All Roll Calls
Yes: 160 • No: 36
UtahS.B. 1532026 General SessionSenateWALLET
Election Amendments
Sponsored By: John D. Johnson (Republican)
Signed by Governor
Election LawInitiativesVoting and Voter RegistrationCrimesGovernment Operations (State Issues)Election AdministrationLieutenant GovernorReferenda
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
26 provisions identified: 10 benefits, 1 costs, 15 mixed.
Apply for at‑risk voter privacy
Beginning April 6, 2026, you can ask to be marked an at‑risk voter. Use the at‑risk request form and give the proof the rules require. County clerks must grant the status if you qualify. The lieutenant governor gives the form to all election offices and registration agencies. The voter registration form now explains what data is public and how to request extra privacy.
Cleaner voter rolls and easier registration
County clerks must register eligible people who submit forms to the clerk, give info at the Driver License Division, use public assistance agencies, or mail a form. Clerks may not cancel you just for not voting. When death data comes from Social Security or vital records, clerks must remove the deceased within five business days. In the 90 days before a regular primary or general election, clerks may not remove voters except for death or a written request from the voter.
Petition signing: warnings and options
Starting May 25, 2026, many local and privatization petitions must warn on the first page that your voter ID number and the date you signed may be public. If you give a valid email, you get a notice with links and a deadline to remove your signature. Clerks post signer voter ID numbers and dates within two business days after certification, but will not post or count your name if you remove your signature on time. You can withdraw a signature within short windows, and for some special district petitions you may reinstate it before or shortly after the hearing. At‑risk voters who sign a petition still have their voter ID and sign date disclosed for petition checks, and initiative sponsors must email signers or signatures are invalid.
At‑risk privacy deadlines and reports
In 2026, the state mails forms to voters with withheld or private records. To keep extra privacy, you must submit the at‑risk form with proof by May 6, 2026. Officials finalize at‑risk or public status by May 24, 2026, and non‑applicants’ records become public on May 25, 2026. Starting January 1, 2027, the statewide site shows only party and last update when a voter ID is entered, and the lieutenant governor posts monthly at‑risk totals by district. Records can still be shared for limited official uses, like election administration or a court order.
Stronger privacy and consent for voter data
Starting April 6, 2026, voter privacy is stronger. At‑risk voters’ records and certain forms are private, and records marked private by election officials stay private. Officials give out only standard data for public voters and never release at‑risk data. Parties get phone or email only if you consent, and that consent sharing starts January 1, 2027. Government officials can get only what they need for their duty, and misuse or public posting of voter lists is a crime. From March 9 to May 25, 2026, copies of the voter list reflect how it looked on March 8, 2026. Whether you put postage on your ballot return, and military/overseas voter emails and electronic ballots, are private. Agencies and election workers may not push you to apply or not apply for at‑risk status. The law also treats research by the University of Utah and Utah State University as an official duty for a named voter‑data rule.
Voter data privacy and access changes
Starting April 6, 2026, parts of your voter record are private: driver license or ID number, Social Security number (full or last four), email, birth date, and phone. Also starting April 6, 2026, standard voter data for a public registered voter is public under election‑code rules. Petition forms must warn that a signer’s voter ID number and signing date may be made public, even for private or at‑risk records, beginning May 25, 2026. Government agencies may share certain private records with other agencies for voter list or election administration. Government officers may not seek or disclose details about how a named voter cast a ballot or specifics from a voter’s return envelope, and may use election records only for official duties.
School district boundary changes need more votes
Beginning May 25, 2026, petitions to create a new school district must have signatures equal to at least 10% of presidential votes cast in the area at the last presidential election. The petition’s first page must warn signers about private voter registration records, and signers can remove or reinstate signatures within three business days after filing. For consolidation and transfer petitions, the county legislative body must send the petition to the county clerk within three business days, and the clerk has 14 days to verify and certify it. A transfer of part of a district only succeeds if a majority in both the current and receiving districts vote yes.
Privacy help for at-risk public employees
Beginning April 6, 2026, an at‑risk government employee can ask agencies to mark certain records private. Agencies must provide a form, help file it, and require the highest‑ranking official in the employee’s chain of command to sign. The form explains that privacy may block some official announcements. The protection lasts up to four years unless rescinded, or one year after official notice of death.
Register online and track ballots
The lieutenant governor runs an online system to apply for registration or preregistration, and by July 1, 2025 it lets you request a mail ballot. The system can use your driver license or ID signature already on file. Beginning April 6, 2026, clerks must send a notice within 30 days after processing your form and explain party updates, cancellation, and how to get ballot‑status alerts. Provisional envelopes include a unique tracking number and instructions to check if your ballot counted.
