Latest news with #ProtectUtahWorkers
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
With enough signatures confirmed, controversial union law put on hold
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways Canvassers collect signatures as part of the Protect Utah Workers coalition at the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. The organizations behind the signature effort hope to place a referendum on Utah ballots that would undo controversial legislation restricting collective bargaining for public sector employees including teachers and first responders. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) The controversial law that bans public unions from collective bargaining is on hold, for now. Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson issued a temporary hold on HB267 Tuesday, part of an ongoing effort from labor groups to overturn the bill through a referendum. In Utah, qualifying for a referendum — which is when voters choose to enact or repeal a law during an election — requires signatures from at least 8% of the state's voters, which is roughly 141,000 people. That 8% threshold must also be met in 15 of the state's 19 Senate districts. The signatures must be gathered in just 30 days. According to Henderson's office, county clerks around the state have processed and certified 245,513 signatures. And data analyzed by political consulting and public affairs firm Morgan & May shows that the 8% threshold has also been met in 23 Senate districts. The temporary stay will likely remain in place until the 2026 general election, which is when voters will decide whether HB267 should remain law. Lawmakers narrowly passed HB267 during the legislative session in February, and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed it on Valentine's Day. It prohibits public sector unions (like a teacher or police union) from negotiating terms of employment with the employer (like a school district or a city). Unions were staunchly opposed to the bill, protesting every step of the legislative process. In March, labor groups came together to form the Protect Utah Workers coalition to announce they would be gathering signatures in hopes of qualifying for a referendum to overturn the bill. The coalition included groups like the Utah Education Association, the Professional Firefighters of Utah and the Utah Fraternal Order of Police. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX For 30 days, thousands of volunteers gathered signatures, hoping to meet the 141,000 threshold — and on April 16, the coalition announced it had submitted 320,000 signatures to county clerks across the state, which they say is the most signatures ever gathered for a referendum in Utah. By April 28, data showed that the coalition would likely qualify to put a referendum on the ballot. County clerks still have until the first week of May to verify outstanding signatures — once a signature is verified, it's made public, opening a 45-day window where the voter can choose to rescind their support for the referendum, if they choose. The Protect Utah Workers coalition celebrated the news on Tuesday, telling Utah News Dispatch HB267 is a 'deeply unpopular' bill. Connor Sikes, 22, right, an intern with the Granite Education Association, helps Kelly Watanabe, 22, add her signature to a petition as part of the Protect Utah Workers coalition at the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. The organizations behind the signature effort hope to place a referendum on Utah ballots that would undo controversial legislation restricting collective bargaining for public sector employees including teachers and first responders. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) 'Throughout the referendum process, we saw firsthand that voters overwhelmingly respect public workers and the vital services we provide to our communities,' the coalition said in a statement. 'Union members across Utah stood shoulder to shoulder to accomplish what many thought was impossible. We could not have come this far without thousands of volunteers and voters who made their voices heard. This is proof that when workers unite, we win.' Proponents of the bill say HB267 will protect taxpayer dollars while giving all public employees a voice, not just union members. The bill's sponsors — Rep. Jordan Teuscher, R-South Jordan, and Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy — said unions shouldn't be negotiating terms of employment if they don't represent a majority of the employees. The group Utahns for Worker Freedom is among those supporting HB267 — spokesperson Cole Kelley on Tuesday said the group was focused on educating voters and securing a 'ballot victory.' The bill will 'enhance classroom education and safeguard Utah's workers and taxpayers through practical reforms,' Kelley said in a text message. 'As voters learn more about HB267, they'll see why our Legislature passed it and the governor signed it into law. We're confident the voters will vote HB267 into law,' Kelley said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Referendum appears likely as labor groups meet signature threshold in effort to overturn union bill
