Terms Used In Utah Code > Title 20A > Chapter 11 > Part 1 - General Provisions

• Address: means the number and street where an individual resides or where a reporting entity has its principal office. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Adjudicative proceeding: means :
       (2)(a) an action by a board, commission, department, officer, or other administrative unit of the state that determines the legal rights, duties, privileges, immunities, or other legal interests of one or more identifiable persons, including an action to grant, deny, revoke, suspend, modify, annul, withdraw, or amend an authority, right, or license; and
       (2)(b) judicial review of an action described in Subsection (2)(a). See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Agent of a reporting entity: means :
       (2)(a) a person acting on behalf of a reporting entity at the direction of the reporting entity;
       (2)(b) a person employed by a reporting entity in the reporting entity's capacity as a reporting entity;
       (2)(c) the personal campaign committee of a candidate or officeholder;
       (2)(d) a member of the personal campaign committee of a candidate or officeholder in the member's capacity as a member of the personal campaign committee of the candidate or officeholder; or
       (2)(e) a political consultant of a reporting entity. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Ballot: means the storage medium, including a paper, mechanical, or electronic storage medium, that records an individual voter's vote. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Ballot proposition: includes initiatives, referenda, proposed constitutional amendments, and any other ballot propositions submitted to the voters that are authorized by the Utah Code Annotated 1953. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Board: means the Utah Board of Higher Education described in Section 53B-1-402. See Utah Code 53B-1-101.5
• Candidate: means any person who:
       (4)(a) files a declaration of candidacy for a public office; or
       (4)(b) receives contributions, makes expenditures, or gives consent for any other person to receive contributions or make expenditures to bring about the person's nomination or election to a public office. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Caucus: From the Algonquian Indian language, a caucus meant "to meet together." An informal organization of members of the legislature that exists to discuss issues of mutual concern and possibly to perform legislative research and policy planning for its members. There are regional, political or ideological, ethnic, and economic-based caucuses.
• Chief election officer: means :
       (5)(a) the lieutenant governor for state office candidates, legislative office candidates, officeholders, political parties, political action committees, corporations, political issues committees, state school board candidates, judges, and labor organizations, as defined in Section 20A-11-1501; and
       (5)(b) the county clerk for local school board candidates. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• City: includes , depending on population, a metro township as defined in Section 10-3c-102. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Commission: means the SafeUT and School Safety Commission established in Section 53B-17-1203. See Utah Code 53B-17-1201
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Contribution: means any of the following when done for political purposes:
            (6)(a)(i) a gift, subscription, donation, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value given to the filing entity;
            (6)(a)(ii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make a gift, subscription, donation, unpaid or partially unpaid loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value to the filing entity;
            (6)(a)(iii) any transfer of funds from another reporting entity to the filing entity;
            (6)(a)(iv) compensation paid by any person or reporting entity other than the filing entity for personal services provided without charge to the filing entity;
            (6)(a)(v) remuneration from:

                 (6)(a)(v)(A) any organization or its directly affiliated organization that has a registered lobbyist; or

                 (6)(a)(v)(B) any agency or subdivision of the state, including school districts;
            (6)(a)(vi) a loan made by a candidate deposited to the candidate's own campaign; and
            (6)(a)(vii) in-kind contributions. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Convention: means the political party convention at which party officers and delegates are selected. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Coordinated with: means that goods or services provided for the benefit of a political entity are provided:
       (7)(a) with the political entity's prior knowledge, if the political entity does not object;
       (7)(b) by agreement with the political entity;
       (7)(c) in coordination with the political entity; or
       (7)(d) using official logos, slogans, and similar elements belonging to a political entity. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Corporation: means a domestic or foreign, profit or nonprofit, business organization that is registered as a corporation or is authorized to do business in a state and makes any expenditure from corporate funds for:
            (8)(a)(i) the purpose of expressly advocating for political purposes; or
            (8)(a)(ii) the purpose of expressly advocating the approval or the defeat of any ballot proposition. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• County political party: means , for each registered political party, all of the persons within a single county who, under definitions established by the political party, are members of the registered political party. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Detailed listing: means :
       (11)(a) for each contribution or public service assistance:

            (11)(a)(i) the name and address of the individual or source making the contribution or public service assistance, except to the extent that the name or address of the individual or source is unknown;

            (11)(a)(ii) the amount or value of the contribution or public service assistance; and

