During the 2015 legislative session, the legislature passed 2nd sub H.B. 454 which authorizes the state to bond for the prison relocation. Keep It In Draper, with the help of Representative Fred Cox (R) West Valley, are in the process of trying to get a referendum which will put this bill on the ballot and let the taxpayers of Utah decide if they want to spend the money on moving the Utah State Prison.
There was confusion with the law to file for a referendum and the deadline was missed. The law states that a copy of the law (H.B. 454) must accompany a referendum application. In this case, the bill had yet to be signed by the governor when the deadline passed and thus was not yet a law. If we give a little leniency on the interpretation of the law and say that the enrolled copy of H.B. 454 would suffice, we still would not have been able to comply. After H.B. 454 was signed into law, K.I.I.D. leadership attempted to file the petition. Four people were told on separate occasions that the petition would not be accepted due to the deadline, which was five days after the end of the legislative session. Rep. Fred Cox and Stephanie Gricius decided that the best option would be to file an extraordinary writ with the Utah Supreme Court to challenge this deadline since compliance was not actually possible. Rep. Cox filed the petition and we are now waiting for the court to decide. The case will most likely be decided by the end of the month. In the meantime, we are gathering a list of volunteers to help circulate the petition to put H.B. 454 and the prison bond on the ballot. Volunteers are needed from all over the state and will gather signatures in whatever way works best for you as long as you are physically present and can witness people signing. If you are able to help collect signatures please fill out the form. |
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