Lawmakers Drafting Election Bills
11.12.2009 by Jeff Robinson
(KCPW News) A handful of state legislators are drafting election-related bills, on the heels of the Governor’s Commission on Strengthening Utah’s Democracy approving several different proposals aimed at increasing voter turnout. One member of the group, Senate Majority Whip Scott Jenkins, is sponsoring a bill to create a commission that would enforce election, campaign finance and lobbying requirements.
“There’s been enough publicity on this in the papers and on the media that many citizens are energized by it, and they want to see some kind of law run and commission created, and this is in fact going to do that,” he told KCPW.
However, Senator Jenkins insists that a lack of ethical behavior on Capitol Hill is not a big problem in the state. He believes his legislation and another bill to limit campaign contributions will be approved during the upcoming session.
Democratic Representative Rebecca Chavez-Houck, who also served on the commission, is running a bill to make it easier to register to vote, or change your address with the clerk’s office, without having to fill out a separate form.
“People would affirmatively indicate on a box somewhere on that other public service form, whether it’s a tax return or a drivers license application or a social services form, that you would like to have your registration information updated, and so that information would go to the appropriate county clerk,” she said.
