Also, more record-breaking heat, Entrata is the latest software unicorn and social media lawsuits | | | The Utah Policy newsletter is your one-stop source for political and policy-minded news. Send news tips or feedback to [email protected]. | | |
Situational Analysis | July 8, 2021 Welcome to a sweltering Thursday. in July. It's National Freezer Pop Day. My husband hates those frozen treats because the plastic ends up all over the floor and the yard instead of in the trash can. I seem to keep buying them anyway. Be in the Know Record-breaking heat again in Utah. Salt Lake City typically averages four to five triple-digit days a year. Yesterday was this year's 10th day of 100° or above. Utah's Entrata raises an eye-popping $507 million in venture funding, making it the newest "software unicorn." Cofounder Dave Bateman tweeted: "We did it, Mom." Trump sues social media companies for kicking him off their platforms. Courts have typically dismissed similar suits. Speaking of lawsuits against social media giants, Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes is coleading an antitrust lawsuit against Google. Reyes said his team has looked closely at the recent dismissal of a similar Facebook case and doesnât believe it impacts any of the current cases. JUST IN: Weekly jobless claims tick higher by 2,000 | | |
| | FROM OUR SPONSOR Weather, Wildfires, and Climate Change - On the next Utah Insight, are we headed for another record-breaking wildfire season? Watch Utah Insight on Friday at 7:30 p.m. on PBS Utah for in-depth comprehensive discussions about issues impacting the state. | | |
Utah Headlines General Fact-checking Utahâs reputation as the worst state for womenâs equality. Data shows women in Beehive State have seen improvements, but they lag the nation in key ways. (Salt Lake Tribune) Quiz: See if you can tell whether this quote is about Utah women in 1964 or 2019 (Salt Lake Tribune) âPerson flying it is a racist,â Utah Black Lives Matter says of those who fly American flag (Salt Lake Tribune) How a classwork assignment 7 years ago led to a new 'keystone' park in Salt Lake City (KSL) FOX 13 Investigates: University of Utah executive caught lying about public finances, but remains employed (Fox13) COVID Corner 394 new cases, 2 new deaths Poll: Utahns still happy with how Gov. Cox is handling COVID-19 pandemic but split on job that President Biden, Dr. Fauci, doing (Deseret News) Utahâs COVID-19 outbreak now 6th worst in the U.S. (Deseret News) Utah epidemiologist suggests schools require masks once again (KUTV) Trump country rejects vaccines despite growing delta threat. A Gallup poll last week found that 57% of Republicans say the pandemic is over, compared with 4% of Democrats. (Bloomberg) Pfizer vaccine less effective against delta variant (The Hill) WHO sounds the alarm as global deaths top 4 million, delta spreads to 100 countries (Washington Post) Drought/Wildfires/Heat Record-breaking heat potential returns in Utah: How hot is it going to be? (ABC4) Economic Development Paiute Tribe of Utah to build a new health facility triple the size of current building in Cedar City (The Spectrum) Economy HELP WANTED: Utah to host virtual job fair this week (ABC4) Grasshopper invasion adding to plight of Utah farmers (KSL) Education Utah receiving $205 million for school funding; local agencies to apply for grants (Standard-Examiner) Elections Provo mayoral candidate disqualified for not reporting finances (Daily Herald) Family Utah urgently needs more foster families, agency says (KUTV) Housing What the housing affordability crisis could mean for childrenâs well-being (Deseret News) Infrastructure In Utah, many still lack broadband access (The Spectrum) Legal Utah sues Google â 'like Godzilla in terms of size' â alleging anti-competitive app store (Fox13) Local Communities 'Pandemic bread' and pottery in small Utah town (Fox13) Non-profit helps Ogden homeless during the heatwave (Fox13) Green Urban Lunch Box helps community grow and share food (KUTV) National Headlines General Tears, prayers mark end to search for Miami condo survivors (AP) Britney Spears' mom files motion, says pop star can care for herself, should pick her own lawyer (NBC) Rudy Giuliani suspended from practicing law in Washington, DC (CNN) Trump files lawsuit against Facebook, Twitter and Google (The Hill) America's white Christian plurality has stopped shrinking, a new study finds (NPR) Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandbergâs partnership did not survive Trump (New York