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Gov. Spencer Cox said it was “very impressive” but not surprising that labor unions were able to gather more than 320,000 signatures in an attempt to repeal a law banning collective bargaining for public employees — a bill he said he didn’t care for, but signed it anyway . “I said from the beginning I didn’t like the bill.
It wasn’t something I was interested in, not something I would run,” Cox said during his monthly PBS Utah news conference Tuesday. He said he signs “lots of bills” that he doesn’t like for a variety of reasons, and because HB267 passed early in the legislative session, vetoing it was more challenging. “I said from the beginning I didn’t like the bill.
It wasn’t something I was interested in, not something I would run,” Cox said during his monthly PBS Utah news conference Tuesday. He said he signs “lots of bills” that he doesn’t like for a variety of reasons. HB267, which bans public entities from negotiating contracts with union representatives, passed early in the legislative session, which Cox said makes vetoing it more challenging.
The governor said he supports parts of the bill and thinks its impacts have been exaggerated, contending there are only 11 public entities in the state that engage in collective bargaining. He also said he warned legislators that the Utah Education Association could be strengthened by the legislation. (Kristin Murphy | Pool) Gov.
Spencer Cox speaks with members of the media during the PBS Utah Governor’s Monthly News Conference at the Eccles Broadcast Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, April 17, 2025. He said the referendum process is a “powerful check” on legislative power and he wasn’t surprised at the large number of signatures. “It’s called organized labor for a reason.
They’re actually organized,” he said. “I want to congratulate them for their signatures, not just the UEA, but others as well,” he said. “It takes a lot of work.
I know. As one who has worked hard to gather signatures over the years, to get 300,000 signatures is very impressive.” The coalition of 19 labor organizations, calling itself Protect Utah Workers, had 30 days to collect 140,748 signatures to put the repeal issue on the 2026 ballot.
On Wednesday, they submitted 320,000 to county clerks , making it the most successful signature-gathering effort in state history. The clerks will now spend the next few weeks verifying that those who signed the petitions were registered to vote and that the signatures match those on file. If enough of the signatures are valid and organizers hit specific targets in at least 15 of the state’s 29 senate districts, the law will be put on hold until voters decide in the 2026 election whether to repeal it.
“I don’t know if you can extrapolate the number of signatures to broad public support over the course of a year and a half, which is when the vote will take place,” Cox said. “It’s very possible that it will translate to that, but I think what it means is that their members are very well organized.” Proponents of the repeal effort do see the overwhelming response as a sign that Utahns are rallying behind unions.
“With the groundswell of support you have seen in this signature-gathering makes one thing clear: This community stands united and we will be heard,” said Kevin Murray, president of the Utah Fraternal Order of Police, after delivering boxes of petitions to the Salt Lake County Clerk’s office Wednesday morning. “To the legislators who supported this bill, we ask the simple question: Will you support the community? Or will you support the fringes that have advocated for this unpopular bill that stands ready to harm our public servants,” Murray said. “We hope you see the damage that you have caused by passing this bill and correct it once and for all.
” (Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) People listen to Rep. Jordan Teuscher, R-South Jordan speak about his labor union bill to the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee at the Utah Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025.
There are already plans to convene a special legislative session next month, and Cox said he would be willing to revisit HB267 — if the Legislature is willing — but there have not been any discussions of that yet. Rep. Jordan Teuscher, R-South Jordan, who sponsored the bill, said it’s not surprising that unions were able to get the signatures because national labor organizations spent so much money on the effort.
Protect Utah Workers spent about $2.5 million on the signature-gathering effort, most of it coming from the National Education Association. Teuscher said the ban on collective bargaining is still good policy that “ensures that decisions about taxpayer-funded employment, like pay raises and personnel policies, are made by elected officials who are directly accountable to the public, rather than through exclusive, behind-closed-doors union negotiations.
” And, he said, the bill gives workers who are not part of the union more of a voice in their workplace. Teuscher did not address whether he would consider reassessing the bill in the upcoming special session..
