The program was reportedly designed to improve election integrity by encouraging in-person voting, and  “reducing reliance on the subjective signature verification process,” according to Utah County clerk, Aaron Davidson.

Through Fast Cast voting, registered voters receive a ballot by mail, fill it out at home, and bring it to a polling place to cast after presenting valid identification. 

“Signature verification has been shown in recent legislative and state audits to be a subjective process, which is something I have raised concerns about since taking office,” Davidson said in the release. 

“Fast Cast Voting was our innovative solution to let voters prove their identity in person and have their ballot counted without waiting in line or relying on signature verification,” he added.

But the method faced scrutiny following the 2024 primary election, when Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson’s office discovered a high number of voter signatures had been rejected, and other discrepancies that could have potentially allowed more people to cast their ballots in person without ID verification.

The report issued by Henderson’s office said the Fast Cast system, which was implemented last year, was “noncompliant” with state election code.

The passage of House Bill  300 — or Amendments to Election Law, following the 2025 Utah legislative session, presented significant changes to how people cast their votes in future elections.

Among the changes, the new law moves up the deadline in which mail-in ballots will be accepted for someone’s vote to count in an election, and will eventually require voters to enter the driver license number or last four digits of the Social Security Number on their ballot return envelope.

County clerks must phase out signature verification by 2029, the law states.

Davidson said in the release that additional requirements introduced in H.B. 300 had the “unintended consequence” that has impacted the county’s ability to use Fast Cast voting for the Aug. 12 primary election.

“I believe we revised the process to comply with the statutes that were changed by H.B. 300, but ultimately, we were unable to reach agreement with the Lt. Governor’s Office before the primary election,” he said.

Davidson goes on to say “rather than risk complications so close to the election, Fast Cast voting will be paused until further process changes can be agreed upon.”

Utah County residents are expected to receive their ballots for the upcoming primary election in the mail this week. The county clerk’s office assures that all other voting methods remain available, those being: by mail, drop boxes, early voting, or in-person voting on Election Day. 

Utah County officials plan to revisit and potentially reinstate Fast Cast voting in future elections, the release stated.