Sept. 17-23 was Constitution Week — a time to give thanks for our constitutional system of government that protects individual rights and lays the foundation for a stable democracy through a structure of checks and balances.

One of the most important features of the U.S. Constitution is that it separates government power into three branches: the legislative branch creates laws, the executive branch enforces the laws, and the judicial branch interprets the laws, ensuring they align with the Constitution. Like the U.S. Constitution, the Utah State Constitution outlines the responsibilities of each branch of government and provides checks and balances of power. For example, the governor can veto legislation, the court can declare a law unconstitutional, and the legislature can impeach the governor. These checks prevent individual leaders from usurping too much power and promote state laws that reflect the will of the people.

The Utah Constitution also allows for an additional check on government power: the people themselves, through the initiative process. Article 1, Section 2 of the constitution states: “All political power is inherent in the people … and they have the right to alter or reform their government as the public welfare may require.”

Recently, the Utah Legislature has attempted to upset this balance of power. By trying to pass Amendment D, which misleadingly states that it will “strengthen” the initiative process, the legislature wants to give itself the power to change or overturn any citizen initiative, even retroactively. All of us — Republicans, Democrats, other minority parties and unaffiliated voters — should be concerned about preserving our constitutional right to alter or reform our government.

How did we get here?

In 2018, Utahns voted for Prop. 4, an initiative that set up an independent commission to draw boundaries for voting districts. This would prevent the legislature from gerrymandering — drawing voting boundaries that favor the majority party and make it extremely difficult for minority party candidates to compete in elections. Despite a clear mandate from the voters, the legislature rejected the independent commission’s proposals. They redrew the boundaries to split up heavily Democratic areas in the state, protecting Republican incumbents.

In response, the League of Women Voters and Mormon Women for Ethical Government sued the Legislature, and the Utah Supreme Court agreed that the Utah State Constitution does not allow for the Legislature to overrule voter initiatives that specifically seek to “alter or reform government” unless they can prove that there is a compelling government interest to do so.

Lawmakers then scrambled to convene an emergency session and, without adequate time for public comment, approved the text of Amendment D — a constitutional amendment that, if backed by voters, would give the Legislature the power to amend or overturn any citizen initiative. Last week, a district court judge ruled that the language of the amendment was misleading and there was not enough notice given to the public for votes on Amendment D to be counted. The case is now moving to the Utah Supreme Court.

Particularly in a state like Utah, where one political party holds a supermajority, we should be concerned about protecting the balance of power that the founders intended in the Constitution. Republican senators and representatives already have the votes necessary to overrule a veto from the governor. Now they are seeking to overstep the power of the people of Utah to directly reform the government through the initiative process.

Although a majority of Utah voters identify as Republican, Republicans only make up about 52% of active voters according to current voter registration statistics. The second largest group of voters (about 28%) is unaffiliated, almost 14% are registered as Democrats and the remainder of voters identify with smaller minority parties. Although the Legislature likely does a good job representing the majority of Utahns, that still leaves a significant minority who may not feel that legislative priorities reflect their values and needs. Personally, I feel that both major political parties have grown more extreme in recent years, so I do not affiliate with either. This means that I cannot vote in Republican primary elections, and I feel very little connection to my elected officials.

Paradoxically, if the political districts were drawn more fairly so that moderate Republicans and minority party voters felt that their voices were heard, there might not be as much need for the initiative process. But it is exactly in cases like gerrymandering where citizen initiatives can be a crucial check on government overreach.

Regardless of your personal political affiliation, please support the checks and balances set forth in the Utah State Constitution by opposing Amendment D.

Anna Neumann lives in Roy. She has a BA in economics and political science and a masters in public policy. She is a member of Mormon Women for Ethical Government.