Closing the digital divide in rural Utah; Donovan Mitchell traded; tomorrow is National Cinema Day - catch a flick for $3 | | | The Utah Policy newsletter is your one-stop source for political and policy-minded news. We scour the news so you don't have to! Send news tips or feedback to Holly Richardson at [email protected]. | | |
Situational Analysis | Sept 1, 2022 Labor Day weekend is upon us. Today is National Food Bank Day, and tomorrow is National Cinema Day when you'll be able to watch a movie for just $3. Bonus: movie theaters are air conditioned. A very happy birthday to Lt. Governor Deidre Henderson on Sunday. 𥳠Utah Policy will not be out Monday morning, but we'll be back in your emails on Tuesday. Be in the Know The lights are on! After literally decades of waiting, the small Native American community of Westwater finally has electricity. Blanding City, the close neighbor to Westwater, posted that it was "A monumental day for our neighbors in West Water. Blanding City has been working closely with Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) and the Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) to help bring power to 29 lots in San Juan County on land owned by the Navajo Nation." Next up: running water. Rapid Roundup The State Department is launching a pilot program that will let you renew your passport online; Donavan Mitchell has been traded to Cleveland; US hiring continues in August as employers add 315,000 jobs; Salt Lake City could ban cars permanently on downtown Main Street; and the 9-yr old near-drowning survivor goes home! Friday Favorites Yesterday, September 1, marked the start of all things pumpkin spice. Pumpkin spice is now so ubiquitous, in fact, that the Washington Post published at article titled "Pumpkin spice won. It's time to accept it and move on." There's pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, lattes, Oreos (not my favorite - I thought they tasted like a candle), Twinkies, Cheerios, Frosted Mini-Wheats, oatmeal, oat milk, pudding, yogurt, donuts, ice cream, cookies, English muffins, beer, potato chips and even Ramen that now come in pumpkin spice. In non-food items, there are candles, soap, air fresheners, lip balm and deodorant. The 5 ingredients in pumpkin spice - cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves - have become a meme-worthy combination. (Read More) | | |
| | | The Hinckley Report, PBS Utahâs weekly political roundtable, returns Sept. 9 at a new time, 7 p.m. Hosted by Jason Perry and produced in partnership with the Hinckley Institute of Politics on the University of Utah campus, the program provides insight and analysis of the most pressing political issues facing our state. | | |
Utah Headlines General Valerie Hudson: What makes a great leader? Look to Gorbachev. While overseeing the breakup of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev thought not only of his own country, but all humankind (Deseret News) A message from BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe: âLove one another." âLet me be clear where BYU stands on this issue: racism is disgusting and unacceptableâ (Deseret News) The âhauntedâ mansion next to the Deseret News offices. The Devereaux House, first mansion in Salt Lake City, might have a historic past and a haunting present. (Deseret News) Politics What is a âWomenâs Bill of Rightsâ and is it necessary? Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes and nine Republican AGs are calling for states to codify definitions of girl, woman and mother (Deseret News) St. George cuts budget to hire more officers. Hereâs what wonât get done (Salt Lake Tribune) Business The future of work: Utah business leaders mixed on solving the remote vs. in-person dilemma (Deseret News) Can a side hustle lead to the American Dream? What this generation is doing for extra cash (Deseret News) Handling quiet quitting: how to recover from burnout (Deseret News) Dirty Dough releases video. Hereâs the latest on the #UtahCookieWars (Deseret News) The electric car market just got supercharged, and Utah will feel the jolt. Tax breaks in Inflation Reduction Act and Californiaâs end date for new gas vehicles will accelerate the conversion. (Salt Lake Tribune) Education Taylor Randall: What I learned from an âFâ in English class (Deseret News) 𥵠Weber District schools to dismiss early next week due to extreme heat (KUTV) Taylorsville High's Wellness Center sees more students in need of basic items (KSL) Environment A new hot spring in southern Utah? Water manager says plans for the resort are heating up. A Colorado investor is looking to build a $30 million resort in La Verkin. (Salt Lake Tribune) Sarah Bauman: Utahâs monuments should not be stuck in a tug-of-war (Salt Lake Tribune) Health New research says âultraprocessedâ food creates health risks, certain cancers (Deseret News) Hereâs where 21 million people are under a COVID-19 lockdown (Deseret News) Salt Lake Regional Medical Center closed its maternity ward Thursday, it said in a statement, as Utahâs fertility rate â once No. 1 in the nation â has continued to drop. (Salt Lake Tribune) Housing Whatâs the answer to the U.S. housing crisis? Why national experts have eyes on Utah (Deseret News) National Headlines General A second civil war in the U.S.? 43% of Americans think itâs likely in the next 10 years (Deseret News) Can we forestall the end of the world? (CGO at USU) Texasâ $12 million migrant busing program now sending asylum-seekers to Chicago