Legislature. Senate

The Senate proposes, debates, and passes legislation. The Senate shall keep a journal of its proceedings, which, except in case of executive sessions, shall be published. The Senate can hold a trial of impeachment following a two-thirds vote of House of Representatives elected members. An impeachment conviction is gained through the concurrence of two-thirds of the elected senators (Laws of Utah, 1896, Constitution of the State of Utah, Article 6).

As of 1999, the Utah State Senate is a body of twenty-nine men andwomen publically elected to four-year terms. About half of the Senate seats are up for election every two years on an alternating basis. Each Senator represents a constituency of approximately 60,000 population. A senatorial district may be a county, a portion of one county or two or more counties, or a combination of both. The Senate is reapportioned as desired or as required by law to insure that each Senator represents as nearly as possible approximately the same number of constituents (Legislature, website, www.le.state.ut.us, May 1999). No person shall be eligible to the office of senator, who is not a citizen of the United States, twenty-five years of age, a qualified voter in the district from which he is chosen, a resident for three years of the state, and resident for one year of the district from which he is elected. The Senate shall determine the rules of its proceedings, and choose its own officers and employees (Laws of Utah, 1896, Constitution of the State of Utah, Article 6).