1     
POLITICAL ACTIVITIES OF PUBLIC ENTITIES ACT

2     
AMENDMENTS

3     
2019 GENERAL SESSION

4     
STATE OF UTAH

5     
Chief Sponsor: Kim F. Coleman

6     
Senate Sponsor: ____________

7     

8     LONG TITLE
9     General Description:
10          This bill amends provisions of the Political Activities of Public Entities Act.
11     Highlighted Provisions:
12          This bill:
13          ▸     defines terms and modifies and deletes definitions;
14          ▸     prohibits a public official or an employee of a public entity from using public funds,
15     public resources, public email, or public distribution lists for certain politically-
16     related purposes;
17          ▸     provides criminal or civil penalties for violating the provisions of this bill;
18          ▸     modifies exceptions to the requirements of this bill; and
19          ▸     makes technical and conforming changes.
20     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
21          None
22     Other Special Clauses:
23          None
24     Utah Code Sections Affected:
25     AMENDS:
26          20A-11-1202, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2017, Chapter 68
27          20A-11-1203, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 435

28          20A-11-1204, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 435
29          20A-11-1205, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2018, Chapter 44
30          20A-11-1206, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 435
31     

32     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
33          Section 1. Section 20A-11-1202 is amended to read:
34          20A-11-1202. Definitions.
35          As used in this part:
36          (1) "Applicable election officer" means:
37          (a) a county clerk, if the email relates only to a local election; or
38          (b) the lieutenant governor, if the email relates to an election other than a local
39     election.
40          (2) "Ballot proposition" means constitutional amendments, initiatives, referenda,
41     judicial retention questions, opinion questions, bond approvals, or other questions submitted to
42     the voters for their approval or rejection.
43          (3) "Campaign contribution" means any of the following when done for a political
44     purpose or to advocate for or against a ballot proposition:
45          (a) a gift, subscription, donation, loan, advance, deposit of money, or anything of value
46     given to a filing entity;
47          (b) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make a gift,
48     subscription, donation, unpaid or partially unpaid loan, advance, deposit of money, or anything
49     of value to a filing entity;
50          (c) any transfer of funds from another reporting entity to a filing entity;
51          (d) compensation paid by any person or reporting entity other than the filing entity for
52     personal services provided without charge to the filing entity;
53          (e) remuneration from:
54          (i) any organization or the organization's directly affiliated organization that has a
55     registered lobbyist; or
56          (ii) any agency or subdivision of the state, including a school district; or
57          (f) an in-kind contribution.
58          (4) (a) "Commercial interlocal cooperation agency" means an interlocal cooperation

59     agency that receives its revenues from conduct of its commercial operations.
60          (b) "Commercial interlocal cooperation agency" does not mean an interlocal
61     cooperation agency that receives some or all of its revenues from:
62          (i) government appropriations;
63          (ii) taxes;
64          (iii) government fees imposed for regulatory or revenue raising purposes; or
65          (iv) interest earned on public funds or other returns on investment of public funds.
66          (5) "Expenditure" means:
67          (a) a purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money,
68     or anything of value;
69          (b) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make any
70     purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money, or anything of
71     value;
72          (c) a transfer of funds between a public entity and a candidate's personal campaign
73     committee;
74          (d) a transfer of funds between a public entity and a political issues committee; or
75          (e) goods or services provided to or for the benefit of a candidate, a candidate's
76     personal campaign committee, or a political issues committee for a political [purposes] purpose
77     at less than fair market value.
78          (6) "Filing entity" means the same as that term is defined in Section 20A-11-101.
79          (7) "Governmental interlocal cooperation agency" means an interlocal cooperation
80     agency that receives some or all of its revenues from:
81          (a) government appropriations;
82          (b) taxes;
83          (c) government fees imposed for regulatory or revenue raising purposes; or
84          (d) interest earned on public funds or other returns on investment of public funds.
85          [(8) (a) "Influence" means to campaign or advocate for or against a ballot proposition.]
86          [(b) "Influence" does not mean providing a brief statement about a public entity's
87     position on a ballot proposition and the reason for that position.]
88          [(9)] (8) "Interlocal cooperation agency" means an entity created by interlocal
89     agreement under the authority of Title 11, Chapter 13, Interlocal Cooperation Act.

90          [(10)] (9) "Local district" means an entity under Title 17B, Limited Purpose Local
91     Government Entities - Local Districts, and includes a special service district under Title 17D,
92     Chapter 1, Special Service District Act.
93          [(11)] (10) "Political [purposes] purpose" means an act done with the intent or in a way
94     to influence or intend to influence, directly or indirectly, any person to refrain from voting or to
95     vote for or against any:
96          (a) candidate for public office at any caucus, political convention, primary, or election;
97     or
98          (b) judge standing for retention at any election.
99          [(12)] (11) (a) "Public entity" includes the state, each state agency, each county,
100     municipality, school district, local district, governmental interlocal cooperation agency, and
101     each administrative subunit of each of them.
102          (b) "Public entity" does not include a commercial interlocal cooperation agency.
103          (c) "Public entity" includes local health departments created under Title 26, Chapter 1,
104     Department of Health Organization.
105          [(13)] (12) (a) "Public funds" means any money received by a public entity from
106     appropriations, taxes, fees, interest, or other returns on investment.
107          (b) "Public funds" does not include money donated to a public entity by a person or
108     entity.
109          [(14)] (13) (a) "Public official" means an elected or appointed member of government
110     with authority to make or determine public policy.
111          (b) "Public official" includes the person or group that:
112          (i) has supervisory authority over the personnel and affairs of a public entity; and
113          (ii) approves the expenditure of funds for the public entity.
114          (14) "Public resources" means resources owned or paid for by a public entity, including
115     computer equipment, office equipment, office space, consumable resources, or paid employee
116     time.
117          (15) "Reporting entity" means the same as that term is defined in Section 20A-11-101.
118          (16) (a) "State agency" means each department, commission, board, council, agency,
119     institution, officer, corporation, fund, division, office, committee, authority, laboratory, library,
120     unit, bureau, panel, or other administrative unit of the state.

