It's Day 23 of 45. In committee today, a bill expanding the crime of lewdness involving a child, burglary modifications; & a GO Utah change | | | 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 | Feb. 7, 2024 It's Wednesday and National Fettuccine Alfredo Day. If you're not really a pasta person, well, Wendyâs is giving out free cheeseburgers all week. Three things to watch today: HB424 Lewdness Involving a Child Amendments by Rep. Colin Jack expands the definition of lewdness involving a child. The bill adds explicit simulations to the definition and makes such acts a third degree felony. This bill will be heard in the House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee at 2 p.m. HB226 Burglary Modifications by Rep. Cheryl Acton specifies that a person commits burglary if they enter or remain unlawfully in a building or any portion of a building with intent to commit stalking. This bill will also be heard in the House Law Enforcement Committee. SB84 Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity Amendments. Under SB84 by Sen, Kirk Cullimore, GO Utah (formerly GOED) will change its name again to GOEO, the Governorâs Office of Economic Opportunity. The bill also changes the Board of Economic Opportunity from 15 members to 9 and drops the limit on the number of members from one political party. This bill will be heard in the Senate Economic Development and Workforce Services Committee at 2 p.m. On the Hill Today, Day 23 of 45 8:00 am: Executive Offices and Criminal Justice Appropriations; Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environmental Quality Appropriations 10:00 am: Higher Education Appropriations 11:00-11:50 am: Senate floor time 11:00-11:50 am: House floor time
2:00 pm: House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice; House Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment; House Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology; House Transportation; Senate Economic Development and Workforce Services; Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions; Senate Revenue and Taxation | | |
| | Construction Underway, Scheduled Operation: 2025 The Intermountain Power Project's transformational âIPP Renewedâ project is under construction and on track for mid-2025 start-up. The project includes new natural gas-fueled electricity generating units that will also utilize "green" hydrogen for long-term, dispatchable storage of renewable energy. There are currently 998 workers on site in Millard County, with 1200 expected during peak construction. Click here to watch construction unfold. For more information, visit www.ipprenewed.com | | |
Utah Headlines Legislative session Davis County seeking $30 million to build homeless resource center (Fox13) Business and Labor Utah lawmaker wants to raise the minimum wage based on age (KSL Newsradio) Government Operations Bill intended to improve Utahâs homelessness services passes House 74-0 (Deseret News) Revamped Utah bill aims to exempt NIL agreements from open records law (Deseret News) Logan rep introduces bill to create a Utah Office of Families (UPR) Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice How Utah might tackle its domestic violence epidemic (Deseret News) 16-year-old Om was killed in 2023. Now his childhood friend is advocating for change (Deseret News) Bill would fund Utah's rape recovery centers, focus on spotting abuse in relationships (KUTV) Utah bill looks to strengthen child exploitation laws against AI-generated porn (KUTV) Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Billboard industry wonât get seat on Scenic Byway Committee in revised bill, but critics say the companies still have influence (Salt Lake Tribune) Utah says âI donât think soâ to federal land exchange at Bears Ears (Deseret News) Bill would hide Utah golf course water use (Fox13) Other Utah News Political news Utah congressman switches vote to ânoâ on Mayorkas impeachment at the last minute as a procedural move to bring it back later (Deseret News) Utah Reps. Burgess Owens, John Curtis and Celeste Maloy donât think the $118 billion border bill is the solution (Deseret News) Sen. Mitt Romney on the border bill: Politics is now âthe art of the impossibleâ (Deseret News) Gov. Cox speaks on disagreeing better while protesters meet outside (UPR) Election news Groups set to present caucus training event this week (Standard-Examiner) Culture Step aside, baseball: America has a new favorite pastime (Deseret News) Usher embraced the code word âUtahâ to keep a super-sized secret from his kids (Deseret News) Is the big box office gamble of âThe Chosenâ paying off? (Deseret News) Utah Transit Authority brings back 'Date Nite Train' for Valentine's Day (KUTV) Education University of Utah President Taylor Randall: âU.âs diversity is its strengthâ (Deseret News) University of Utah professors say theyâre frustrated by stateâs anti-DEI measure â and the âchilling effectâ itâs already having (Salt Lake Tribune) Equity training is now considered discriminatory in Utahâs K-12 schools (Salt Lake Tribune) Family Perspective: The great sleepover debate (Deseret News) Health PCOS suicide risk calls for mental health monitoring, treatment (Deseret News) | | |
National Headlines General Standoff at Eagle Pass (Deseret News) Jennifer Crumbley convicted of involuntary manslaughter over son's school shooting in Michigan (NPR) Why Americans are so down on a strong economy (Wall Street Journal) Political news Trump is not immune from prosecution in his 2020 election interference case, US appeals court says (AP) 4 takeaways from Trumpâs loss in his immunity case (Washington Post) Border security and Ukraine aid collapses despite Bidenâs plea for Congress to âshow some spineâ (AP) Aid package for Israel fails in the House, dealing another setback to GOP leaders (AP) House fails to pass articles of impeachment for Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas (NPR) The Republicans who wonât take yes for an answer (The Atlantic) Election news âNone of these candidatesâ projected to beat Nikki Haley in Nevada primary (Deseret News) After falling out of favor with Trump, Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, is planning to step down. (New York Times) Ukraine ðºð¦ Ukraine rations munitions as end of U.S. aid looms, Russia inches forward (Wall Street Journal) Senate to vote on Plan B: Ukraine funding without border security (The Hill) Israel ð®ð± Hamas proposes 135-day Gaza truce with complete Israeli withdrawal (Reuters) Diapers and baby formula are hard to find in Gaza, leaving parents desperate (AP) World news âDisaster of the centuryâ: 1 year after the earthquake that demolished parts of Syria and Turkey (Deseret News) Chile's former president Sebastian Pinera dies in helicopter crash (Reuters) | | |
