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Read. Follow. Verify.Utah amends signature gathering rules for initiatives and referenda to allow spiral binders and signature sheet removal
Last action · March 6, 2026: House/ filedSponsors: Norm Thurston and 2 others
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What This Bill Proposed
This bill amends provisions for initiative and referendum petitions.
Petition organizers and circulators must follow updated formatting, binding, and signer-verification rules when gathering signatures for state and local ballot measures.
- Utah law establishes formal procedures for citizens to place proposed laws and referenda on the ballot through signature gathering petitions. context
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.
Petition sponsors and signature gatherers
Petition sponsors and circulators are subject to new rules regarding binding methods, signature sheet removal, and updated form disclosures.
Utah registered voters
Voters signing initiative or referendum petitions encounter updated statements on signature forms confirming they had the opportunity to read the proposed law.
County and local clerks
Clerks must process petition packets and evaluate signatures under the updated statutory procedures.
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
What binders are permitted for initiative and referendum packets under this bill?
Can signature gatherers remove signature sheets from a petition packet?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · introduced in the House.
Procedural history
11 actions- Mar 6, 2026HouseHouse/ filed
- Mar 6, 2026HouseHouse/ strike enacting clause
- Jan 20, 2026HouseIntroducedHouse/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Jan 14, 2026HouseHouse/ received fiscal note from Fiscal Analyst
- Jan 14, 2026HouseHouse/ received bill from Legislative Research
- Jan 13, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for HB0074
Show 5 earlier actions
- Jan 13, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for HB0074
- Dec 23, 2025Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for HB0074
- Dec 23, 2025Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for HB0074
- Dec 23, 2025Legislative Research and General CounselNumbered Bill Publicly Distributed
- Dec 23, 2025Legislative 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 →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.
Relaxed physical handling rules for petition circulators
The legislation explicitly permits circulators to remove signature sheets for circulation and utilize spiral binding, addressing practical field challenges in gathering petition signatures.
Connected Entities
Sources
le.utah.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 40)
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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