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Legislative action that proposed this amendment: SJR7 1979 Regular Session
Disposition: This amendment took effect following voter ratification. You may read the resulting 1981 Utah Constitution here.
Amends article 7 section 1,2,3,5,8,11,13,16,17,18,20,23,10,12,21,22 and repeals article 7 section 14,15,24
[The entire article was included in the amendment, but several sections included no actual change from the existing text. After these amendments, official publications of the Utah Constitution changed the title of Article VII from "Executive" to "Executive Department." It is not clear from the Laws of Utah that the Legislature intended this change. Nevertheless, I have adopted the same stylistic change from 1980 onward.]
7:1
The elective constitutional officers of the Executive Department shall consist of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, State Auditor, State Treasurer and Attorney General, each of whom shall hold office for four years, beginning on the first Monday of January next after election. The officers of the Executive Department, during their terms of office, shall reside within the State and shall keep the public records, books and papers as provided by law. They shall perform such duties as are prescribed by this Constitution and as provided by law.
7:2
The officers provided for in section one of this article shall be elected by the qualified voters of the state at the time and place of voting for members of the Legislature, and the persons respectively having the highest number of votes cast for the office voted for shall be elected; but if two or more shall have an equal and highest number of votes for any one of said offices, the two houses of the Legislature, at its next session, shall elect forthwith by joint ballot one of such persons for said office.
In the election, the names of the candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor for each political party shall appear together on the ballot, and the votes cast for a candidate for Governor shall be considered as also cast for the candidate for Lieutenant Governor.
7:3
To be eligible for the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor a person shall have attained the age of thirty years at the time of election. To be eligible for the office of Attorney General a person shall, at the time of election, have attained the age of twenty-five years, by admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the State of Utah and be in good standing at the bar. No person shall be eligible to any of the offices provided for in section one of this article, unless at the time of election that person is a qualified voter and shall have been a resident citizen of the State for five years next preceding election.
7:4
The Governor shall be Commander-in-Chief of the military forces of the State, except when they shall be called into the service of the United States. The Governor shall have power to call out the militia to execute the laws, to suppress insurrection, or to repel invasion.
7:5
The executive power of the State shall be vested in the Governor, who shall see that the laws are faithfully executed. The Governor shall transact all executive business with the officers of the government, civil and military, and may require information in writing from the officers of the Executive Department, and from the officers and managers of State Institutions upon any subject relating to the condition, management, and expenses of their respective offices and institutions, and at any time when the Legislature is not in session, may, if deemed necessary, appoint a committee to investigate and report to the Governor upon the condition of any execute officer or State Institution. The Governor shall communicate by message the condition of the State to the Legislature at every regular session, and recommend such measures as may be deemed expedient.
7:6
On extraordinary occasions, the Governor may convene the Legislature by proclamation, in which shall be stated the purpose for which the Legislature is to be convened, and it shall transact no legislative business except that for which it was especially convened, or such other legislative business as the Governor may call to its attention while in session. The Legislature, however, may provide for the expenses of the session and other matters incidental thereto. The Governor may also by proclamation convene the Senate in extraordinary session for the transaction of executive business.
7:7
In case of a disagreement between the two houses of the Legislature at any special session, with respect to the time of adjournment, the Governor shall have power to adjourn the Legislature to such time as the Governor may think proper if it is not beyond the time fixed for the convening of the next Legislature.
7:8
Every bill passed by the Legislature, before it becomes a law, shall be presented to the Governor; if approved, the Governor shall sign it, and thereupon it shall become a law; but if disapproved, the bill shall be returned with the Governor's objections to the house in which it originated, which house shall enter the objections at large upon its journal and proceed to reconsider the bill. If upon reconsideration the bill again passes both houses by a yea and nay vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house, it shall become a law. If any bill is not returned by the Governor within ten days after it has been presented to the Governor, Sunday and the day it was received excepted, it shall become a law without a signature; but if legislative adjournment prevents return of the bill, it shall become a law unless the Governor within twenty days after adjournment files the objections thereto with such officers as provided by law. The Governor may disapprove any item of appropriation contained in any bill while approving other portions of the bill; and in such case the Governor shall append to the bill at the time of signing it a statement of the item or items which are disapproved, together with the reasons therefor, and such item or items shall not take effect unless passed over the Governor's objections as provided in this section. If the Governor disapprove any bill or item of appropriation after the adjournment sine die of any session of the Legislature, the presiding officer of each house shall poll the members of that house on the matter of reconvening the Legislature. If two-thirds if the members of each house are in favor of reconvening, the Legislature shall be convenes in a session not to exceed five calendar days and at a time set jointly by the presiding officer of each house, solely for the purpose of reconsidering the bill or item of appropriation disapproved. If upon reconsideration, the bill or item of appropriation again passes both houses of the Legislature by a yea and nay vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house, the bill shall become law or the item of appropriation shall take effect.
7:9
When any State or district office shall become vacant, and no mode is provided by the Constitution and laws for filling such vacancy, the Governor shall have the power to fill the same by granting a commission, which shall expire at the next election, and upon qualification of the person elected to such office.
