RESOLUTION FOR THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR TO COMPLY WITH THE NRVA AND PROVIDE A COMPLETE COPY OF UTAH'S VOTER REGISTRATION ROLLS
Sponsored by Natalie Clawson
Adopted by the State Central Committee on September 6, 2025
WHEREAS, there is a critical need for transparency in our electoral system; and
WHEREAS, the Lieutenant Governor, Deidre Henderson, is the Chief Election Officer of the State of Utah and is responsible to “oversee, and generally supervise, all elections and functions relating to elections;” and
WHEREAS,, the Utah State Code specifically requires the Lieutenant Governor to “enforce compliance” with all “legal requirements relating to elections”, including the “National Voter Registration Act of 1993” and the “Help America Vote Act of 2002” and “all other applicable provisions of federal law and rule relating to elections;” and
WHEREAS, the State of Utah is in violation of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) because it has continuously failed to produce a complete copy of its voter registration rolls that includes the records of voters classified as “Private” or “Withheld” under state law; and
WHEREAS,, Section 8(i) of the NVRA provides for the disclosure of voter registrations in order to “assist the identification of both error and fraud in the preparation and maintenance of voter rolls.” The “Public Inspection Provision [of Section 8 of the NVRA] plays an important role in ensuring that States are performing their mandated duties as federal law directs, as it provides the public with a means to obtain records by which accuracy and compliance with those duties can be assessed;” and
WHEREAS, the NVRA preempts Utah state laws that restrict who can access voter registration rolls; and
WHEREAS, multiple requests for transparent voter rolls have been met with opposition from the Lieutenant Governor’s Office;
- In 2021, in response to a GRAMA request for the voter registration rolls, the Salt Lake County Clerk withheld 33.75% of the records as “Private” or “Withheld;” and
- On July 15, 2025, Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) Michael E. Gates requested that Utah’s Lieutenant Governor comply with Section 20507(i) of the NVRA and “produce for inspection the following records: The current electronic copy of Utah’s computerized statewide voter registration list as required by Section 303(a) of the Help America Vote Act. Please include all fields within the list.” Mr. Gates noted that Section 11 of the NVRA authorizes the Attorney General to bring NVRA enforcement actions.
- On July 31, 2025, Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson responded to the request from USDOJ, but only released the statewide voter registration list that was publicly available; and
WHEREAS, Utah appears to be the only state that fails to disclose such a large portion of its voter rolls; and
WHEREAS, with such a large number of records being withheld from public disclosure, voters have been unable to exercise their right under the NVRA to verify the accuracy of Utah’s voter rolls; and
WHEREAS, concerns with the voter registration rolls have been voiced by elected officials who publicly stated that there needs to be better maintenance of the voter registration lists and removal of ineligible voters because there is evidence that illegal immigrants are voting in Utah elections; and
WHEREAS, the Lieutenant Governor’s Office should address these NVRA compliance concerns to avoid incurring unnecessary attorney’s fees to the state. There is significant precedent that the state needs to be compliant with these requests. If the state loses litigation in defending this obstruction of records, Utah’s taxpayers will be responsible for paying attorney fees under the NVRA. Complying with these requests will avoid unnecessary contention, litigation and fees; and
THEREFORE, be it resolved that— the State Central Committee respectfully requests that Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson fully complies with the National Voter Registration Act, the Help America Vote Act and the requests made by the Department of Justice in making transparent Utah’s voter registration rolls.
Co-Sponsors
Sophie Anderson, Britshana Barfuss, Tyler Boyles, Lyndon Brittner, Rick Brunson, Aaron Bullen, Glen Burton, Mike Carpenter, Maryann Christensen, Michael Clara, Natalie Cline, Cindy Croissairt, Kim DelGrosso, Mari Eddy, Kenjela Ekkers, Jennifer Garner, Paul Gooch, Keri Guinn, Tracie Halverson, Wendy Hart, Gary Henderson, Cristy Henshaw, Becky Hope, Olivia Dawn HW, Teena Horlacher, Kris Kimball, Gary Leany, Senator Mike Lee, Larry Meyers, Marilyn Momeny, Sarah Dawn Montes, Lowell Nelson, Michael Parker, Carolyn Phippen, Kaye Pratt, June Rigby, Kaye Sanderson, Jennifer Savage, Stacia Shipp, Neil Sebring, Patty Sprunt, Gunnar Thorderson, Marci Vasic