State online account info is private
Starting April 6, 2026, information you voluntarily enter into a state online repository for dealing with a state agency is private. This covers data in a system run by the state’s chief information officer.
Teens can preregister to vote
Beginning April 6, 2026, 16‑ and 17‑year‑olds who are U.S. citizens and have lived in Utah 30 days can preregister. The clerk registers them for the first election they can vote in and sends a notice. Their voter record stays private until their 18th birthday, when it becomes public under the law.
Faster handling of privatization petitions
When a privatization petition is filed with a local clerk, the clerk must send it to the county clerk within three business days. The county clerk then has 14 days to process and certify it.
Clearer voter pamphlets and measure analyses
The voter pamphlet now includes the certified initiative text and the initial fiscal impact statement. If a proposal raises a tax, the pamphlet shows the tax name and the percent increase in bold. Legislative counsel must write a plain‑English analysis (1,000 words or less) for measures the Legislature refers, explain changes to law and fiscal effects, consult fiscal staff, and file it at least 90 days before the election.
More ways to show ID to vote
Until January 1, 2029, you can use two non‑photo documents that show your name and your address in the precinct. Accepted items include a current utility bill, bank or financial statement, paycheck, state‑issued check, and other listed documents. Some of these must be dated within 90 days of the election.
School district petitions and boundary steps
Starting May 25, 2026, the first page of school consolidation and transfer petitions must warn that your voter ID number and the date you signed may be public. If you signed one, you can ask the county clerk to remove your signature within three business days after the county legislative body gives the petition to the clerk. When a city annexes land, the school board must start a boundary‑transfer request within 60 days unless the boards’ presidents agree to leave the land as is. For a district that built a secondary school outside its boundaries in 2018, the board had to submit a transfer resolution by June 1, 2024.
Stricter process to form a new party
Beginning May 25, 2026, proposed party names and emblems must be clearly different from existing parties. Groups may collect party‑formation signatures only from the statewide canvass after the last general election until 5 p.m. on November 30 the year before the next general election, and must file at least 2,000 handwritten signatures by 5 p.m. on November 30 of the election year. Petitions must use 8.5×11 sheets with required columns, an attestation, and a warning that a voter’s ID number and date signed may be public.
New city candidate filing and signatures
Beginning May 25, 2026, to run for city office you may file a nomination petition with the smaller of 25 signatures or 20% of the city’s registered voters, and pay any city‑required fee. The filing window starts at 8 a.m. on June 1 (or the next business day) and ends at 5 p.m. on the fourth business day after it starts. Before accepting your filing, the officer reads the legal qualifications, confirms you cannot hold city and county office at the same time, gives campaign disclosure and election website materials, and collects an active email that is not a public record. If you signed a nomination petition, you can withdraw your signature by 5 p.m. within three business days after the petition is filed. Petitions must be filed during the city’s filing period and office hours.
New county must repay election costs
When voters approve creating a new county, the old county pays the special election cost first. The new county must reimburse one‑half of that cost within one year of its effective date. This rule starts May 25, 2026.
New rules to run for city office
Starting May 25, 2026, you must be a registered voter and live in the city for 12 straight months before the election; annexed‑area residency counts. New cities are treated as if they were 12 months old for this rule. If a council seat is elected by district, you must live in that district. You must file your candidacy in person during the filing window and pay any local filing fee. If you are out of state for the whole filing period, you can name an agent to file in person while you appear by video and give an email address.
Party labels and primary rules for cities
The law holds municipal primaries on the second Tuesday after the first Monday in August; if candidates are no more than twice the seats, no primary is held. A convention or committee may nominate only one person per office and cannot nominate someone already nominated elsewhere. By May 31 of odd years, a convention files a certificate listing nominee details, a party name of five words or fewer, the authorizing resolution, and a promise the nominee is not running for another party. To qualify a municipal party by petition, collect registered‑voter signatures equal to at least 20% of all mayoral votes from the last city election and file by 5 p.m. the last business day before the convention. City ballots must show each candidate’s party name.
Rules to qualify as convention delegates
Delegate candidates must collect at least 100 registered‑voter signatures on petitions that do not list party affiliation. A petition may name up to 21 candidates, and each nominee must state if they will vote for or against ratification. File petitions by 5 p.m. on the last business day at least 40 days before the election. Within 10 days after the last filing day, the lieutenant governor verifies registrations, selects the top 21 nominees for and 21 against ratification (ties by lot), and certifies them to county clerks.
Small cities can skip primaries
Any third‑, fourth‑, or fifth‑class city or town may pass an ordinance before May 1 to not hold a primary. Nominations then happen by municipal party convention or committee held by May 30 of odd‑numbered years. The ordinance stays in effect until the city repeals it.