            (11)(a)(iii) the date the contribution or public service assistance was made; and
       (11)(b) for each expenditure:

            (11)(b)(i) the amount of the expenditure;

            (11)(b)(ii) the goods or services acquired by the expenditure; and

            (11)(b)(iii) the date the expenditure was made. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Donor: means a person that gives money, including a fee, due, or assessment for membership in the corporation, to a corporation without receiving full and adequate consideration for the money. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• Election: means each:
       (13)(a) regular general election;
       (13)(b) regular primary election; and
       (13)(c) special election at which candidates are eliminated and selected. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Election officer: means :
       (23)(a) the lieutenant governor, for all statewide ballots and elections;
       (23)(b) the county clerk for:

            (23)(b)(i) a county ballot and election; and

            (23)(b)(ii) a ballot and election as a provider election officer as provided in Section Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Equal: means , with respect to biological sex, of the same value. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Expenditure: means any of the following made by a reporting entity or an agent of a reporting entity on behalf of the reporting entity:
            (15)(a)(i) any disbursement from contributions, receipts, or from the separate bank account required by this chapter;
            (15)(a)(ii) a purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money, or anything of value made for political purposes;
            (15)(a)(iii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make any purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money, or anything of value for political purposes;
            (15)(a)(iv) compensation paid by a filing entity for personal services rendered by a person without charge to a reporting entity;
            (15)(a)(v) a transfer of funds between the filing entity and a candidate's personal campaign committee;
            (15)(a)(vi) goods or services provided by the filing entity to or for the benefit of another reporting entity for political purposes at less than fair market value; or
            (15)(a)(vii) an independent expenditure, as defined in Section 20A-11-1702. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Filing entity: means the reporting entity that is required to file a financial statement required by this chapter or Chapter 12, Part 2, Judicial Retention Elections. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Financial statement: includes any summary report, interim report, verified financial statement, or other statement disclosing contributions, expenditures, receipts, donations, or disbursements that is required by this chapter or Chapter 12, Part 2, Judicial Retention Elections. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Governing board: means the individual or group of individuals that determine the candidates and committees that will receive expenditures from a political action committee, political party, or corporation. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Huntsman Mental Health Institute: means the mental health and substance use treatment institute within the University of Utah. See Utah Code 53B-17-1301
• Huntsman Mental Health Institute: means the mental health and substance abuse treatment institute within the University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics. See Utah Code 53B-17-1201
• Incorporation: means the process established by Title 10, Chapter 2a, Municipal Incorporation, by which a geographical area becomes legally recognized as a city or town. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Incorporation election: means the election conducted under Section 10-2a-210. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Incorporation petition: means a petition described in Section 10-2a-208. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Individual: means a natural person. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Interim report: means a report identifying the contributions received and expenditures made since the last report. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Land: includes :
       (18)(a) land;
       (18)(b) a tenement;
       (18)(c) a hereditament;
       (18)(d) a water right;
       (18)(e) a possessory right; and
       (18)(f) a claim. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• Legislative office: means the office of state senator, state representative, speaker of the House of Representatives, president of the Senate, and the leader, whip, and assistant whip of any party caucus in either house of the Legislature. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Loan: means any of the following provided by a person that benefits a filing entity if the person expects repayment or reimbursement:
       (28)(a) an expenditure made using any form of payment;
       (28)(b) money or funds received by the filing entity;
       (28)(c) the provision of a good or service with an agreement or understanding that payment or reimbursement will be delayed; or
       (28)(d) use of any line of credit. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Local political subdivision: means a county, a municipality, a special district, or a local school district. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Municipality: means a city or town. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Officeholder: means a person who holds a public office. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Party committee: means any committee organized by or authorized by the governing board of a registered political party. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Person: means both natural and legal persons, including individuals, business organizations, personal campaign committees, party committees, political action committees, political issues committees, and labor organizations, as defined in Section 20A-11-1501. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Personal campaign committee: means the committee appointed by a candidate to act for the candidate as provided in this chapter. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Personal use expenditure: includes :
            (1)(b)(i) a mortgage, rent, utility, or vehicle payment;
            (1)(b)(ii) a household food item or supply;
            (1)(b)(iii) a clothing expense, except:

                 (1)(b)(iii)(A) clothing bearing the candidate's name or campaign slogan or logo that is used in the candidate's campaign;

                 (1)(b)(iii)(B) clothing bearing the logo or name of a jurisdiction, district, government organization, government entity, caucus, or political party that the officeholder represents or of which the officeholder is a member; or

