§ 20A-1-508 — Midterm vacancies in county elected offices -- Temporary manager -- Interim replacement.

(1) As used in this section:
(1)(a) (1)(a)(i) "County offices" includes the county executive, members of the county legislative body, the county treasurer, the county sheriff, the county clerk, the county auditor, the county recorder, the county surveyor, and the county assessor.
(1)(a)(ii) "County offices" does not include the office of county attorney, district attorney, or judge.
(1)(b) "Party liaison" means the political party officer designated to serve as a liaison with each county legislative body on all matters relating to the political party's relationship with a county as required by Section 20A-8-401.
(2) (2)(a) Except as provided in Subsection (2)(d), until a county legislative body appoints an interim replacement to fill a vacant county office under Subsection (3), the following shall temporarily discharge the duties of the county office as a temporary manager:
(2)(a)(i) for a county office with one chief deputy, the chief deputy;
(2)(a)(ii) for a county office with more than one chief deputy:
(2)(a)(ii)(A) the chief deputy with the most cumulative time served as a chief deputy for the county office; or
(2)(a)(ii)(B) notwithstanding Subsection (2)(a)(ii)(A), if, before the vacating county officer vacates the office, the county officer files with the county clerk a written statement designating one of the county officer's chief deputies to discharge the duties of the county office in the event the county officer vacates the office, the designated chief deputy; or
(2)(a)(iii) for a county office without a chief deputy:
(2)(a)(iii)(A) if one management-level employee serving under the county office has a higher-seniority management level than any other employee serving under the county office, that management-level employee;
(2)(a)(iii)(B) if two or more management-level employees serving under the county office have the same and highest-seniority management level, the highest-seniority management-level employee with the most cumulative time served in the employee's current position; or
(2)(a)(iii)(C) notwithstanding Subsection (2)(a)(iii)(A) or (B), if, before the vacating county officer vacates the office, the county officer files with the county clerk a written statement designating one of the county officer's employees to discharge the county officer's duties in the event the county officer vacates the office, the designated employee.
(2)(b) Except as provided in Subsection (2)(c), a temporary manager described in Subsection (2)(a) who temporarily discharges the duties of a county office holds the powers and duties of the county office until the county legislative body appoints an interim replacement under Subsection (3).
(2)(c) The temporary manager described in Subsection (2)(a) who temporarily discharges the duties of a county office:
(2)(c)(i) may not take an oath of office for the county office as a temporary manager;
(2)(c)(ii) shall comply with Title 17, Chapter 63, Fiscal Authority and Processes, and the county's budget ordinances and policies;
(2)(c)(iii) unless approved by the county legislative body, may not change the compensation of an employee;
(2)(c)(iv) unless approved by the county legislative body, may not promote or demote an employee or change an employee's job title;
(2)(c)(v) may terminate an employee only if the termination is conducted in accordance with:
(2)(c)(v)(A) personnel rules described in Subsection 17-75-602(2) that are approved by the county legislative body; and
(2)(c)(v)(B) applicable law;
(2)(c)(vi) unless approved by the county legislative body, may not exceed by more than 5% an expenditure that was planned before the county office for which the temporary manager discharges duties was vacated;
(2)(c)(vii) except as provided in Subsection (2)(c)(viii), may not receive a change in title or compensation; and
(2)(c)(viii) if approved by the county legislative body, may receive a performance award after:
(2)(c)(viii)(A) the county legislative body appoints an interim replacement under Subsection (3); and
(2)(c)(viii)(B) the interim replacement is sworn into office.
(2)(d) This Subsection (2) does not apply to a vacancy in the office of county legislative body member.
(3) (3)(a) Until a replacement is selected as provided in this section and has qualified, the county legislative body shall appoint an interim replacement to fill the vacant office by following the procedures and requirements of this Subsection (3).
(3)(b) In addition to this Subsection (3), an interim replacement appointed to the office of county auditor in a county of the first class is subject to the requirements described in Section 17-69-202.
(3)(c) (3)(c)(i) To appoint an interim replacement, the county legislative body shall, within 10 calendar days after the day on which the vacancy occurs, give notice of the vacancy to:
(3)(c)(i)(A) the county clerk; and
(3)(c)(i)(B) the party liaison of the same political party of the prior office holder.
