S.B. 40

1

STATE SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION PROCEDURES
2 1997 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Sponsor: Howard C. Nielson
5 Craig A. Peterson
LeRay McAllister
Robert M. Muhlestein

6 AN ACT RELATING TO THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION; REQUIRING A
7 DECLARATION OF CANDIDACY AND FILING FEE FOR CANDIDATES FOR THE
8 STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION; MODIFYING THE PROCESS FOR ELECTING STATE
9 BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBERS; AND PROVIDING A COORDINATION CLAUSE.
10 This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
11 AMENDS:
12 20A-9-201, as last amended by Chapter 258, Laws of Utah 1996
13 20A-9-403, as last amended by Chapters 1 and 340, Laws of Utah 1995
14 20A-14-105, as enacted by Chapter 1, Laws of Utah 1995
15 REPEALS AND REENACTS:
16 20A-14-104, as enacted by Chapter 1, Laws of Utah 1995
17 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
18 Section 1. Section 20A-9-201 is amended to read:
19 20A-9-201. Declarations of candidacy -- Candidacy for more than one office
20 prohibited -- General filing and form requirements.
21 (1) Before filing a declaration of candidacy for election to any office, a person shall:
22 (a) be a United States citizen; and
23 (b) meet the legal requirements of that office.
24 (2) A person may not file for, or be a candidate for, more than one elective office during
25 any election year.
26 (3) If the final date established for filing a declaration of candidacy is a Saturday or
27 Sunday, the filing time shall be extended until 5 p.m. on the following Monday.

1 (4) (a) (i) Before the filing officer may accept any declaration of candidacy, the filing
2 officer shall:
3 (A) read to the prospective candidate the constitutional and statutory qualification
4 requirements for the office that the candidate is seeking; and
5 (B) require the candidate to state whether or not the candidate meets those requirements.
6 (ii) Before accepting a declaration of candidacy for the office of county attorney, the
7 county clerk shall ensure that the person filing that declaration of candidacy is:
8 (A) a United States citizen;
9 (B) an attorney licensed to practice law in Utah who is an active member in good standing
10 of the Utah State Bar;
11 (C) a registered voter in the county in which he is seeking office; and
12 (D) a current resident of the county in which he is seeking office and has been a resident
13 of that county for at least one year.
14 (b) If the prospective candidate states that he does not meet the qualification requirements
15 for the office, the filing officer may not accept the prospective candidate's declaration of
16 candidacy.
17 (c) If the candidate states that he meets the requirements of candidacy, the filing officer
18 shall:
19 (i) accept the candidate's declaration of candidacy; and
20 (ii) if the candidate has filed for a partisan office, provide a certified copy of the
21 declaration of candidacy to the chair of the county or state political party of which the candidate
22 is a member.
23 (5) The form of the declaration of candidacy shall be substantially as follows:
24 "State of Utah, County of ____
25 I, ______________, declare my intention of becoming a candidate for the office of ____
26 as a candidate for the ____ party. I do solemnly swear that: I can qualify to hold that office, both
27 legally and constitutionally, if selected; I reside at _____________ in the City or Town of ____,
28 Utah, Zip Code ____ Phone No. ____; I will not knowingly violate any law governing campaigns
29 and elections; and I will qualify for the office if elected to it.
30 ____________________________________________________________________
31 Subscribed and sworn before me this ____ day of ____, 19__.

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1

_________________________________________________

2

Notary Public (or other officer qualified to administer oath.)"

3 (6) (a) The fee for filing a declaration of candidacy is:
4 (i) $25 for candidates for the [local] State Board of Education and for a school district
5 board; and
6 (ii) 1/8 of 1% of the total salary for the full term of office legally paid to the person
7 holding the office, but not less than $5, for all other federal, state, and county offices.
8 (b) The filing officer shall refund the filing fee to any candidate:
9 (i) who is disqualified; or
10 (ii) who the filing officer determines has filed improperly.
11 (c) (i) The county clerk shall immediately pay to the county treasurer all fees received
12 from candidates.
13 (ii) The lieutenant governor shall:
14 (A) apportion to and pay to the county treasurers of the various counties all fees received
15 for filing of nomination certificates or acceptances; and
16 (B) ensure that each county receives that proportion of the total amount paid to the
17 lieutenant governor from the congressional district that the total vote of that county for all
18 candidates for representative in Congress bears to the total vote of all counties within the
19 congressional district for all candidates for representative in Congress.
20 (d) (i) Each person who is unable to pay the filing fee may file a declaration of candidacy
21 without payment upon a prima facie showing of impecuniosity as evidenced by an affidavit of
22 impecuniosity filed with the filing officer.
23 (ii) The filing officer shall ensure that the affidavit of impecuniosity is printed in
24 substantially the following form:
25 "Affidavit of Impecuniosity
26 Individual Name ____________________________Address_____________________________
27 Phone Number _________________
28 I,__________________________(name), do solemnly [swear] [affirm] that, owing to my poverty,
29 I am unable to pay the filing fee required by law.
30 Date ______________ Signature________________________________________________
31 Affiant

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1 Subscribed and sworn to before me on ___________(date)
2

______________________

3

(signature)