Times) Politics Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene compares officials carrying out President Bidenâs vaccination push to Nazi-era âbrown shirts,â weeks after apologizing for earlier comments comparing Capitol Hill mask-wearing rules to the Holocaust (CNN) As Bezos called for tax hikes, Amazon lobbied to keep its tax bill low (Politico) Trump-allied GOP chairs turn on fellow Republicans (The Hill) Trump says 'no reason' for officer to shoot rioter, pushing conspiracy theory (The Hill) Tokyo Olympics Traveling to Tokyo in time for the #Olympics is a logistical mess for many athletes (Deseret News) Olympics to ban spectators as Tokyo declares COVID-19 emergency (Reuters) Courts Federal judge rules Air Force largely responsible for 2017 Texas church mass shooting (CNBC) Elections Arizona secretary of state seeks investigation into Trump, allies (The Hill) Environment EU fines 4 German car makers, including Volkswagen, BMW, Porsche and Audi, $1B over emission collusion (AP) International The assassination of the president shocked Haitians, who see it as the apex of the violence that's plagued the country in recent years. "If this could happen to a president, what chance does that [give] me, a regular Haitian?" (WLRN) Haiti President Jovenel Moïseâs assassination partially caught on video (Fox News) Police capture, kill alleged assailants in assassination of Haitian president (Washington Post) A Dutch journalist exposed the mob and defied death threats. Now heâs been shot in the head. (Washington Post) News of the Weird Fish are becoming addicted to methamphetamines seeping into rivers (New Scientist) Business Headlines Utah software innovator Entrata snares record $507 million venture deal; Jazz owner Ryan Smith co-leads round (Deseret News) U.S. banks to see big jump in 2Q profits before results return to normal (Reuters) Analysis: Falling U.S. bond yields may signal death knell for 'reflation' stock trade (Reuters) Stock futures plummet on global economic concerns (The Hill) | | |
Policy News Wasatch Innovation Network launch announcement The Salt Lake Chamber will host a press conference to launch the newly formed Wasatch Innovation Network. The partnership will span industry to capital, startup to incumbent, and academia to market, with the purpose of creating a team of teams to scale out Utahâs innovation ecosystem. The launch event will begin a process of bringing together leaders and institutions to drive innovation across silos to broaden economic appeal and commercialization.
Additionally, the members of this network will help craft a unified vision for our entrepreneurial ecosystem. There are new key developments happening in Utah around innovation occurring at the Point of the Mountain, Tech Lake City, and Falcon Hill Aerospace Research Park. The Wasatch Innovation Network will have a voice in these developments and support smart innovation policy. Utah can develop a first-in-the-nation innovation blueprint for other states to model. Read More. | | |
Deep Dive: Congress should support Utahâs bold infrastructure investments By Rep. Robert Spendlove During the last few months, you have likely seen more electric vehicles (EVs) on Utah roads than ever before. In fact, you may even be one of those drivers who recently purchased one of the more than 60 different EVs, hybrids, or plug-in hybrid vehicles that are now available. According to recent data from Cox Automotive, electric vehicles accounted for 7.8% of all auto sales in the first quarter of 2021. Thatâs up almost 3% from the first quarter of 2020. EV sales in the United States increasedâin just one yearâby a whopping 45%. In Utah alone, we have seen the number of registered EVs skyrocket from 1,646 in 2016 to 10,789 in 2021. That is an increase of 555%! As our state faces another year of drought, and we continue to see evidence of a changing climate, these consumer changes are welcome news. Who can help but be heartened when we couple increasingly âcleanâ consumer tastes with bold commitments from corporations all across private industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve carbon neutrality? In some cases, well-known companies have even promised to reach net zero emissions as early as 2030. This is one of the reasons that during the 2020 legislative session I sponsored H.B. 259 (âElectric Vehicle Charging Network.