TL;DR: We’re putting pressure on lawmakers to return the power of writing ballot descriptions for constitutional amendments back to nonpartisan lawyers.
Who Writes the Language for Constitutional Amendments on the Ballot?
When a constitutional amendment is proposed by the Legislature, a short summary is typically included for the ballot that explains the changes that will be made to the Utah Constitution.
In Utah, nonpartisan staff attorneys have historically drafted this ballot language to ensure a neutral and unbiased description is presented to the voters that will approve or reject the proposed change. However, earlier this year the Legislature shifted this responsibility from nonpartisan staff to the leaders of the Republican supermajority, raising concerns about political bias and leading directly to Amendment D being voided in the months leading up to the 2024 General Election.
Utahns deserve to have ballot summaries that accurately reflect the changes that will be made to their state constitution. Lawmakers should reverse the changes made earlier this year and restore responsibility for writing those summaries to nonpartisan staff attorneys.
Background
What You Need To Know About Ballot Language
The Utah Constitution forms the foundation of our state’s government and laws. When the Utah State Legislature proposes changes to the Constitution, also known as amendments, it requires any changes to “be submitted to the [voters] of the state for their approval or rejection.”
While the Legislature could require giving the text of the amendment itself to voters, and does so in the official Voter Information Pamphlet that is posted online, doing so on the ballot would result in confusing legal language being placed on ballots that are already long. So it’s common practice in Utah and other states to include a short ballot summary of the changes to be made to the constitution and then ask voters whether they approve or reject those changes.
What Changed Recently?
Before this year, Utah law gave the responsibility of writing these ballot summaries to the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel, an office of nonpartisan attorneys that assists lawmakers with researching and writing laws. Specifically, they were tasked with drafting an “impartial analysis” of any constitutional amendments proposed by the Legislature. For example, you can find the impartial wording and analysis of ballot language of several proposed constitutional amendments for the last two elections in the 2022 and 2020 Voter Information Pamphlets.
However, earlier this year during the 2024 General Session of the Utah State Legislature, lawmakers made a change to this law, shifting responsibility for writing ballot summaries from the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House, who are also leaders of the supermajority Republican caucuses. Of note, the law no longer required these partisan leaders to prepare an analysis that is impartial.
This brings us to Amendment D, an amendment to the Utah Constitution that was proposed by Republican lawmakers during a special session in August this year. This proposed amendment explicitly gave lawmakers the power to amend, enact, or repeal any ballot initiative that was passed by Utahns, a legislative power and constitutional right that Utahns hold. This can be seen by the language of the proposed amendment itself:
However, this is the summary of Amendment D that the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House wrote for the ballot:
To summarize a Supreme Court decision that is dozens of pages of legal analysis, the ballot summary was clearly misleading because it could deceive voters into believing that Amendment D would clarify and strengthen the constitutional power of ballot initiatives. In reality, the proposed amendment would have strengthened the Legislature’s ability to amend laws at the expense of Utahns’ rights and powers contained in the Constitution.
As the Utah Supreme Court said, while the Utah Constitution “does not require a ballot summary, if the Legislature chooses to include one, it must accurately describe the amendment. … Simply stated, if the ballot [summary] would mislead a reasonable voter as to what they are voting for or against, the proposed amendment has not been submitted to the voters as the constitution requires.”
Why Is It Important?
Neutral ballot descriptions are the cornerstone of an informed electorate, as they ensure voters have access to unbiased information when making decisions on complex and contentious issues, such as changes to our state Constitution.
When partisan lawmakers draft ballot summaries, the language used can subtly or overtly influence public opinion by framing issues in a way that supports a particular agenda. This influence is particularly dangerous on contentious matters, as loaded or misleading language can lead voters to support policies that may not align with their true interests or values. Such practices risk eroding public trust in the electoral process, as voters may perceive summaries as tools of manipulation. This undermines confidence in democratic institutions and impedes voters’ ability to make informed, independent decisions.
Shifting the responsibility of writing ballot summaries back to nonpartisan staff can help ensure fairness and transparency by minimizing the potential for bias. As has been seen in prior elections before this responsibility was changed to partisan lawmakers, these nonpartisan attorneys used impartial language that reflected the amendment’s true intent, enabling voters to focus on the substance rather than the politics. Empowering nonpartisan staff to handle this responsibility fosters trust and promotes a more equitable and effective democratic process.
What Can You Do About It?
Contact your lawmakers! Ask your lawmakers to run or support legislation that returns the writing of ballot summaries to nonpartisan staff attorneys so that Utahns receive fair and unbiased language when being asked to amend the state constitution.
We’ve provided a sample email here that you can use to email your lawmakers. We include all information to lookup and contact your lawmakers in the template.