(3)(c)(ii) The county legislative body shall invite the party liaison described in Subsection (3)(c)(i)(B) to submit the name of an individual to fill the vacancy.
(3)(c)(iii) The party liaison shall, no later than 5 p.m. on the first business day that is at least 30 calendar days after the day on which the party liaison receives the notice described in Subsection (3)(c)(i)(B), or if the party liaison does not receive the notice, no later than 5 p.m. on the first business day that is at least 40 calendar days after the day on which the vacancy occurs, submit to the county legislative body the name of an individual the party selects in accordance with the party's constitution or bylaws to serve as the interim replacement.
(3)(c)(iv) The county legislative body shall, no later than seven calendar days after the day on which a party liaison submits the name of the individual to serve as the interim replacement, appoint the individual to serve out the unexpired term.
(3)(d) (3)(d)(i) If the county legislative body fails to appoint an interim replacement to fill the vacancy in accordance with Subsection (3)(c)(iv), the county clerk shall, no later than seven calendar days after the day of the deadline described in Subsection (3)(c)(iv), send to the governor a letter that:
(3)(d)(i)(A) informs the governor that the county legislative body has failed to appoint a replacement within the statutory time period; and
(3)(d)(i)(B) contains the name of the individual submitted by the party liaison to fill the vacancy.
(3)(d)(ii) The governor shall, within 10 calendar days after the day on which the governor receives the letter described in Subsection (3)(d)(i), appoint the individual named by the party liaison as an interim replacement to fill the vacancy.
(3)(e) An individual appointed as interim replacement under this Subsection (3) shall hold office until a successor is elected and has qualified.
(4) (4)(a) The requirements of this Subsection (4) apply to all county offices that become vacant if:
(4)(a)(i) the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more; and
(4)(a)(ii) the vacancy occurs after the election at which the officeholder was elected, but before the first day of the declaration of candidacy filing period described in Section 20A-9-201.5.
(4)(b) (4)(b)(i) When the conditions described in Subsection (4)(a) are met, the county clerk shall as soon as practicable, but no later than 180 calendar days before the next regular general election, notify the public and each registered political party that the vacancy exists.
(4)(b)(ii) An individual intending to become a party candidate for the vacant office shall file a declaration of candidacy in accordance with:
(4)(b)(ii)(A) Chapter 9, Part 2, Candidate Qualifications and Declarations of Candidacy; and
(4)(b)(ii)(B) for a county commission office, Subsection 17-62-201(6) or 17-62-202(6), if applicable.
(4)(b)(iii) An individual who is nominated as a party candidate, who qualifies as an unaffiliated candidate for the vacant office under Chapter 9, Part 5, Candidates not Affiliated with a Party, or who qualifies as a write-in candidate for the vacant office under Chapter 9, Part 6, Write-in Candidates, shall run in the regular general election.
(5) (5)(a) The requirements of this Subsection (5) apply to all county offices that become vacant if:
(5)(a)(i) the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more; and
(5)(a)(ii) the vacancy occurs on or after the first day of the declaration of candidacy filing period described in Section 20A-9-201.5, but more than 75 calendar days before the regular primary election.
(5)(b) When the conditions described in Subsection (5)(a) are met, the county clerk shall as soon as practicable, but no later than 70 calendar days before the next regular primary election, notify the public and each registered political party:
(5)(b)(i) that the vacancy exists; and
(5)(b)(ii) of the deadlines described in Subsection (5)(c)(i) and the deadlines established under Subsection (5)(d)(ii).
(5)(c) (5)(c)(i) An individual intending to become a party candidate for a vacant office shall, no later than 5 p.m. on the first business day that is at least five calendar days after the day on which the notice is given, file a declaration of candidacy for the vacant office in accordance with:
(5)(c)(i)(A) Chapter 9, Part 2, Candidate Qualifications and Declarations of Candidacy; and
(5)(c)(i)(B) for a county commission office, Subsection 17-62-201(6) or 17-62-202(6), if applicable.
