Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. issued an executive order today calling for a statewide special election on the school voucher referendum in November.

"This will allow the voters to voice their opinions as soon as logistically possible," Huntsman said. "I encourage all Utahns to study the issues and consider this referendum as part of municipal elections."

Earlier the governor had said set the referendum vote for February, the same time as the state's presidential primary.

The idea to move it up three months surfaced when GOP legislative leaders said they would not revisit the voucher issue, and advised State Board of Education officials to think again about not implementing one of two voucher bills passed by the 2007 Legislature.

The Legislature passed the voucher law, HB148, this spring. The bill provides Utah families with a private-school tuition voucher ranging from $500 to $3,000 per student attending a private school, based on parents' income. HB148 also appropriated $9.2 million for mitigation money to offset any financial impact that school districts may experience for five years after a student leaves and goes to a private school.

But voucher opponents — Utahns for Public Schools, a group that includes the Utah PTA, Utah Education Association and the NAACP — don't like the idea of shifting public money to private schools.

In March, the group filed for a referendum to let the public decide if it wants vouchers in Utah. The group collected 124,000 signatures statewide, and the lieutenant governor announced the petition was sufficient this month.

That means HB148 is on hold until a vote is held. But HB174, an amendment bill, was not targeted by the referendum and went into effect on Monday. That measure has enough language in it to stand alone, according to voucher proponents and the Attorney General's Office.

Voucher critics say the bill is fragmented and missing some critical sections, leaving it moot without the original bill.

Leaders say that issue will most likely be decided by the courts.

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