Amendments A and B ask Utah voters to change rules on public notice and 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] The Legislature's text of the resolution, H.J.R. 10, shows it passed the House 70-0-5 and the Senate 29-0-0, and it would take effect Jan. 1, 2027 if approved. ^[2]

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] The Legislature's text of the resolution, S.J.R. 2, applies the 60% threshold to initiated legislation that imposes a new tax, expands an existing tax, raises a tax rate or, for property tax, lets a rate fall by less than it would under current law, if the vote occurs after Nov. 1, 2026. It passed the Senate 21-8-0 and the House 55-17-3 and would take effect Nov. 23, 2026 if approved. ^[2]

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]