(5)(c)(ii) The county central committee of each party shall:
(5)(c)(ii)(A) select a candidate or candidates from among those qualified candidates who have filed declarations of candidacy; and
(5)(c)(ii)(B) certify the name of the candidate or candidates to the county clerk as soon as practicable, but no later than 5 p.m. on the last business day that is at least 60 calendar days before the day of the regular primary election.
(5)(d) (5)(d)(i) Except as provided in Subsection (5)(d)(ii), an individual intending to become a candidate for a vacant office who does not wish to affiliate with a registered political party shall file a verified certificate of nomination described in Section 20A-9-502 with the county clerk in accordance with Chapter 9, Part 5, Candidates not Affiliated with a Party.
(5)(d)(ii) (5)(d)(ii)(A) The county clerk shall establish, in the clerk's reasonable discretion, a deadline that is no later than 5 p.m. on the last business day that is at least 65 calendar days before the day of the next regular general election by which an individual who is not affiliated with a registered political party is required to submit a certificate of nomination under Subsection (5)(d)(i).
(5)(d)(ii)(B) The county clerk shall establish the deadline described in Subsection (5)(d)(ii)(A) in a manner that gives an unaffiliated candidate an equal opportunity to access the regular general election ballot.
(5)(e) An individual who is nominated as a party candidate for the vacant office, who qualifies as an unaffiliated candidate for the vacant office under Chapter 9, Part 5, Candidates not Affiliated with a Party, or who qualifies as a write-in candidate for the vacant office under Chapter 9, Part 6, Write-in Candidates, shall run in the regular general election.
(6) (6)(a) The requirements of this Subsection (6) apply to all county offices that become vacant:
(6)(a)(i) if the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more; and
(6)(a)(ii) when 75 calendar days or less remain before the day of the regular primary election but more than 65 calendar days remain before the day of the regular general election.
(6)(b) When the conditions described in Subsection (6)(a) are met, the county clerk shall, as soon as practicable, notify the public and each registered political party:
(6)(b)(i) that the vacancy exists; and
(6)(b)(ii) of the deadlines established under Subsection (6)(d).
(6)(c) (6)(c)(i) Before the deadline that the county clerk establishes under Subsection (6)(d)(i)(A), the county central committee of each registered political party that wishes to submit a candidate for the office shall certify the name of one candidate to the county clerk for placement on the regular general election ballot.
(6)(c)(ii) Before the deadline that the county clerk establishes under Subsection (6)(d)(i)(B), a candidate who does not wish to affiliate with a registered political party shall file a verified certificate of nomination described in Section 20A-9-502 with the county clerk in accordance with Chapter 9, Part 5, Candidates not Affiliated with a Party.
(6)(c)(iii) Before the deadline that the county clerk establishes under Subsection (6)(d)(i)(C), a write-in candidate shall submit to the county clerk a declaration of candidacy described in Section 20A-9-601.
(6)(d) (6)(d)(i) The county clerk shall establish, in the clerk's reasonable discretion, deadlines that are no later than 5 p.m. on the last business day that is at least 65 calendar days before the day of the next regular general election by which:
(6)(d)(i)(A) a registered political party is required to certify a name under Subsection (6)(c)(i);
(6)(d)(i)(B) an individual who does not wish to affiliate with a registered political party is required to submit a certificate of nomination under Subsection (6)(c)(ii); and
(6)(d)(i)(C) a write-in candidate is required to submit a declaration of candidacy under Subsection (6)(c)(iii).
(6)(d)(ii) The county clerk shall establish deadlines under Subsection (6)(d)(i) in a manner that gives an unaffiliated candidate or a write-in candidate an equal opportunity to access the regular general election ballot.
(6)(e) An individual who is certified as a party candidate for the vacant office, who qualifies as an unaffiliated candidate for the vacant office under Chapter 9, Part 5, Candidates not Affiliated with a Party, or who qualifies as a write-in candidate for the vacant office under Chapter 9, Part 6, Write-in Candidates, shall run in the regular general election.
(7) (7)(a) The requirements of this Subsection (7) apply to all county offices that become vacant:
(7)(a)(i) if the vacant office has an unexpired term of less than two years; or
(7)(a)(ii) if the vacant office has an unexpired term of two years or more but 65 calendar days or less remain before the day of the next regular general election.