Stricter candidate signature rules
Candidates who qualify by signature must use the approved electronic format and meet a firm submission deadline: 5 p.m., at least 14 days before the party convention. Election officers must confirm verifiers are 18+, audit 1% of comparisons, and may certify up to 110% of the needed signatures. You must file a notice of intent before gathering signatures and follow candidate reporting rules. For 2026 only, a U.S. House candidate needs 7,000 valid signatures filed by March 13, 2026. It is a crime to sign unlawfully or to certify signatures you did not witness.
Unaffiliated candidates: signatures and deadlines
Beginning May 25, 2026, unaffiliated candidates must file a sworn 8.5x11 nomination packet with bound signature sheets. Packets are due by 5 p.m. on June 15 of the election year. Statewide offices need at least 1,000 registered‑voter signatures; substate offices need 300 signatures or 5% of registered voters, whichever is less. County clerks verify holographic signatures and certify counts within 30 days, and candidates may add or fix signatures until 5 p.m. on June 15. Anyone who signed the packet can withdraw their signature by 5 p.m. within three business days after the filing.
Voter roll updates and inactive status
No later than 90 days before each regular primary and general election, county clerks must review and update the voter register. The lieutenant governor checks clerk compliance, including removal of deceased voters. Beginning April 6, 2026, after certain mailed notices come back, clerks list a voter as inactive. Inactive voters still may vote and sign petitions, but counties may stop routine mailings to them.
Tougher rules and disclosures for petitions
Starting May 25, 2026, electronic petition devices must show the full proposal, hearing notices, funding sources, any tax‑increase notice, the initial fiscal impact, whether gatherers can be paid, and a final privacy consent screen. Electronic signature collection stops at 5 p.m. on the earlier of 316 days after filing or February 15 before the next general election; different deadlines apply to referenda and local measures. Paper petitions must use new 8.5×11 forms with required fields and a collector’s perjury verification; small clerical errors do not void a petition.
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Sponsors & Cosponsors
Sponsor
John D. Johnson
Republican • Senate
Cosponsors
Trevor Lee
Republican • House
Roll Call Votes
House vote • 3/4/2026
House/ substituted
Yes: 0 • No: 0
Senate vote • 3/4/2026
Senate/ concurs with House amendment
Yes: 22 • No: 7
Senate vote • 3/4/2026
Senate/ motion to reconsider
Yes: 0 • No: 0
Senate vote • 3/4/2026
Senate/ concurs with House amendment
Yes: 19 • No: 5
House vote • 3/4/2026
House/ passed 3rd reading
Yes: 56 • No: 12
House vote • 2/27/2026
House Comm - Substitute Recommendation
Yes: 8 • No: 0
House vote • 2/27/2026
House Comm - Favorable Recommendation
Yes: 5 • No: 3
Senate vote • 2/24/2026
Senate/ passed 3rd reading
Yes: 24 • No: 4
Senate vote • 2/23/2026
Senate/ uncircled
Yes: 0 • No: 0
Senate vote • 2/23/2026
Senate/ passed 2nd reading
Yes: 22 • No: 3
Senate vote • 2/23/2026
Senate/ substituted
Yes: 0 • No: 0
Senate vote • 2/6/2026
Senate/ circled
Yes: 0 • No: 0
House vote • 1/23/2026
Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation
Yes: 4 • No: 2
Actions Timeline
Governor Signed
3/18/2026Senate/ to Governor
3/13/2026SenateSenate/ received enrolled bill from Printing
3/13/2026SenateSenate/ enrolled bill to Printing
3/12/2026SenateEnrolled Bill Returned to House or Senate
3/12/2026Draft of Enrolled Bill Prepared
3/10/2026Bill Received from Senate for Enrolling
3/10/2026Senate/ signed by President/ sent for enrolling
3/10/2026SenateSenate/ received from House
3/10/2026SenateHouse/ to Senate
3/5/2026HouseHouse/ signed by Speaker/ returned to Senate
3/5/2026HouseHouse/ received from Senate
3/5/2026HouseSenate/ to House
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ concurs with House amendment
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ placed on Concurrence Calendar
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ motion to reconsider
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ to House
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ concurs with House amendment
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ placed on Concurrence Calendar
3/4/2026SenateSenate/ received from House
3/4/2026SenateHouse/ to Senate
3/4/2026HouseHouse/ passed 3rd reading
3/4/2026HouseHouse/ substituted
3/4/2026HouseHouse/ 3rd reading
3/4/2026HouseHouse/ 2nd reading
3/3/2026House
Bill Text
Enrolled
3/12/2026
Substitute #4
3/2/2026
Substitute #2
2/20/2026
Substitute #1
2/14/2026
Substitute #3
2/14/2026
Introduced
1/19/2026
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