State Dems Say Legislature is "Passing the Buck" on Vouchers

None by KCPW

(KCPW News) Tomorrow the Utah State Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case that could define the voucher referendum this November. But Democrats in the Utah Legislature are becoming increasingly frustrated that lawmakers are not willing to fix their own mess. At least that's how State Senator Scott McCoy sees it:

"Senate Majority Leader Curt Bramble had a blog post that basically said 'Oh, we need a ref to sort all of this out,'" says McCoy. "We don't need a ref to sort all this out. We need to have the political will and leadership to sort it out ourselves. The Legislative Branch made this mess and the Legislative Branch can undo this mess."

"The mess" is that Utah lawmakers passed one bill creating the voucher system and then another amending it. Opponents launched a referendum on the first bill. The second one unwittingly replaces much of the first and may not be affected by the referendum. Governor Huntsman and Republican legislative leaders say they want the Supreme Court to clear up the confusion so voters know what the November vote means. House and Senate Democrats are sending another letter to Huntsman this week asking for a chance to fix the issue in special session:

"Meantime everyday this moves forward we're spending state resources - I imagine it will be hundreds of thousands of dollars - to bring this to court," says Becker. "And this can be a relatively easy fix by having the Legislature take action and remove questions that are before the court in terms of interpretation."

The easiest fix, according to State Democrats, would be to meet in special session and make all voucher laws contingent on the referendum outcome. Huntsman says he will consider calling a special legislative session if the Supreme Court doesn't offer clarification.

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