(7)(b) (7)(b)(i) When the conditions described in Subsection (7)(a) are met, the county legislative body shall as soon as practicable, but no later than 10 calendar days after the day on which the vacancy occurs, give notice of the vacancy to:
(7)(b)(i)(A) the county clerk; and
(7)(b)(i)(B) the party liaison of the same political party as the prior office holder.
(7)(b)(ii) The county legislative body shall invite the party liaison described in Subsection (7)(b)(i)(B) to submit the name of an individual to fill the vacancy.
(7)(b)(iii) The party liaison shall, no later than 5 p.m. on the first business day that is at least 30 calendar days after the day on which the party liaison receives the notice described in Subsection (7)(b)(i)(B), or if the party liaison does not receive the notice, no later than 5 p.m. on the first business day that is at least 40 calendar days after the day on which the vacancy occurs, submit to the county legislative body the name of an individual to fill the vacancy.
(7)(b)(iv) The county legislative body shall, no later than seven calendar days after the day on which a party liaison submits the name of the individual to fill the vacancy, appoint the individual to serve out the unexpired term.
(7)(c) (7)(c)(i) If the county legislative body fails to appoint an individual to fill the vacancy in accordance with Subsection (7)(b)(iv), the county clerk shall send to the governor a letter that:
(7)(c)(i)(A) informs the governor that the county legislative body has failed to appoint an individual to fill the vacancy within the statutory time period; and
(7)(c)(i)(B) contains the name of the individual submitted by the party liaison to fill the vacancy.
(7)(c)(ii) The governor shall, within 10 calendar days after the day on which the governor receives the letter described in Subsection (7)(c)(i), appoint the individual named by the party liaison to fill the vacancy.
(7)(d) An individual appointed to fill the vacancy under this Subsection (7) shall hold office until a successor is elected and has qualified.
(8) Except as otherwise provided by law, the county legislative body may appoint replacements to fill all vacancies that occur in those offices filled by appointment of the county legislative body.
(9) Nothing in this section prohibits a candidate that does not wish to affiliate with a political party from filing a certificate of nomination for a vacant office within the same time limits as a candidate that is affiliated with a political party.
(10) (10)(a) Each individual elected under Subsection (4), (5), or (6) to fill a vacancy in a county office shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term of the individual who created the vacancy and until a successor is elected and qualified.
(10)(b) Nothing in this section may be construed to contradict or alter the provisions of Section 17-66-202.
(11) (11)(a) Except as provided in Subsection (11)(b), for an individual seeking appointment to fill a vacancy described in Subsection (3) or (7) the individual shall, no later than the deadline for the individual to file a financial report under Section 17-70-403:
(11)(a)(i) complete a conflict of interest disclosure statement in accordance with Section 17-70-304; and
(11)(a)(ii) submit the conflict of interest disclosure statement to the county legislative body and the county clerk.
(11)(b) An individual described in Subsection (11)(a) is not required to comply with Subsection (11)(a) if the individual:
(11)(b)(i) currently holds an office described in Subsection (1)(a)(i);
(11)(b)(ii) already, that same year, filed a conflict of interest disclosure statement for the office described in Subsection (11)(b)(i), in accordance with Section 17-70-509; and
(11)(b)(iii) no later than the deadline described in Subsection (11)(a), indicates, in a written notice submitted to the county clerk, that the conflict of interest disclosure statement described in Subsection (11)(b)(ii) is updated and accurate as of the date of the written notice.
(12) (12)(a) The county clerk shall make each conflict of interest disclosure statement made by an individual described in Subsection (11)(a) available for public inspection by posting an electronic copy of the statement on the county's website for at least 10 calendar days after the day on which the county legislative body:
(12)(a)(i) appoints an interim replacement under Subsection (3); or
(12)(a)(ii) appoints an individual to fill a vacancy under Subsection (7).
(12)(b) The county clerk shall post the electronic statement described in Subsection (12)(a) no later than two business days after the day on which the county clerk receives the statement.
(13) A vacancy in a county office does not occur unless the individual occupying the office:
(13)(a) has left the office; or
(13)(b) submits an irrevocable letter of resignation to the county legislative body.

Legislative History

Amended by Chapter 16, 2025 Special Session 1