7:10
The Governor shall nominate, and by and with consent of the Senate, appoint all State and district officers whose offices are established by this Constitution, or which may be created by law, and whose appointment or election is not otherwise provided for. If, during the recess of the Senate, a vacancy occurs in any State or district office, the Governor shall appoint some qualified person to discharge the duties thereof until the next meeting of the Senate, when the Governor shall nominate some person to fill such office. If the office of Lieutenant Governor, State Auditor, State Treasurer or Attorney General by vacated by death, resignation or otherwise, it shall be the duty of the Governor to fill the same by appointment, from the same political party of the removed person; and the appointee shall hold office until a successor shall be elected and qualified, as provided by law.
7:11
In case of the death of the Governor, impeachment, removal from office, resignation, or disability to discharge the duties of the office, or in case of a Governor-elect who fails to take office, the powers and duties of the Governor shall devolve upon the Lieutenant Governor until the disability ceases or until the next general election, when the vacancy shall be filled by election. If, during a vacancy in the office of Governor, the Lieutenant Governor resigns, dies, is removed, or becomes incapable of performing the duties of the office, the President of the Senate shall act as Governor until the vacancy is filled or disability ceases. If in this case the President of the Senate resigns, dies, is removed, or becomes incapable of performing the duties of the office, the Speaker of the House shall act as Governor until the vacancy is filled or disability ceases. While performing the duties of the Governor as provided in this section, the Lieutenant Governor, the President of the Senate, or the Speaker of the House, as the case may be, shall be entitled to the salary and emoluments of the Governor, except in cases of temporary disability.
The disability of the Governor or person acting as Governor shall be determined by either a written declaration transmitted to the Supreme Court by the Governor stating an inability to discharge the powers and duties of the office or by a majority of the Supreme Court on joint request of the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Such determination shall be final and conclusive. Thereafter, when the Governor transmits to the Supreme Court a written declaration that no disability exists, the Governor shall resume the powers and duties of the office unless the Supreme Court, upon joint request of the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, or upon its own initiative, determines that the Governor is unable to discharge the powers and duties of the office. The Lieutenant Governor shall then continue to discharge these powers and duties as acting Governor. The Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction to determine all questions arising under this section.
7:12
Until otherwise provided by law, the Governor, Justices of the Supreme Court and Attorney General shall constitute a Board of Pardons, a majority of whom, including the Governor, upon such conditions as may be established by the Legislature, may remit fines and forfeitures, commute punishments, and grant pardons after convictions, in all cases except treason and impeachment, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law, relative to the manner of applying for pardons; but no fine or forfeiture shall be remitted, and no commutation or pardon granted, except after a full hearing before the Board, in open session, after previous notice of the time and place of such hearing has been given. The proceedings and decisions of the Board, with the reasons therefor in each case, together with the dissent of any member who may disagree, shall be reduced to writing, and filed with all papers used upon the hearing, in the office of such officer as provided by law.
The Governor shall have power to grant respites or reprieves in all cases of conviction for offenses against the State, except treason or conviction on impeachment but such reprieves shall not extend beyond the next session of the Board of Pardons; and such Board, at such session, shall continue or determine such respite or reprieve, or they may commute the punishment, or pardon the offenses as herein provided. In case of conviction for treason, the Governor shall have the power to suspend execution of the sentence, until the case shall be reported to the Legislature at its next regular session, when the Legislature shall either pardon, or commute the sentence, or direct its execution; and the Governor shall communicate to the Legislature at each regular session, each case of remission of fine or forfeiture, reprieve, commutation or pardon granted since the last previous report, stating the name of the convict, the crime for which convicted, the sentence and its date, the date of remission, commutation, pardon or reprieve, with the reasons for granting the same, and the objections, if any, of any member of the Board made thereto.
7:13
Until otherwise provided by law, the Governor, Attorney General, and State Auditor shall constitute a Board of Examiners, with power to examine all such claims against the State as provided by law, and perform such other duties as provided by law; and no such claim against the State shall be passed upon by the Legislature without having been considered and acted upon by the Board of Examiners.
7:14
The Lieutenant Governor shall serve on all boards and commissions in lieu of the Governor whenever so designated by the Governor, shall perform such duties as may be delegated by the Governor, and shall perform such other duties as may be provided by law.
7:15
The State Auditor shall perform financial post audits of Public Accounts, except as otherwise provided by this Constitution, and the State Treasurer shall be the custodian of public moneys; and each shall perform such other duties as provided by law.
7:16
The Attorney General shall be the legal adviser of the State officers, except as otherwise provided by this Constitution, and shall perform such other duties as provided by law.
7:17
The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall perform such duties as provided by law.
7:18
The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, State Auditor, State Treasurer, Attorney General and such other State and District officers as provided for by law, shall receive for their services a compensation as fixed by law.
The compensation for said officers as provided in all laws enacted pursuant to this Constitution, shall be in full for all services rendered by said officers, respectively, in any official capacity or employment during their respective terms of office. No such officer shall receive for the performance of any official duty any fee for personal use, but all fees fixed by law for the performance by either of them of any official duty, shall be collected in advance and deposited with the State Treasurer monthly to the credit of the State. The Legislature may provide for the payment of actual and necessary expenses of said officers while traveling in the performance of official duties.
7:19
All grants and commissions shall be in the name and by the authority of the State of Utah, sealed with the Great Seal of the State, signed by the Governor, and countersigned by such officer as provided by law.
7:20
There shall be a seal of the State, which shall be called "The Great Seal of the State of Utah," and shall be kept by such officer as provided by law.
7:21
No person, while holding any office under the United States' government, shall hold any office under the State government of Utah.
7:24
[Repealed.]