| | News Releases Romney joins colleagues in requesting Speaker Johnson invite Japanese Prime Minister to give Joint Address to Congress U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific, today joined 28 of his colleagues, led by Senators Bill Hagerty (R-TN) and Mazie Hirono (D-HI), in sending a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) encouraging him to invite Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to address a Joint Session of Congress during his Official Visit to the United States in April 2024. (Read More) Utah leaders reject exchange of School and Institutional Trust Lands Gov. Spencer J. Cox, President J. Stuart Adams and Speaker Mike Schultz released the following statement regarding the governorâs withdrawal of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Department of Interior and the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Legislatureâs joint resolution rejecting the proposed land exchange of state school and institutional trust lands and mineral interests for federal lands and mineral interests. âUtah has sought for a collaborative, inclusive approach to managing our public lands, including in the management of the Bears Ears National Monument, yet the Biden administration continues to ignore our good faith input. The federal government has signaled that it once again plans to adopt a restrictive land management plan that will harm recreational access, grazing, and other traditional public uses of these lands. When the administration is prepared to have a serious and good faith collaborative discussion about land management, we stand ready to renew discussions of a land exchange.â (Read More) Wasatch Jr. High Principal sleeps on roof to raise money for Granite Education Foundation, âSouper Bowl of Caringâ As part of the âSouper Bowl of Caring,â Wasatch Jr. High Principal Mary Basso slept on the schoolâs roof Tuesday, February 6, to raise money for the Granite Education Foundation. From 7:00 p.m. â 8:30 p.m., Basso will be waving to students and collecting more money for the cause (Wasatch Jr High, 3750 S 3100 E, Salt Lake City, UT 84109). Wasatch Jr High students held several events, including dumping buckets of water and throwing plates of whipped cream on student and staff volunteers, raising over $35,000 since January 29. (Read More) UVU student and âTeam USAâ teammates win gold at the World Trampoline Championships in England Simon Smith, a 22-year-old, pre-dental student at Utah Valley University (UVU), and three âTeam USAâ teammates won the Team gold medal in the double-mini event at the 2023 FIG World Trampoline Championships in Birmingham, England last November. (Read More) | | |
Upcoming Feb. 7 â Women in Leadership Executive Series: Finance, 11:30 am-12:30 pm,Register here Feb. 8 â Women in Leadership Executive Speaker Series: Traditional Industries, 2:00-3:00 pm,Register here Feb. 21 â Women in Leadership Executive Speaker Series: Women Focused Organizations, 11:30 am-12:30 pm,Register here Feb. 22 â Understanding Utahâs Caucus-Convention System, with GOP Chair Rob Axson and Dem. Chair Diane Lewis, sponsored by Utah Women Run, 6:00-7:30 p.m., Register here Mar. 1 â Legislative session ends Mar. 5 â Caucus night Mar. 20 â Utah Foundation Annual Lunch, 11:45 am-1:30 pm; Grand America, Purchase tickets here Apr. 20 â United Utah Partyconvention Apr. 27 â State GOP and Democratic Conventions | | |
On This Day In History 1812 - Charles Dickens is born. 1812 - A series of earthquakes causes a âfluvial tsunamiâ in the Mississippi River, causing the river to run backwards. 1867 - Laura Ingalls Wilder is born. 1872 - Amy Brown Lyman is born in the tiny farming community now known as Pleasant Grove, Utah. She brought social work to Utah and worked to reduce maternal and child mortality. 1918 - Ruth Sager is born. A scientist, she worked on corn genetic research in plants, studied cancer research after 1975 and became professor of cellular genetics and chief of the Cancer Genetics Division at Harvard Medical School. 1945 - President Truman appointed Irwin C. Mollison judge of the US Customs Court, making him the first Black federal judge in the U.S. 1962 - Full US-Cuba embargo announced by JFK. 1979 - Josef Mengele, the âAngel of Death,â dies of a stroke in Brazil. His death was not verified until 1985. 1984 - Navy Captain Bruce McCandless II becomes the first human being to perform an untethered space walk. 1992 - European Union treaty signed. 2002 - President George W. Bush announces plan for faith-based initiatives 2020 - Dr. Li Wenliang, Ophthalmologist at Wuhan Central Hospital in China died from COVID after warning the world of a mysterious pneumonia in late December 2019. Quote of the Day "Om should not be dead. Om should be getting his driverâs license. Om should be practicing a new piece on his saxophone. Om should be applying for college this year. But no matter how desperately I want to bring him back, I know that I canât." âElla Udell, age 17, writing in the Deseret News On the Punny Side My wife got angry at me for kicking the dropped ice cubes under the refrigerator... But now itâs all just water under the fridge. | | |
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