Amendments A and B ask Utah voters to rewrite constitution on public notice, tax initiatives

Utah voters filling out mail ballots this month will decide two constitutional amendments placed on the ballot by the Legislature, Utah News Dispatch reported. Amendment A deals with how future proposed amendments are published, and Amendment B would raise the bar for ballot initiatives that increase taxes. ^[1]

Amendment A would remove the constitution's requirement that proposed amendments run in a newspaper in every county for two months before an election and instead require publication for 60 days in a manner set by state law. Under a 2025 law, HB481, the lieutenant governor would post the text on the state's Public Notice Website and the lieutenant governor's website. A fiscal note estimates savings of up to $1.4 million every two years. The measure passed both chambers unanimously, and the outlet reported no organized opposition. ^[1]

Amendment B, the more contested of the two, would require 60% approval for citizen initiatives that create, expand or raise a tax. The Dispatch noted that the 2018 initiatives expanding Medicaid and legalizing medical marijuana, which passed with 53.3% and 52.7%, would have failed under that standard. ^[1]

Sponsors Sen. Lincoln Fillmore and Rep. Jason Kyle, both Republicans, argue that statewide tax increases should have broad support. Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla and House Minority Leader Angela Romero, both Democrats, counter that the change holds voters to a stricter standard than lawmakers, who can raise taxes by simple majority. A political issues committee, Utahns Protecting Our Constitution, is campaigning against Amendment B. ^[1]