                 (1)(b)(iii)(C) repair or replacement of clothing that is damaged while the candidate or officeholder is engaged in an activity of a candidate or officeholder;
            (1)(b)(iv) an admission to a sporting, artistic, or recreational event or other form of entertainment;
            (1)(b)(v) dues, fees, or gratuities at a country club, health club, or recreational facility;
            (1)(b)(vi) a salary payment made to:

                 (1)(b)(vi)(A) a candidate or officeholder; or

                 (1)(b)(vi)(B) a person who has not provided a bona fide service to a candidate or officeholder;
            (1)(b)(vii) a vacation;
            (1)(b)(viii) a vehicle expense;
            (1)(b)(ix) a meal expense;
            (1)(b)(x) a travel expense;
            (1)(b)(xi) a payment of an administrative, civil, or criminal penalty;
            (1)(b)(xii) a satisfaction of a personal debt;
            (1)(b)(xiii) a personal service, including the service of an attorney, accountant, physician, or other professional person;
            (1)(b)(xiv) a membership fee for a professional or service organization; and
            (1)(b)(xv) a payment in excess of the fair market value of the item or service purchased. See Utah Code 20A-11-104
• Political action committee: includes groups affiliated with a registered political party but not authorized or organized by the governing board of the registered political party that receive contributions or makes expenditures for political purposes. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Political consultant: includes a circumstance described in Subsection (36)(a), where the person:
            (36)(b)(i) has already been paid, with money or other consideration;
            (36)(b)(ii) expects to be paid in the future, with money or other consideration; or
            (36)(b)(iii) understands that the person may, in the discretion of the reporting entity or another person on behalf of and with the knowledge of the reporting entity, be paid in the future, with money or other consideration. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Political convention: means a county or state political convention held by a registered political party to select candidates. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Political entity: means a candidate, a political party, a political action committee, or a political issues committee. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Political issues committee: means an entity, or any group of individuals or entities within or outside this state, a major purpose of which is to:
            (39)(a)(i) solicit or receive donations from any other person, group, or entity to assist in placing a ballot proposition on the ballot, assist in keeping a ballot proposition off the ballot, or to advocate that a voter refrain from voting or vote for or vote against any ballot proposition;
            (39)(a)(ii) make expenditures to expressly advocate for any person to sign or refuse to sign a ballot proposition or incorporation petition or refrain from voting, vote for, or vote against any proposed ballot proposition or an incorporation in an incorporation election; or
            (39)(a)(iii) make expenditures to assist in qualifying or placing a ballot proposition on the ballot or to assist in keeping a ballot proposition off the ballot. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Political issues expenditure: means any of the following when made by a political issues committee or on behalf of a political issues committee by an agent of the reporting entity:
            (41)(a)(i) any payment from political issues contributions made for the purpose of influencing the approval or the defeat of:

                 (41)(a)(i)(A) a ballot proposition; or

                 (41)(a)(i)(B) an incorporation petition or incorporation election;
            (41)(a)(ii) a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money made for the express purpose of influencing the approval or the defeat of:

