The Utah Senate wants to give some counties the ability to remove elected officials who are mentally incapable of serving.
This move comes after former Salt Lake County Recorder Gary Ott served four years with dementia until shortly before his death last year.
Its sponsor, Sen. Daniel Thatcher, R-West Valley City, said the complicated terms it includes were necessary to win support from the Utah Association of Counties and the Utah League of Cities and Towns. He predicted changes to simplify the legislation will come in future years when controversy about Ott is not so fresh.
As currently written, SB38 applies only to counties governed by councils or commissions with more than three members, as does Salt Lake County.