Vote on vouchers on presidential primary day?

GOP legislative leaders want to meet next month in special session to set Feb. 5 as the official election date for a private school voucher referendum — so Utahns can vote on the vouchers at the same time as they cast presidential primary ballots.

Senate President John Valentine, R-Orem, said Monday that he believes lawmakers could act on the Feb. 5 election as part of the Legislature's regular May 16 interim study day.

"As long as we keep the special session to just one or two items — the election (date) and the Henry law — I think we can do it," said Valentine, referring to the animal-cruelty bill named for a small dog abused by his owner's now ex-husband.

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. wants only those two items on the special session agenda, said his spokesman, Mike Mower. But Mower said it is still too early to name the May interim as the special session date.

"The Lieutenant Governor's Office has not yet certified the needed signatures for the referendum," Mower said. The deadline for the office to certify the referendum for the ballot is April 30.

By law, Huntsman calls special legislative sessions and sets the agendas. Huntsman said last week that he's willing to call a special session so legislators can give him the authority to pick the Feb. 5 election date for the referendum.

Huntsman is charged with setting the referendum date. That could be as soon as a special election this June or as late as the next statewide general election in November 2008. However, there are problems with both those dates.

This June, there is not a statewide primary election, so the state would have to pick up the extra $3.5 million cost — something Huntsman has said he doesn't want to do. With the November 2008 general election, there is no additional cost, but some say it's too long to wait.

Setting Feb. 5 for the referendum election could be a good compromise, because lawmakers already allocated $3.5 million for the presidential primary during the recent general session.

Pro-public-education groups have gathered more than 130,000 signatures on a referendum that could, if it passes at the ballot box, repeal one of the state's new private school voucher laws, which narrowly passed in the 2007 Legislature.

County clerks are now in the process of verifying voter signatures and passing along those counts to Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert's election office for a final tally. If 92,000 are found in the required number of counties, the measure will go on the ballot.

"I'm assuming, like others, that it will make the ballot," said Valentine, who voted in favor of the voucher bill.