Connor Sikes, 22, right, an intern with the Granite Education Association, helps Kelly Watanabe, 22, add her signature to a petition as part of the Protect Utah Workers coalition at the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. The organizations behind the signature effort hope to place a referendum on Utah ballots that would undo controversial legislation restricting collective bargaining for public sector employees including teachers and first responders. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) A coalition of labor groups has cleared a major hurdle in an effort to repeal a controversial bill passed earlier this year that prohibits public unions from collective bargaining. The Protect Utah Workers coalition, in its bid to repeal HB267, satisfied two of the requirements to qualify for a ballot referendum on Monday. According to data from the lieutenant governor's office, the coalition gathered signatures from at least 8% of the state's registered voters — including signatures representing 8% of voters in at least 15 of Utah's 29 state Senate districts. Per the lieutenant governor's office, county clerks around the state have verified 146,480 signatures, above the roughly 141,000 threshold required to qualify for a referendum. Labor coalition shatters threshold to qualify for referendum in effort to repeal union bill And data analyzed by political consulting and public affairs firm Morgan & May shows that the 8% threshold has also been met in 15 Senate districts. If those numbers hold up, it's likely HB267 will be put on hold until the general election in November 2026, where voters will decide whether the controversial law should take effect. 'Today, Utahns made history,' the coalition said in a statement on Monday, noting there are still 'tens of thousands more signatures awaiting verification.' On April 16, the coalition announced it submitted 320,000 signatures gathered in the 30-day window required under Utah law — if accurate, it would be the most successful referendum effort in state history. 'The message is clear: Utahns still believe in checks and balances, accountability, and the power of the people to lead,' the coalition said on Monday. According to Morgan & May, the coalition met the threshold in the following Senate districts: Republican Sen. John Johnson's District 3, which includes North Ogden, Huntsville and parts of Summit County like Wanship and Coalville. Republican Sen. Ann Millner's District 5, which includes Ogden, South Ogden, Riverdale, Sunset and Clearfield. Republican Sen. Jerry Stevenson's District 6 in parts of Layton and Kaysville. Republican Senate President Stuart Adams' District 7, which includes Layton down to Centerville. Republican Sen. Todd Weiler's District 8, which encompasses North Salt Lake, Woods Cross, Bountiful and parts of Salt Lake City. Democrat Sen. Jen Plumb's District 9 in Salt Lake City Democrat Sen. Luz Escamilla's District 10 in Salt Lake and West Valley cities. Democrat Sen. Karen Kwan's District 12 in Kearns, West Valley City and parts of Taylorsville. Democrat Sen. Nate Blouin's District 13, which includes parts of Salt Lake City, Millcreek, South Salt Lake and Murray. Democrat Sen. Stephanie Pitcher's District 14 in Salt Lake City, Millcreek, Holladay and Murray. Democrat Sen. Kathleen Reibe's District 15, which includes parts of Sandy, West Jordan and Cottonwood Heights. Republican Sen. Wayne Harper's District 16 in Taylorsville and West Jordan. Republican Sen. Lincoln Fillmore's District 17 in South Jordan. Republican Sen. Dan McCay's District 18 in Herriman, Riverton and Bluffdale. Republican Sen. Kirk Cullimore's District 19 in Sandy and Draper. 'Many of the qualified districts are represented by the very politicians who actively pushed (and sponsored) HB 267,' the coalition said. 'Now, their own neighborhoods are standing up for public workers' rights.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX County clerks still have until the first week of May to verify outstanding signatures — once a signature is verified, it's made public, opening a 45-day window where the voter can choose to rescind their support for the referendum, if they choose. When the county clerks are done, the lieutenant governor's office will then review the process. Assuming the coalition has complied with state code and gathered enough valid signatures, ballot language will be crafted for the 2026 general election. The law will be put on hold until then. HB267 was one of the most controversial bills to come out of the 2025 legislative session, prohibiting public sector unions from collective bargaining. Once it takes effect on July 1, 2025, a public union, like a teachers union, will no longer be able to negotiate an employment contract with an employer, like a school district. Lawmakers say HB267 will protect taxpayer dollars while giving all public employees a voice, not just union members. The bill's sponsors — Rep. Jordan Teuscher, R-South Jordan, and Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy — said unions shouldn't be negotiating terms of employment if they don't represent a majority of the employees. But labor groups and members of the public opposed the bill, speaking out during committee meetings, protesting in the Capitol rotunda and urging the governor to veto. Despite concerns that it would erode their rights and eliminate leverage unions have when meeting with their employers, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed it on Valentines Day. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Referendum to overturn Utah's collective bargaining ban reaches signature goal