â) This bill, signed into law by Governor Herbert, was an important step in developing a backbone of electric vehicle charging stations across Utah. It instructed the Utah Department of Transportation to work with private entities to lead in the creation of an electric vehicle charging plan, establishing a network along our public highways. This will help address ârange anxietyâ and meet future consumer demands. Although it was a step in the right direction, we cannot stop there. Utah is leading the way, but Utah cannot do it alone. Our state and our entire country need to develop more clean energy through a national technology infrastructure network. In fact, as a free market conservative, I believe that this market for clean energy is not being driven by the heavy hand of the government, but by consumer choices and private businesses supporting a healthy environment for generations to come. From a distance, things in Washington may look a bit grim. I was disappointed that President Biden and Senate negotiators recently decided to end talks on the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act, which included grants to invest in and expand the national EV charging infrastructure. However, there is still hope. I am optimistic when I see the thoughtful and bipartisan approach to difficult issues by leaders like Senator Mitt Romney. He was an integral part of the negotiations on the recent infrastructure bill, which ended up with bipartisan support and should be a model for negotiations on difficult issues in the future. I also believe discussions like these hold the promise for a holistic and forward-looking vision of infrastructure for Utah and for the rest of the countryâone that aims to make healthy growth both economically and environmentally sustainable. I am also encouraged by Representative John Curtis creating the Conservative Climate Caucus and Representatives Burgess Owens, Chris Stewart, and Blake Moore all joining as inaugural members of the committee. Their leadership shows a commitment to finding free market solutions to climate change â that simultaneously grow the economy and control government growth. I wholeheartedly agree with the committee statement that âreducing emissions is the goal, not reducing energy choices.â It is vital that America continues to follow Utahâs lead by helping plan for vital clean energy projects like a national EV charging infrastructure, which is essential to planning for consumer demand and keeping the United States as the global leader in technological innovation. Robert Spendlove represents Utah House District 49, and serves as the Chair of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee. | | |
Upcoming Preparing for a New Future: Legislative updates and trends with Rep. Brian King and Senator Todd Weiler â July 8 @ 10 am Register here Securing the American Dream: A conversation with Tim Scott presented by the Hatch Foundation â Aug 11 @ noon. Register here Utah Foundation Annual Luncheon with Shaylyn Romney Garrett â Sept 23 @ 12 pm. Register here | | |
On This Day In History From History.com 1776 - Liberty Bell tolls to announce Declaration of Independence 1831 - John Pemberton, American pharmacist (inventor of Coca-Cola), is born in Knoxville 1926 - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross is born. A writer and lecturer, she developed techniques for counseling the dying and their families and âstages of griefâ to explain the process of grieving. 1932 - The low-point of the Depression as the Dow Jones Industrial Average hits 41.22 1941 - German generalâs diary reveals Hitlerâs plans for Russia: âTo dispose fully of their population.â Wipe 'em out. 1951 - Paris celebrates its 2,000th birthday. The history of Paris can be traced back to a Gallic tribe known as the Parisii, who sometime around 250 B.C. settled an island (known today as Ile de la Cite) in the Seine River 959 - The first Americans are killed in South Vietnam 1994 - Kim Il-sung, Founder, dictator and Supreme Leader of North-Korea (1948-94), dies of a heart attack at 82 2008 - American businessman T. Boone Pickens announces his "Pickens Plan", an energy policy that moves away from imported oil 2011 - Betty Ford, First Lady of the United States (1974-77) and founder of the Betty Ford Center clinic, dies at 93 2019 - US financier Jeffrey Epstein indicted on further charges of sex trafficking of minors Wise Words "Death is a graduation. When we're taught all the things we came to teach, learned all the things we came to learn, then we're allowed to graduate."
-Elizabeth Kubler-Ross Lighter Side It was so hot in Beverly Hills, people were frying egg whites on the sidewalk. Comedian Matt Wohlfarth | | |
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