                 (41)(a)(ii)(A) a ballot proposition; or

                 (41)(a)(ii)(B) an incorporation petition or incorporation election;
            (41)(a)(iii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make any political issues expenditure;
            (41)(a)(iv) compensation paid by a reporting entity for personal services rendered by a person without charge to a political issues committee; or
            (41)(a)(v) goods or services provided to or for the benefit of another reporting entity at less than fair market value. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Political party: means an organization of registered voters that has qualified to participate in an election by meeting the requirements of Chapter 8, Political Party Formation and Procedures. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Political purposes: means an act done with the intent or in a way to influence or tend to influence, directly or indirectly, any person to refrain from voting or to vote for or against any:
       (42)(a) candidate or a person seeking a municipal or county office at any caucus, political convention, or election; or
       (42)(b) judge standing for retention at any election. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Position: means a square, circle, rectangle, or other geometric shape on a ballot in which the voter marks the voter's choice. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Primary election: means any regular primary election held under the election laws. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Property: includes both real and personal property. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Public office: means the office of governor, lieutenant governor, state auditor, state treasurer, attorney general, state school board member, state senator, state representative, speaker of the House of Representatives, president of the Senate, and the leader, whip, and assistant whip of any party caucus in either house of the Legislature. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Public service assistance: means the following when given or provided to an officeholder to defray the costs of functioning in a public office or aid the officeholder to communicate with the officeholder's constituents:
            (47)(a)(i) a gift, subscription, donation, unpaid or partially unpaid loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value to an officeholder; or
            (47)(a)(ii) goods or services provided at less than fair market value to or for the benefit of the officeholder. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Publicly identified class of individuals: means a group of 50 or more individuals sharing a common occupation, interest, or association that contribute to a political action committee or political issues committee and whose names can be obtained by contacting the political action committee or political issues committee upon whose financial statement the individuals are listed. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• qualified: means to take the oath of office and begin performing the duties of the position for which the individual was elected. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Receipts: means contributions and public service assistance. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Registered lobbyist: means a person licensed under Title 36, Chapter 11, Lobbyist Disclosure and Regulation Act. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Registered political action committee: means any political action committee that is required by this chapter to file a statement of organization with the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Registered political issues committee: means any political issues committee that is required by this chapter to file a statement of organization with the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Registered political party: means an organization of voters that:
       (52)(a) participated in the last regular general election and polled a total vote equal to 2% or more of the total votes cast for all candidates for the United States House of Representatives for any of its candidates for any office; or
       (52)(b) has complied with the petition and organizing procedures of Chapter 8, Political Party Formation and Procedures. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Regular general election: means the election held throughout the state on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each even-numbered year for the purposes established in Section 20A-1-201. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Regular primary election: means the election, held on the date specified in Section Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Remuneration: means a payment:
            (53)(a)(i) made to a legislator for the period the Legislature is in session; and
            (53)(a)(ii) that is approximately equivalent to an amount a legislator would have earned during the period the Legislature is in session in the legislator's ordinary course of business. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Reporting entity: means a candidate, a candidate's personal campaign committee, a judge, a judge's personal campaign committee, an officeholder, a party committee, a political action committee, a political issues committee, a corporation, or a labor organization, as defined in Section 20A-11-1501. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Researcher: means an individual who:
       (1)(a) on May 8, 2018, is employed, alone or as part of a research team, by the university;
       (1)(b) before May 8, 2018, received funding from USTAR for some or all of the researcher's startup costs or salary;
       (1)(c) was recruited to become a member of the university's faculty; and
       (1)(d) after May 8, 2018, receives some or all of the researcher's start up costs or salary from a legislative appropriation to the university for that purpose. See Utah Code 53B-17-1101
• School board office: means the office of state school board. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Signature: includes a name, mark, or sign written with the intent to authenticate an instrument or writing. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Source: means the person or entity that is the legal owner of the tangible or intangible asset that comprises the contribution. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Special district: means a local government entity under Title 17B, Limited Purpose Local Government Entities - Special Districts, and includes a special service district under Title 17D, Chapter 1, Special Service District Act. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• Special election: means an election held as authorized by Section 20A-1-203. See Utah Code 20A-1-102
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• State office: means the offices of governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state auditor, and state treasurer. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• State office candidate: means a person who:
       (58)(a) files a declaration of candidacy for a state office; or
       (58)(b) receives contributions, makes expenditures, or gives consent for any other person to receive contributions or make expenditures to bring about the person's nomination, election, or appointment to a state office. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Summary report: means the year end report containing the summary of a reporting entity's contributions and expenditures. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Supervisory board: means the individual or group of individuals that allocate expenditures from a political issues committee. See Utah Code 20A-11-101
• Town: includes , depending on population, a metro township as defined in Section 10-3c-102. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• United States: includes each state, district, and territory of the United States of America. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• University: means the University of Utah. See Utah Code 53B-17-1101
• USTAR: means the Utah Science Technology and Research Initiative, which was repealed in 2020. See Utah Code 53B-17-1101
• Utah Code: means the 1953 recodification of the Utah Code, as amended, unless the text expressly references a portion of the 1953 recodification of the Utah Code as it existed:
       (42)(a) on the day on which the 1953 recodification of the Utah Code was enacted; or
       (42)(b)

            (42)(b)(i) after the day described in Subsection (42)(a); and

            (42)(b)(ii) before the most recent amendment to the referenced portion of the 1953 recodification of the Utah Code. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Voter: means an individual who:
       (79)(a) meets the requirements for voting in an election;
       (79)(b) meets the requirements of election registration;
       (79)(c) is registered to vote; and
       (79)(d) is listed in the official register book. See Utah Code 20A-1-102