Enough signatures have been verified as of Monday morning to get the referendum against the public sector collective bargaining ban on the ballot in 2026, based on information released from the Salt Lake County Clerk's Office. The Protect Utah Workers coalition spent a month gathering signatures for a referendum against HB267. On April 16, the group turned in over 300,000 signatures to the Salt Lake County Clerk's Office to be verified. The Protect Utah Workers coalition released a statement on Monday lauding the accomplishment: '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.' In order for a statewide referendum to be placed on the ballot in Utah, it needs signatures from 8% of voters in Utah — 140,748 — as well as 8% of voters in 15 of the state's 29 state Senate districts. The county clerk's office updates the number of verified signatures posted online each morning. On Monday morning, the referendum had a total of 146,480 verified signatures. The requirement of having 8% of voters in 15 state Senate districts had also been reached, with more than enough signatures from exactly 15 districts. The deadline for signatures to be verified is May 7, so more districts could reach 8% by then. The battle is not over yet, as those in opposition of the referendum still have time to get people who signed to remove their signatures from the petition. If any of the currently qualifying districts drops below 8%, they will no longer qualify. If the referendum still has enough signatures by the end of the time frame to remove signatures, it will go on the ballot during the next statewide election, in 2026, for voters to decide whether or not to overturn the law. In its release, the Protect Utah Workers coalition said: 'The message is clear: Utahns still believe in checks and balances, accountability, and the power of the people to lead. Many of the qualified districts are represented by the very politicians who actively pushed (and sponsored) HB 267: Public Sector Labor Union Amendments. Now, their own neighborhoods are standing up for public workers' rights.' The Utah Education Association, a part of the Protect Utah Workers coalition, posted on Instagram, sharing the requirements to get on the ballot. 'Thanks to thousands of volunteers and over 320,000 supporters, the HB267 referendum has crossed the required thresholds for signatures and Senate districts! THIS IS HUGE! But the fight isn't over. Special interest groups are trying to pressure voters into removing their names. If you signed, KEEP YOUR NAME. KEEP YOUR VOICE,' wrote the UEA.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Referendum update: Nearly 80,000 signatures verified in attempt to repeal union bill
Canvassers collect signatures as part of the Protect Utah Workers coalition at the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. The organizations behind the signature effort hope to place a referendum on Utah ballots that would undo controversial legislation restricting collective bargaining for public sector employees including teachers and first responders. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) The effort to overturn a controversial bill that bans public sector unions from collective bargaining is moving forward, having met the signature threshold in four of 15 Utah Senate districts, and clearing the halfway mark for the statewide requirement. Utah has one of the more difficult referendum processes in the country, advocates say, with a high bar to qualify. The Protect Utah Workers coalition had 30 days to gather signatures from at least 8% of the state's registered voters, roughly 141,000 people. Last week, the coalition announced it was submitting about 320,000 signatures, going well above the minimum requirement and, if accurate, making the effort to overturn HB267 one of the most successful in state history. If the county clerks and the lieutenant governor's office validate enough signatures, voters will decide whether the law should be repealed during the 2026 General Election. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX As of Wednesday, data from the lieutenant governor's office showed county clerks have verified at least 79,145 signatures, more than halfway toward one of the two requirements outlined in state code. The coalition must also gather signatures from 8% of registered voters in at least 15 of Utah's 29 state Senate districts. Data analyzed by political consulting and public affairs firm Morgan & May showed the coalition has met that threshold in four districts: Sen. Todd Weiler's District 8, which encompasses North Salt Lake, Woods Cross, Bountiful and parts of Salt Lake City Sen. Jen Plumb's District 9 in Salt Lake City Sen. Nate Blouin's District 13, which includes parts of Salt Lake City, Millcreek, South Salt Lake and Murray Sen. Stephanie Pitcher's District 14, in Salt Lake City, Millcreek, Holladay and Murray. Weiler's district in Davis County is the only GOP-held district so far where the county clerk has verified enough signatures to meet the 8% threshold. Labor coalition shatters threshold to qualify for referendum in effort to repeal union bill According to Morgan & May, 10 other districts are at least 50% complete, with District 11 (much of Tooele County, and parts of West Valley City down to Eagle Mountain) at 49%. Democratic Sen. Kathleen Reibe's District 15 (parts of Sandy, West Jordan and Cottonwood Heights) is the closest to meeting the requirement, at 82%. On Tuesday, the lieutenant governor's office reported that at least 11,547 signatures have been