Guest Opinion: Tax cuts hurt our kids
by Moe Hickey
Once again, it’s the “Year of the Tax Cut” which seems to have become an annual event in Utah. We have been cutting taxes for years, and by doing so we are neglecting the long-term needs of our children.
We have heard consistently that we are investing more in education. That may be accurate in terms of dollars allocated, but it does not account for continued growth and inflation. Once you calculate those two factors, our spending on education has been relatively flat for decades. We need to invest more in our K-12 system to meet the needs of our children. Otherwise we will continue to suffer from the largest class sizes in the nation and high school graduation rates at or below national averages for nearly every racial and ethnic category.
We are also ignoring the lack of early care and education supports that are needed to address the changing challenges facing families. Utah is one of 33 states where infant care is more expensive than college...
This winter we had to turn children away from homeless shelters due to lack of space. We have seen food pantries expand at schools across the state. We have seen our student homeless population expand, creating a need for more onsite Teen Centers. It is amazing to see community members and donors’ step in to address these issues, but it is not addressing the causes, nor is it a sustainable solution...
We need to take a step back and assess what our children need and have the political will to fund it properly. We can no longer continue to cut taxes while ignoring the needs of 30 percent of our citizens. (Read More)
News Releases
Jean Bingham joins Sutherland Board
Sutherland Institute announced today the addition of former General Relief Society President Jean B. Bingham to its Board of Directors. Bingham will draw from her leadership experience in the faith, educational and philanthropic sectors to enhance Sutherland’s work on religious liberty, education, family, and the institutions of civil society. (Read More)
Rep. Stewart introduces social media ban for kids under 16
Today, Rep. Chris Stewart (R-UT) introduced the Social Media Child Protection Act, which would make it unlawful for social media platforms to provide access to children under the age of 16. The rates of teen and adolescent depression, anxiety, and suicide have risen at unprecedented levels since the emergence of social media. (Read More)
Owens announces Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee assignments
Today, Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04) announced his selection to three House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittees: Water Resources and Environment, Highways and Transit, and Aviation. (Read More)
Owens re-introduces bill to fight learning loss crisis, empower parents
Today, Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04) re-introduced the Raising Expectations with Child Opportunity Vouchers for Educational Recovery (RECOVER) Act to empower parents to solve the learning loss crisis facing today’s students.
As of January 2023, states and school districts had yet to spend 77% of the education funding allocated to them under the Democrats’ American Rescue Plan Act. Rep. Owens’ bill would allow states and school districts to use those unspent funds to issue Child Opportunity Scholarships directly to parents. (Read More)
Romney, colleagues formally challenge Biden WOTUS rule through Congressional Review Act
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today joined all 48 of his Republican colleagues, led by Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, in introducing a formal challenge to the Biden Administration’s Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule through a Congressional Review Act (CRA) joint resolution of disapproval. The resolution of disapproval “will give every member of Congress the chance to stand with farmers, ranchers, landowners, and builders, and protect future transportation, infrastructure, and energy projects of all kinds in their states." (Read More)
Romney, colleagues urge administration to designate copper as a critical mineral in interest of national security
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) joined a bipartisan letter, led by Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), urging U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to designate copper as an official U.S. Geological Survey Critical Mineral, emphasizing new analysis, and its well-documented importance to national security, water infrastructure, electrical and clean energy infrastructure, and more. (Read More)
Senate GOP introduce concealed-carry reciprocity bill
Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT), John Cornyn (R-TX) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN), along with 42 of their Senate colleagues, introduced the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, which would allow individuals with concealed carry privileges in their home state to exercise those rights in any other state that allows concealed carry, while still abiding by that state’s laws. (Read More)
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