2010 General Election: Amendments and Propositions

Though all these amendments are phrased for Utah, these issues will be appearing on ballots across the United States of America.

Constitutional Amendment A

Shall the Utah Constitution be amended to specify that elections currently requires to be by secret ballot include elections under state or federal law for public office, on an initiative or referendum, or to designate or authorize employee or individual representation?

The wording is awkward, yet it addresses individual rights to a secret ballot. Related to Card Check primarily protects union member from full disclosure when voting on leaders and agendas to protect rights to vote in unions. Though information available on Vote Utah claims there is no fiscal impact, as a mandate the government will be required to facilitate secret ballots for unions. Without a mandate there is no government obligation since business and unions are privately enterprises. As a Right-to-Work State, this may have minimal impact. Voting for the amendment equals protecting democracy and individual rights. Voting against the amendment frees unions from additional financial obligations associated to voting.

Constitutional Amendment B

Shall the Utah Constitution by amended to:
Specify the residency requirements for a person appointed to fill a vacancy in the office of state senator or state representative; and prohibit a person appointed to the office of state senator or state representative from continuing to serve in that office if the person ceases to be a resident of the district for which the person was appointed?

This amendment clarifies Legislators should by a member of the community they represent. Often representatives live in Provo, Salt Lake City or Ogden though they represent Vernal or Moab. Are they acting in the best interest of the district or benefitting larger cities? The amendment states requirements of Legislators being a resident of Utah for three years and have legal residence within a district for six months. Passing the amendment has no associated cost as elections will be performed on a regular basis regardless of this condition. Voting for the amendment requires guarantees representatives know their neighbors. Voting against the amendment states the current system is adequate and it does not matter as long as they are over twenty-five years old and qualify to vote. This is a relatively minuscule difference, clarifying the law for future reference.

Constitutional Amendment C

Shall the Utah Constitution be amended to provide a property tax exemption to nonprofit entities for their:
Water rights and specified facilities used within the state to irrigate land, provide domestic water, or provide water to a public water supplier; and land occupied by and, under certain conditions, immediately adjacent to some of those facilities?

This amendment appears innocuous on the surface. People would like to cut cost on domestic water by making nonprofit facilities tax exempt. The underlying issue is protecting nature reserves surrounding watershed canyons. This could standardize cost of water; however, not paying property taxes associated to community projects and schools places a burden on wildlife reserves. Perhaps the government wants to cut-costs by selling additional property to private owners; wherein, need for property tax revenues outweigh the importance of nature reserves around water facilities. Deceasing reserves may occur regardless of the vote's outcome. Therefore, protecting clean water is the real issue. Voting for the amendment equals standardizing costs associated to domestic water. Voting against the amendment equals being satisfied with current conditions.

Constitutional Amendment D

Shall the Utah Constitution be amended to:
Establish a five-member legislative ethics commission whose members may not include sitting legislators or registered lobbyists; authorize the commission to conduct an independent review of complaints alleging unethical legislative behavior; and authorize the Legislature to provide for; procedures and requirements for filing a complaint; the qualifications, appointment, and terms of commission members; and commission duties, powers, operations, and procedures?

The Constitution of the United States reflected in the Utah State Constitution has a clause related to "improper conduct." Improper conduct is an intangible concept. When a legislator engages in improper conduct they are removed from the House Floor. They might be overly zealous or dress incorrectly. Perhaps someone becomes outspoken because they are a minority in Congress. This amendment wants a third party committee to determine who is at fault for causing unrest and access penalties associated to misconduct. If the committee is formed they will establish standards and penalties, so while the estimated cost is $700 per year for five members, cost sounds minimal, costs will easily rise over time. A major issue is in preventing nepotism or unfairly biased Ethics Commission. Voting for the amendment creates the Ethics Committee. Voting against the amendments keeps leaves arguments unresolved on the Congressional floor.

Proposition 1

Shall Salt Lake Country, Utah, be authorized to issue general obligation bonds in a amount not to exceed $15,000,000 and to mature in no more than 15 years from the date or dates of issuance of such bonds for the purpose of paying a portion of the costs of acquiring, improving and constructing facilities for the Utah Museum of Natural History and related facilities, and, to the extent necessary, for the refunding, at or prior to the maturity thereof, of bonds authorized hereby?

Resenting these types of proposition there is no real vote. We are voting on whether to pay with low-interest government bonds or high-interest risky methods. The only way to prevent using taxpayer money to build the Utah Museum of Natural History is with a petition. We are in recession and looking for ways to employ people through government paid projects. However, we are also attempting to reduce government spending. These programs add to government spending. This proposition is a joke. Yes, we want to pay less. A petition must be circulated in order to vote on upgrading the Utah Museum of Natural History.

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