rejected so far — that's to be expected, the coalition said. It's inevitable that some people may sign despite not being registered to vote in Utah, while others might sign twice, have illegible handwriting, or give incorrect voter information. That's why the coalition sought to go above and beyond the minimum requirement of 141,000 votes. According to the figures from Tuesday, about 84% of the signatures submitted are being verified. Signed by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox in February, HB267 prohibits public sector unions from collective bargaining, the process where, for instance, a teachers union negotiates an employment contract with a school district. The bill takes effect July 1, 2025. Lawmakers say HB267 will protect taxpayer dollars while giving all public employees a voice, not just union members. If a teachers union only represents one third of the employees in a school district, it shouldn't be able to negotiate employment contracts on behalf of everyone, said the bill sponsors, Rep. Jordan Teuscher, R-South Jordan, and Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Salt Lake City's police and fire departments, and a handful of the state's school districts, are the only public unions that engage in collective bargaining, and supporters of the bill say the ban would only impact a small number of Utah's labor organizations. But labor groups and members of the public protested the bill at every step, concerned that it would erode their rights and eliminate leverage unions have when meeting with their employers. Once Cox signed the bill, the opposition morphed into the Protect Utah Workers coalition — among them are the Utah State Fraternal Order of Police, the Utah Education Association, Professional Firefighters of Utah, Teamsters Local 222, the Salt Lake Valley Law Enforcement Association, United Mine Workers and more. Cox last week reiterated that despite signing it, he didn't like the bill and was hoping lawmakers and unions would find a compromise to still allow them to collectively bargain. Now that it's escalated to a referendum attempt, the governor said he's impressed by the coalition's work. 'I want to congratulate them for their signatures,' Cox said during his monthly PBS news conference. 'To get 300,000 signatures is very impressive. People ask if I was surprised and I said I'm actually not surprised. It's called organized labor for a reason.' Still, the governor was hesitant to say whether the number of signatures translates to support to repeal the bill. 'I don't know what that means,' he said. 'I don't know if you can extrapolate the number of signatures to broad public support over the course of a year and a half, which is when the vote will take place.'
Axios
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Utah labor unions gather over 320K signatures to fight collective bargaining ban
A coalition of labor unions on Wednesday submitted over 320,000 signatures to challenge a controversial bill that bans collective bargaining for public sector employees. State of play: Protect Utah Workers, which represents teachers, firefighters, police officers and other public employees, turned in referendum petition packets to county clerks on Wednesday, meeting a tight 30-day deadline in an attempt to force the issue in front of voters in 2026. What's next: The lieutenant governor's office must verify by June 21 whether the thresholds have been met. To appear on the ballot next year, sponsors must have gathered roughly 141,000 verified signatures, representing 8% of voters in the state, including in at least 15 of the 29 Senate districts. Yes, but: Though the signature count significantly surpasses the requirement, many can be disqualified if the signer is not registered to vote or their information does not match voter registration records. By the numbers: Campaign organizers did not specify the number of Senate districts where they had met the threshold during a news conference at the Salt Lake County Government Center. Last week, the group told Axios they had already achieved their goal in six Senate districts. How it works: Once a petition signature is verified, a county clerk will post the signer's name and voter identification number on the lieutenant governor's website. The information will remain online for 45 days, during which signers can request removal. Opposition groups, like the Americans for Prosperity Utah, are running campaigns to get backers to remove their signatures, arguing the bill "stops misuse of taxpayer funds" and "ensures all public workers have a voice." Between the lines: An April 5 rally at the Capitol Building and another at the Jon M. Huntsman Center, headlined by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, attracted thousands of Utahns and boosted signature-gathering efforts, CWA Local 7765 president and nurse Jessica Stauffer told reporters. What they're saying:"We are on track to becoming not only the most successful citizen-led referendum in Utah history, but one of the most successful in our nation's history," said sixth grade teacher John Arthur. Gov. Spencer Cox, who was at an unrelated event at the government center, declined to comment on the referendum effort. Catch up quick: Cox signed the measure in February, but expressed disappointment that state lawmakers and labor unions had not reached a better compromise. What we're watching: Utah has one of the nation's toughest referendum processes.
