The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Utah sets new rules for creating counties, requiring feasibility studies and voter approval
Last action · March 7, 2026: House/ filedSponsors: Jordan Teuscher and 1 other
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What This Bill Proposed
This bill establishes a formal process for petitioning municipalities in large counties to initiate the creation of a new county through a and a special election. It requires new counties to levy local sales and use taxes for transportation at the same rate as the and addresses asset, tax, and liability divisions.
Residents in areas pursuing a new county face potential changes in local service providers, tax rates, and property assessments, while large parcels of rural real property meeting specific size or protection criteria may opt to remain in the original county.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Petitioning Municipalities
Municipalities initiating county creation must adopt triggering resolutions, meet population thresholds, and reimburse the seceding county for feasibility studies.
Seceding Counties
Seceding counties must process petitions, commission feasibility studies, hold special elections, and manage asset and tax revenue divisions with the new county.
Rural Real Property Owners
Owners of large contiguous rural tracts or protected agricultural, mining, or industrial lands retain the option to remain in the seceding county.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can initiate the process to create a new county?
What happens to rural property owners if a new county is formed?
Who pays for the feasibility study required for a new county?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Failed in the Senate.
Procedural history
40 actions- Mar 7, 2026HouseHouse/ filed
- Mar 7, 2026HouseHouse/ strike enacting clause
- Mar 7, 2026SenateSenate/ to House
- Mar 7, 2026SenateSenate/ failed
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ motion to reconsider
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ to House
Show 34 earlier actions
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ failed
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ uncircled
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ circled
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ Rules to 2nd Reading Calendar
- Mar 4, 2026SenateSenate/ 2nd Reading Calendar to Rules
- Feb 27, 2026SenateSenate/ placed on 2nd Reading Calendar
- Feb 27, 2026SenateSenate/ committee report favorable
- Feb 26, 2026SenateSenate Comm - Favorable Recommendation
- Feb 24, 2026SenateCommitteeSenate/ to standing committee
- Feb 23, 2026SenateIntroducedSenate/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Feb 20, 2026SenateSenate/ received from House
- Feb 20, 2026HouseHouse/ to Senate
- Feb 20, 2026HouseFloorHouse/ passed 3rd reading
- Feb 20, 2026HouseHouse/ floor amendment
- Feb 20, 2026HouseHouse/ 3rd reading
- Feb 12, 2026HouseHouse/ 2nd reading
- Feb 12, 2026HouseHouse/ comm rpt/ substituted
- Feb 12, 2026HouseHouse Comm - Favorable Recommendation
- Feb 12, 2026HouseHouse Comm - Substitute Recommendation
- Feb 6, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for HB0212S01
- Feb 6, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for HB0212S01
- Feb 4, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for HB0212S01
- Feb 4, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for HB0212S01
- Jan 28, 2026HouseCommitteeHouse/ to standing committee
- Jan 23, 2026HouseHouse/ received fiscal note from Fiscal Analyst
- Jan 22, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for HB0212
- Jan 20, 2026HouseIntroducedHouse/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Jan 18, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for HB0212
- Jan 14, 2026HouseHouse/ received bill from Legislative Research
- Jan 9, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for HB0212
- Jan 9, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for HB0212
- Jan 9, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselNumbered Bill Publicly Distributed
- Jan 9, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselBill Numbered but not Distributed
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Voting Record
Senate/ failed
Total
29
- Yes
- 17
- No
- 12
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 0
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (29)
Show 5 earlier roll calls
Senate/ failed
Total
29
- Yes
- 13
- No
- 14
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 2
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (29)
Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation
Total
7
- Yes
- 4
- No
- 0
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 3
- Abstain
- 0
House/ passed 3rd reading
Total
75
- Yes
- 56
- No
- 10
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 9
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (72)
48 more members
House Comm - Substitute Recommendation
Total
11
- Yes
- 10
- No
- 0
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 1
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (11)
House Comm - Favorable Recommendation
Total
11
- Yes
- 7
- No
- 4
- Present
- 0
- Not voting
- 0
- Abstain
- 0
How they voted (11)
Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Codification of County Formation Requirements
The bill standardizes financial feasibility studies, voter thresholds, and tax allocation rules for newly formed counties exiting an existing jurisdiction.
Connected Entities
Sources
le.utah.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 80)
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz35Current news / social attention level
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