SALT LAKE CITY — The Lt. Governor's Office has officially verified more than the 140,000 signatures needed for a referendum on public employee collective bargaining to qualify for the ballot.
In addition, the Utah Education Association announced that its tracking has found the effort has met the threshold of 8% of voters in 15 of 29 Utah State Senate districts.
"Today, Utahns made history," the UEA said in a statement Monday. "Despite one of the most difficult referendum processes in the country, the Protect Utah Workers coalition met the required thresholds to put HB267 on the ballot, with tens of thousands more signatures awaiting verification. This is shaping up to be the most successful citizen-led referendum in Utah’s history and it’s thanks to the thousands of volunteers who stood up and said voters, not politicians, should decide Utah’s future. The message is clear: Utahns still believe in checks and balances, accountability, and the power of the people to lead."
As of Monday morning, the Lt. Governor's Office had verified 146,480 signatures. Union referendum supporters said they submitted more than 320,000 signatures to county clerks. The validation will continue, as there is a 45-day period where people can be persuaded to fill out affidavits to remove their signatures.
The referendum is against a bill the legislature passed and the governor signed into law, prohibiting public employee unions from collective bargaining.
