Division of Archives and Records Service

Oaths of office, i 1903-

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Schedule Description

These records contain the oaths of office of state officials. Newly elected officials, judges, appointed commission members, agency directors, and special law enforcement officers in Utah are required to take a prescribed oath of office prior to exercising their duties. Each solemnly swears to support, obey, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Utah State Constitution, and to discharge the duties of the office with fidelity. Upon administration of the constitutional oath, a record documenting its administration is created. This record is a standard form on which the constitutional oath of office is printed, with blank spaces for adding the official's name and office title. This form is subscribed by the individual taking the oath. The person administering the oath (notary public, judge, etc.) also signs the record and imprints the form with an official seal or stamp, along with the date the oath was administered. UCA 52-1-2 (1984) dictates that the oaths of office

of all state officials be filed with the Division of Archives. Statutes and policies also require many other local public officials to take the constitutional oath of office before beginning their duties as well, but these are retained in the records of local governments. It is not uncommon for an oath to be retained indefinitely by an agency or filed with the wrong office. For oaths missing from this series, check the records of the agency in which the official served, those of the office statutorily.

Scope and Content

Prior to taking statewide office, newly elected officials, judges, appointed commission members and agency directors, and special law enforcement officers in Utah are required to take an oath of office from any person in the state authorized to administer oaths (UCA 78-24-16). Officeholders each solemnly swear (or affirm) to support, obey, and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Utah State Constitution, and to discharge the duties of the office with fidelity.

Upon administration of the prescribed oath (or affirmation), a record documenting its administration is created. This record is an official form on which the constitutional oath of office is printed, with blank spaces for adding the officeholder's name and office title. This form is subscribed by the individual taking the oath. The person (notary public, judge, etc.) administering the oath also signs the record and imprints the form with an official seal or stamp, along with the date the oath was administered. UCA 52-1-2 (1984) dictates that the oaths of office of all state officials be filed with the Division of Archives.

State officers are required by both the federal and state constitutions to take an oath of office. The Constitution of the United States requires members of the legislature as well as all executive and judicial officers of the states to be bound by oath or affirmation to support the federal Constitution (Article VI, clause 3). The Constitution of Utah specifies the wording of the oath to be taken by "all officers made elective or appointive by this Constitution or by the laws made in pursuance thereof, before entering upon the duties of their respective offices" (Article IV, section 10).

In addition to the constitutional requirements cited above, state officials are compelled by federal statute to take and file the prescribed oath of office (U.S. Code, Title 4, sections 101-102). Various state statutes also require specific state officers to take and file the oath of office: i.e., special law enforcement officers; agency directors; and members of boards, councils, committees, commissions, etc.

Statutes and policies also require many other officials to take the constitutional oath of office before beginning their duties. Included are county, city, and town officials; attorneys at law; court reporters; justices of the peace; and notaries public. These statutes also specify in which office the oath is to be filed (i.e., county clerk, division of state government, etc.). Some oaths filed in these offices may be found in other series in Archives's custody. This series includes only those oaths filed with the Secretary of State, Lieutenant Governor, and the Division of Archives.

Cover letters accompanying completed forms occasionally were filed with the oaths. These have been retained in the series. In some instances, only the cover letter survives.

Notes

Microfiche holdings require staff assistance due to fewer reference copies. Handle masters under supervision.

New additions are transferred to the Archives at regular intervals throughout the year as new officeholders are appointed and take the constitutional oath of office. For the convenience of office holders the office of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor continues to provide blank official forms (which are available for download from the Elections Division web site, http://elections.utah.gov/oath.pdf). Letters of appointment to executive boards and commissions are sent to appointees by the Governor. The letters include a blank oath of office form to be filled out prior to having the oath of office administered. Completed oaths of office forms are returned to the Governor's office, often accompanied by a letter of acceptance. These oaths are transferred sporadically to the Division of Archives. Legislators' oaths are sent by the House and Senate after the beginning of new legislative sessions or when a new legislator has been appointed by the Governor or voted into office via special election. Judicial oaths may be sent following appointment or retention elections by individual judges or by the Administrative Office of the Courts. The Department of Public Safety routinely transfers oaths immediately following the completion of POST training.

The oaths of office are arranged chronologically by year. Within each year, individual forms are in alphabetical order. Forms with completely illegible names follow the final legible form for that year. If the initial letter of the surname can be determined, it has been filed under that letter.

Because oaths of office are required of nearly all public officials, many different agencies at various levels of government have responsibility to file them. In mandating which officials are required to take an oath of office, the Utah Code generally specifies which office is responsible for filing the oaths. However, it is not uncommon for an oath to be filed with the wrong office or perhaps retained by the agency in which the official served for varying periods. If a specific record is not here, please check the records of the agency in which the official served, those of the office statutorily responsible for filing the oath, one of the related records series, and the appointment files of various governors.

An electronic index is kept in AXAEM, with new additions as soon as oaths are filed with the Division of Archives.

This is a continuing series. New additions are transferred to the Archives at regular intervals throughout the year as new officeholders are appointed and take the constitutional oath of office. Letters of appointment to executive boards and commissions are sent to appointees by the Governor. The letters include a blank oath of office form to be filled out prior to having the oath of office administered. Completed oaths of office forms are returned to the Governor's office, often accompanied by a letter of acceptance. These oaths are transferred sporadically to the Division of Archives. Legislators' oaths are sent by the House and Senate after the beginning of new legislative sessions. Judicial oaths may be sent following appointment or retention elections by individual judges or by the Administrative Office of the Courts. Beginning in 2008, justice of the peace court judges were instructed in a letter from the Administrative Office of the Courts to file their original oath of office with the State Archives. The Department of Public Safety routinely transfers oaths immediately following the completion of Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) preparation.

The oaths of office were archivally processed by W. Glen Fairclough, Jr., in 1992 with periodic updates thereafter. Microfilming of oaths filed between 1903 and 1991 for reference use was completed in 1992. Some 1,900 oaths filed with the Lieutenant Governor between 1994 and 2001 were transferred to the Archives in 2002. These were inter-filed with oaths received previously. Microfilming of oaths filed between 1992 and 1997 was completed in September 2004. Heidi Stringham processed accumulations until 2014 in 2020 and continues to file and index all incoming oaths of office.

Microfiche processed by Rebekkah Shaw under the National Historical Publications and Records Commission grant to the Utah State Archives and Records Services for the Utah Microfiche Backlog Project (Grant No.: NAR10-RB-50086-10). July 2010 - December 2011. The single oath of office on 1 microfiche sheet for P.L. Mullen is of unknown provenance.

In a few instances, the oath evidently was administered to two or more officers at once and all names appear on a single oath. In such cases, the oath is filed under the name of the first individual listed. In other instances when the oath was administered to a group with a separate oath of office form issued for each person, individuals have inadvertently signed each other's forms. In cases when the signature does not match the name typewritten or printed on the oath, the signature was given preference in deciding whose oath is on file and the order in which it is filed. Some Oaths of Office for Utah State Senators and Representatives for a 20-year period (1970s and 1980s) are missing from the series. It is unknown what happened to the oaths (whether they weren't found during processing or were ever transferred to the Archives by the Lieutenant Governor in 1986). Administration of the oath of office on the first day of the legislative session is recorded in the House and Senate Journals.