Push to Repeal Utah Voucher Law Advances

Unions, other opponents submit petitions to force vote on ‘universal’ law.

Opponents of Utah’s new voucher program gathered more than 130,000 signatures during their petition drive to overturn the country’s first universal taxpayer-funded voucher law, setting the stage for a statewide vote on one of the most divisive issues in K-12 education.

The signatures must still be certified by the state’s 29 county clerks, and then by the lieutenant governor. But an anti-voucher coalition says it has exceeded the requirements to place Utah’s newly enacted private-school-voucher program on the ballot.

“We believe with over 130,000 signatures, the people have spoken,” said Lindsay Zizumbo, a spokeswoman for Utahns for Public Schools, a coalition of public school and teachers’ union groups...