Salt Lake City, UT – An unprecedented attack against judicial independence is being fast-tracked through the legislature in the final two weeks of the session. HB 512 muddies the water between the branches of government that are meant to be distinct by creating a redundant system within the legislature to evaluate judges and influence public opinion.
Today the Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court hand-delivered a letter to Legislative leadership calling HB 512 “dangerous” and “introducing partisan politics directly into the judiciary”. Unfortunately, it’s not the only bill this session targeting the judicial branch and how citizens use it. There are four bills in particular that threaten the balance of powers between the three branches of our state government: SB 203, HB 451, HB 512, and SJR 9.
Elizabeth Hutchings, Communications Director for Alliance for a Better Utah, issued the following statement:
“These anti-judicial bills are part of a calculated overreach by the Legislature to protect and expand the Utah Legislature’s power, violating the separation of powers between the legislative and judicial branches of our government.
This isn’t solving a problem, it is punishing the courts and the citizens of Utah for daring to uphold the constitution. If the legislature wasn’t passing unconstitutional laws and significantly meddling with ballot initiatives, they wouldn’t have so many lawsuits.”
While each of these bills on their own are a threat, together they would have devastating consequences for the balance of power. If HB 451 & HB 512 passed, we would see a biased Legislative committee putting their opinions of judges and justices directly on the ballot, which could certainly influence the election enough to bump anyone they have a vendetta against below the proposed 67% retention threshold.
If SJR 9 and SB 203 pass, the ability of citizens to challenge unconstitutional laws in court would be significantly hindered. They would erode the ability of the judicial process to check legislative power by creating an unnecessary and aggressive timeline for laws to be challenged and altering the judicial definitions of “3rd-party standing” and associations.
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Alliance for a Better Utah is a nonprofit that holds politicians accountable and advocates for progressive policies that make Utah an even better place. The organization improves the lives of all Utahns through advocacy, transparency, and accountability in Utah politics, policy, and government. More information at www.betterutah.org.
