The idea behind the bill is that granting a seat to Utah, which would likely go to a Republican, and another to heavily Democratic Washington, D.C., wouldn't upset the balance of power.

Utah fell 857 people short of a fourth congressional seat following the 2000 Census. Utah's politicians have long said Utah was denied the seat only because the state's residents living abroad weren't counted, largely the population serving missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The state also unsuccessfully challenged in court a counting method by the U.S. Census Bureau that Utah contends violates the Constitution.

Demographers have said Utah's growth since the 2000 Census will almost certainly result in a seat in 2010. The bill, as written, would create an at-large seat until the 2012 election, after which boundaries for four congressional districts would be drawn.

Throckmorton said he's not opposed to the idea of a fourth seat, he's just opposed to the process.

Throckmorton said he and a handful of Republican delegates set up a petition as a way of letting lawmakers know not all Utahns support the bill. He's not targeting any specific lawmakers and acknowledged he likely wouldn't be able to change any Utahns' minds.

"The issue is not giving Utah a fourth seat or giving 600,000 people (in Washington) a seat," he said. "We'll get there."

But Charles Isom, spokesman for Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah, said while he appreciates the petitioners' opinions, it makes sense to create Utah's fourth seat sooner rather than later.

Isom said if Utah waited until 2012 to get its new seat based on the population taken after the next Census, it would miss out an having a member that would gain seniority between now and then.

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E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com