4 Name and Title of Officer Authorized to Administer Oath:"
5 (7) Any person who fails to file a declaration of candidacy or certificate of nomination
6 within the time provided in this chapter is ineligible for nomination to office.
7 Section 2. Section 20A-9-403 is amended to read:
8 20A-9-403. Regular primary elections.
9 (1) (a) The fourth Tuesday of June of each even-numbered year is designated as regular
10 primary election day.
11 (b) Each registered political party that chooses to use the primary election process to
12 nominate some or all of its candidates shall comply with the requirements of this section.
13 (2) (a) (i) Each registered political party that wishes to participate in the primary election
14 shall submit the names of its county candidates to the county clerks and the names of its statewide
15 or multicounty candidates to the lieutenant governor by 5 p.m. on May 20 of each even-numbered
16 year.
17 (ii) By 5 p.m. on May 14 of each even-numbered year, the lieutenant governor shall send
18 the county clerks a certified list of the names of all statewide or multicounty candidates that must
19 be printed on the primary ballot.
20 (b) If a registered political party does not wish to participate in the primary election, it
21 shall submit the names of its county candidates to the county clerks and the names of its statewide
22 or multicounty candidates to the lieutenant governor by 5 p.m. on August 15 of each
23 even-numbered year.
24 (3) (a) By 5 p.m. on May 14 of each even-numbered year, the lieutenant governor shall:
25 (i) conduct a lottery to determine the order of names of candidates for membership on the
26 State Board of Education on the primary ballot; and
27 (ii) send each county clerk a certified list of the names and order of names of the state
28 board candidates to be printed on the primary ballot in the county clerk's county.
29 (b) The names of state board candidates shall be printed on the primary ballot only if more
30 than two candidates have filed for the office.
31 [(3)] (4) The county clerk shall:

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1 (a) review the declarations of candidacy filed by candidates for local boards of education
2 to determine if more than two candidates have filed for the same seat;
3 (b) place the names of all candidates who have filed a declaration of candidacy for a local
4 board of education seat on the nonpartisan section of the ballot if more than two candidates have
5 filed for the same seat; and
6 (c) conduct a lottery to determine the order of the candidates' names on the ballot.
7 [(4)] (5) After the county clerk receives the certified list from a registered political party,
8 the county clerk shall post or publish a primary election notice in substantially the following form:
9 "Notice is given that a primary election will be held Tuesday, June ____, 19__, to nominate
10 party candidates for the parties and nonpartisan offices listed on the primary ballot. The polling
11 place for voting precinct ____ is ____. The polls will open at 7 a.m. and continue open until 8
12 p.m. of the same day. Attest: county clerk".
13 [(5)] (6) (a) Candidates receiving the highest number of votes cast for each office at the
14 regular primary election are nominated by their party or nonpartisan group for that office.
15 (b) If two or more candidates are to be elected to the office at the regular general election,
16 those party candidates equal in number to positions to be filled who receive the highest number
17 of votes at the regular primary election are the nominees of their party for those positions.
18 [(6)] (7) (a) When a tie vote occurs in any primary election for any national, state, or other
19 office that represents more than one county, the governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney
20 general shall, at a public meeting called by the governor and in the presence of the candidates
21 involved, select the nominee by lot cast in whatever manner the governor determines.
22 (b) When a tie vote occurs in any primary election for any county office, the district court
23 judges of the district in which the county is located shall, at a public meeting called by the judges
24 and in the presence of the candidates involved, select the nominee by lot cast in whatever manner
25 the judges determine.
26 [(7)] (8) The expense of providing all ballots, blanks, or other supplies to be used at any
27 primary election provided for by this section, and all expenses necessarily incurred in the
28 preparation for or the conduct of that primary election shall be paid out of the treasury of the
29 county or state, in the same manner as for the regular general elections.
30 Section 3. Section 20A-14-104 is repealed and reenacted to read:
31 20A-14-104. Becoming a candidate for membership on the State Board of Education

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1 -- Declaration of candidacy.
2 An individual interested in becoming a candidate for the State Board of Education shall
3 file a declaration of candidacy according to the procedures and requirements of Sections
4 20A-9-201 and 20A-9-202.
5 Section 4. Section 20A-14-105 is amended to read:
6 20A-14-105. Candidates for membership on the State Board of Education -- Ballot
7 placement.
8 [(1) By September 1 of each regular general election year, the governor shall:]
9 [(a) for each state board district subject to election in that year, select two candidates for
10 the State Board of Education from the lists submitted by the state board district nominating
11 committees; and]
12 [(b) certify the names of the two candidates from each school board district to the
13 lieutenant governor.]
14 [(2) If the governor fails to select two candidates for a state board district by September
15 1, the nominating committee from that district shall:]
16 [(a) select the two candidates; and]
17 [(b) notify the lieutenant governor of its selections by September 15.]
18 (1) The names of the two State Board of Education candidates who received the most votes
19 in the primary election for the state board office shall be placed on the November general ballot
20 with the name of the individual who received the most votes in the primary listed first.
21 [(3)] (2) The lieutenant governor shall[: (a)] conduct a lottery to determine the order of the
22 candidates' names on the ballot[;], if the candidates' names did not appear on the primary ballot
23 under Section 20A-9-403.
24 [(b)] (3) The lieutenant governor shall certify the names and order of the names to the
25 county clerks for placement on the nonpartisan section of the ballot.
26 Section 5. Coordination clause.
27 If this bill and S.B. 82, Election Law - Candidate Issues, both pass, it is the intent of the
28 Legislature that the amendments in Section 20A-14-105 in this bill supersede the amendments to
29 Section 20A-14-105 in S.B. 82.


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Legislative Review Note
as of 1-17-97 11:07 AM

A limited legal review of this bill raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel

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