where Mayor Lori Lightfoot welcomed them and said "we will not turn our backs on those who need our help the most." (Deseret News) Red flag laws get little use as shootings, gun deaths soar (AP) U.S. job growth solid in August; unemployment rate rises to 3.7% (Reuters) As US dollar surges, American buyers splurge on European homes (Wall Street Journal) Politics Biden sounds newly strong alarm: Trumpism menaces democracy (AP) President Biden says âMAGA Republicans do not respect the Constitutionâ (Deseret News) Independent Voters Now Tilting Toward Democrats in Midterm Elections, WSJ Poll Finds (Wall Street Journal) Judge to Unseal More Detailed List of Materials Seized at Mar-a-Lago (Wall Street Journal) Ukraine ðºð¦ In fiercely contested Kherson, Ukraine pushes to retake occupied lands (Washington Post) World News Argentina: Attempt to kill VP fails when handgun misfires (AP) | | |
Guest opinion: Closing the digital divide in rural Utah by Scott Bartholomew, Sanpete County Commissioner Sometimes Sanpete County feels like an entirely different world from the hustle and bustle of the Wasatch Front. Although our pace of life is often slower, there is one thing we can agree on: our internet doesnât have to be. We are fortunate in Sanpete to have download speeds that rival those in the Wasatch Front, thanks to years of planning and a focus on long-term economic development. Unfortunately, there are many places in rural America that cannot say the same. It is time that we work together to address the barriers that stand in the way of helping them... While lawmakers deserve credit for acknowledging the importance of expanding broadband, the job is far from finished. It is critical that they make sure that this significant stream of taxpayer funding is not wasted, and that communities without broadband are delivered the network infrastructure that they need as quickly as possible. To achieve this, policymakers need to modernize the current utility pole regulations, which are outdated and often lead to delayed broadband deployment and taxpayer waste... There are common sense solutions at our disposal that must be implemented to make sure that the billions in broadband infrastructure expansion is not wasted. I urge Congress to modernize pole rules â the American economy and unserved Americans in places like rural Utah have too much to gain from universal broadband access. (Read More) News Releases Nominees announced for Utah Court of Appeals vacancy The Appellate Judicial Nominating Commission has selected nominees for a vacancy on the Utah Court of Appeals. This position results from the confirmation of Judge Diana Hagen to the Utah Supreme Court on May 18, 2022. The nominees for the vacancy are: Sarah Carlquist, Appellate Attorney, Salt Lake Legal Defender Association; Rita Cornish, Judge, Second District Court; Susan Eisenman, Judge, Third District Juvenile Court; John Luthy, County Attorney, Cache County; Debra Nelson, Chief Appellate Officer, Indigent Appellate Defense Division; Amy Oliver, Judge, Third District Court; Jennifer Valencia, Judge, Second District Court. Written comments can be submitted to the Appellate Judicial Nominating Commission at [email protected] or Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, P.O. Box 142330, Salt Lake City, UT 84114-2330. The deadline for written comments is noon September 12, 2022. (Read More) Number of the Day | | |
Upcoming âImpulsivity, poor decisions, and what to do about it" with USU Blue Plate Research â Sept 9, 11:30 am, Gallivan Hall downtown SLC, Register here Women in the Money with Utah State Treasurer's Office â Sept. 15-16, Salt Lake Sheraton + online, Register here Interim Days â Sept. 20-22, le.utah.gov ULCT Annual Convention â Oct 5-7, Salt Palace Convention Center, Register here One Utah Summit â Oct 11-13, Southern Utah University, Register here Senate debate between Mike Lee and Evan McMullin â Oct. 17, 6 pm, at UVU Interim Days â Oct 18-20, le.utah.gov General election â Nov 8 Utah Economic Outlook and Public Policy Summit with the Salt Lake Chamber â Jan. 12, 2023, Salt Lake City Marriott, 8 am - noon, Register here | | |
On This Day In History 1666 - The Great Fire of London begins. By the end, 80% of London had been destroyed. 1789 - Congress founds the US Treasury, with Alexander Hamilton at its head 1883 - Rudolf Weigl is born. He was a Polish biologist, physician and inventor, known for creating the first effective vaccine against epidemic typhus. 1885 - Chinese miners are massacred in Wyoming Territory by a mob of 150 white miners. No effective legal action was ever taken against any of the mobsters. 1901 - Theodore Roosevelt advises "Speak softly & carry a big stick" 1945 - Japan surrenders, ending WWII 1948 - Christa McAuliffe is born. The New Hampshire teacher, selected in 1985 to be the first teacher in space, died in 1986 when the space shuttle Challenger exploded. 1973 - J.R.R Tolkien dies. 1974 - President Gerald Ford signs the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). The law guarantees pension rights and creates tax rules for employee benefits and contributions. 2013 - Diana Nyad, 64, makes record swim from Cuba to Florida, the first person to swim the 110 miles without a shark cage Wise Words "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us." âJ. R. R. Tolkien The Punny Side Whatâs the best present you can gift? A broken drum. Nobody can beat that. | | |
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