Amendment 1 receives backing of Huntsman

Republican gubernatorial candidate Jon Huntsman Jr. said Thursday he supports Amendment 1, a proposal on the November ballot to amend the Utah Constitution to spell out the Legislature's authority to impeach state officials, including the governor.

"If the Legislature believes there is a compelling need to impeach a governor, they should be able to call themselves into session without the governor's approval," Huntsman said. "This is sound public policy."

His Democratic opponent, Scott Matheson Jr., also said he supports the amendment.

"This one fits into the category of a common-sense proposal, and I support it," Matheson said. "I believe it was strongly supported by the Constitutional Revision Commission. They looked at it to ensure it was written in a way that makes sense."

The amendment explicitly authorizes the Utah House to convene for impeachment proceedings if two-thirds of the state representatives are in favor and requires the Utah Senate to hold an impeachment trial if the House votes to impeach.