeal the Proposition 4 redistricting law by putting it on the November ballot.
Some Utah voters have alleged the GOP’s signature gatherers, a mix of in-state volunteers and out-of-state employees, have mischaracterized the effort to get signatures.
Meanwhile, multiple police reports record aggressive behavior toward signature gatherers by angry residents, including assaults, as reported by the Deseret News.
Around the country
Complaints surrounding ballot initiative tactics, and the response to them, are found in each of the 25 states that, like Utah, allow for citizen-initiated measures.
In 2025, Michigan students reported being misled about an initiative to verify voter citizenship, and voters in Massachusetts said they were misled about an effort to criminalize marijuana.
Massachusetts election officials said in January they would investigate the complaints. Other state officials, such as in Maine, have said signature gatherers’ speech is protected by the 1st Amendment.
Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson confirmed to KSL there have been complaints about misleading descriptions by signature gatherers. These complaints are part of the process, she said.
What are the Utah complaints?
The GOP initiative, coordinated by Utahns for Representative Government, seeks to reverse a 2018 law passed narrowly by voters that established a redistricting commission and anti-gerrymandering laws.
With the help of nearly 1,000 volunteers and 200-250 hired Patriot Grassroots employees, the GOP argues Proposition 4 allows judges to dictate congressional voting districts instead of elected representatives.
But several complaints received by the Deseret News, including an interview with West Valley resident Shane Landon, suggest some signature gatherers may be distorting what it would mean to repeal Proposition 4.
Landon said signature gatherers at the Kearns rec center told him by signing the petition he would be taking power from the judicial system returning it to the people and putting a stop to gerrymandering.
“I looked up Prop 4, and it’s the exact opposite of what they just had me sign,” Landon said. “So they lied to me.”
What does the Utah bill do?
On Tuesday, a Utah House committee gave unanimous approval to HB32 which would require signature gatherers to take a government training about what they must tell Utah voters.
“If they go through this, they would understand a lot better, and it would make it very clear what they’re allowed to do, what they’re not allowed to do,” said Rep. Paul Cutler, R-Centerville, who is the sponsor of the bill.
Utah code already requires signature gatherers to inform voters that they are expected to understand the initiative before signing and to give voters the chance to read it.
To make this easier, the bill would allow signature gatherers to use a new signature packet design that would allow the sponsor to print a short, plain-language explanation of what the initiative aims to do.
Currently, signature packets must contain a physical copy of the proposed change to the law. Under the new law, packets could simply have a QR code linking to the ballot initiative’s language.
Protecting voters and gatherers
The bill would also implement an automatic notification system that would text and email voters if a packet with their name is received and would update them on the status of their signature.
Voters may remove their name from an initiative petition by sending a written request to their county clerk within 90 days, if their signature was submitted before Dec. 1, or 45 days if it was submitted later.
The bill also seeks to protect initiative efforts from bad actors who seek to disqualify signature packets by writing an inaccurate date that would make it appear like the packet was submitted past deadline.
The bill clarifies that county clerks are allowed to certify all valid signatures in a packet that were submitted within 30 days even if some of the signatures in the packet have a date that falls before that 30 day window.