121          (b) "State agency" includes the legislative branch, the Board of Regents, the
122     institutional councils of each higher education institution, and each higher education
123     institution.
124          Section 2. Section 20A-11-1203 is amended to read:
125          20A-11-1203. Public entity prohibited from expending public funds or using
126     public resources on certain electoral matters.
127          (1) Unless specifically required by law, and except as provided in Section
128     20A-11-1206, a public entity, a public official, or an employee of a public entity may not make
129     an expenditure from public funds [for political purposes or to influence a ballot proposition.] or
130     use a public resource:
131          (a) for a political purpose; or
132          (b) to influence, directly or indirectly, an individual to:
133          (i) sign or refuse to sign a petition for an initiative or referendum;
134          (ii) remove or not remove an individual's signature from a petition for an initiative or
135     referendum; or
136          (iii) vote for or against a ballot proposition.
137          (2) An individual does not violate this section if the lieutenant governor finds that the
138     individual inadvertently used the public resource in a manner prohibited by this section.
139          [(2)] (3) A violation of this section does not invalidate an otherwise valid election.
140          Section 3. Section 20A-11-1204 is amended to read:
141          20A-11-1204. Criminal penalty.
142          [Each] A public official or an employee of a public entity who violates Section
143     20A-11-1203 is guilty of a class B misdemeanor.
144          Section 4. Section 20A-11-1205 is amended to read:
145          20A-11-1205. Use of public email or distribution lists for a political purpose.
146          (1) Except as provided in Subsection (5), a person may not send an email using the
147     email of a public entity, or use a public entity's email distribution list, phone number
148     distribution list, or text distribution list:
149          (a) for a political purpose;
150          [(b) to advocate for or against a ballot proposition; or]
151          [(c)] (b) to solicit a campaign contribution[.]; or

152          (c) to influence, directly or indirectly, an individual to:
153          (i) sign or refuse to sign a petition for an initiative or referendum;
154          (ii) remove or not remove an individual's signature from a petition for an initiative or
155     referendum; or
156          (iii) vote for or against a ballot proposition.
157          (2) The applicable election officer shall impose a civil fine against a person who
158     violates Subsection (1) as follows:
159          (a) up to $250 for a first violation; and
160          (b) except as provided in Subsection (3), for each subsequent violation committed after
161     any applicable election officer imposes a fine against the person for a first violation, $1,000
162     multiplied by the number of violations committed by the person.
163          (3) The applicable election officer shall consider a violation of this section as a first
164     violation if the violation is committed more than seven years after the day on which the person
165     last committed a violation of this section.
166          (4) For purposes of this section, one violation means one act of sending an email,
167     regardless of the number of recipients of the email.
168          (5) A person does not violate this section if the lieutenant governor finds that the email
169     described in Subsection (1) was inadvertently sent by the person described in Subsection (1),
170     using the email of a public entity.
171          (6) A violation of this section does not invalidate an otherwise valid election.
172           (7) An email sent in violation of Subsection (1), as determined by the records officer,
173     constitutes a record, as defined in Section 63G-2-103, that is subject to the provisions of Title
174     63G, Chapter 2, Government Records Access and Management Act, notwithstanding any
175     applicability of Subsection 63G-2-103(22)(b)(i).
176          Section 5. Section 20A-11-1206 is amended to read:
177          20A-11-1206. Exclusions.
178          (1) Nothing in this chapter prohibits a public official or an employee of a public entity
179     from speaking, campaigning, contributing personal money, or otherwise exercising the public
180     official's individual First Amendment rights for a political [purposes] purpose if the public
181     official or employee exercises those rights using money or resources that are not public funds
182     or public resources.

183          (2) Nothing in this chapter prohibits a public entity from providing factual information
184     about a ballot proposition to the public[, so long as the information grants equal access to both
185     the opponents and proponents of the ballot proposition] to comply with the requirements of
186     Title 20A, Chapter 7, Issues Submitted to the Voters, Title 59, Revenue and Taxation, or any
187     other requirement of law.
188          (3) Nothing in this chapter prohibits a public entity from the neutral encouragement of
189     voters to vote.
190          (4) Nothing in this chapter prohibits an elected official from campaigning or
191     advocating for or against a ballot proposition using the public official's personal or campaign
192     funds or resources.