It's International Day of the Midwife; tomorrow is Coronation Day for King Charles; and the U.S economy adds 253,000 jobs in April
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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 editor@utahpolicy.com.

 

Situational Analysis | May 5, 2023

It's Friday and International Day of the Midwife. What a great profession.

What You Need to Know

  • New polling by the Deseret News and Hinckley Institute of Politics found that Governor Spencer Cox is doing just fine in the eyes of Utah voters. He enjoys a 64% approval rating among all voters. Support increased among very conservative, conservative and moderate voters and dropped among liberal and very liberal voters. Not a bad place to be heading into an election cycle.

Rapid Roundup

 

Thank you to Utah’s leaders for tax relief on Social Security benefits.

For too long, state taxes have reduced the hard-earned Social Security benefits Utah seniors count on. But now, Governor Cox and Utah legislators have passed tax relief that will reduce state taxes on Social Security. AARP Utah fought hard for this new law to make sure our seniors keep more of what they’ve earned. Click here to learn more & thank our leaders.

 

Utah Headlines

Political news

  • Utah Senate President leads humanitarian, trade delegation to Ukraine (Fox13)
  • Utah Senate president leads trade delegation to active war zone (KUTV)
  • Landowners west of Kamas file preliminary paperwork for township (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • Poll: Utah Gov. Cox gaining popularity among conservatives, liberal approval rating slips (Deseret News)
  • Brad Wilson: What Washington could learn from America’s brightest star - Utah (Deseret News)

General Utah news

  • Scientists observed a dying star consuming a planet for the first time (Deseret News)
  • Do Utahns want a major league baseball team? New poll shows big support for bringing a team to Salt Lake City (Deseret News)
  • Provo Fire and Rescue practices swift water rescue techniques in Provo River (KSL)

Business

  • Utah's cookie wars hit court (Fox13)
  • What kind of work is best for working mothers? (Deseret News)

Culture

  • Farming is becoming trendy — but should it be? (Deseret News)

Education

  • Former principal Dr. Elizabeth Grant named superintendent of Salt Lake City Schools (KUTV)
  • Iraq War veteran graduates from college after battling PTSD, addiction and homelessness (Fox13)
  • U of U celebrates record-breaking graduation class in 2023 (ABC4)
  • University of Utah commencement speakers offer messages encouraging dignity, empathy (KSL)
  • Why some college graduates wear Hawaiian leis (ABC4)
  • Author Brandon Sanderson tells UVU graduates to focus on joy as they tackle life's challenges (KSL)
  • UVU commencement focuses on community, enjoying the journey (Daily Herald)
  • President Cockett bids USU graduates adieu in her last commencement (Deseret News)
  • Utah Tech Presidential Awards recognize individuals for ‘blazing new trails’ (St. George News)

Environment

  • Utah flooding damages land, kills livestock in Rich County (Fox13)
  • How SLC crews fight back an ‘ongoing, never-ending siege’ of potential flood problems (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • After years of drought, farmers and ranchers have a new problem: too much water (Deseret News)

Health

  • Utah mother is two-time living organ donor — the first in the state (Fox13)

Housing

  • How corporations in Utah rental market drive up cost of living (Fox13)
  • New rules will allow homeless shelters in most of SLC, but will neighborhood equity really occur? (Salt Lake Tribune)
 

National Headlines

General

  • David Brooks: What our toxic culture does to the young (New York Times)
  • Chad Daybell asked about life insurance payout 2 days after wife's death, witness says (KSL)
  • Jury finds Ed Sheeran didn’t copy Marvin Gaye classic (AP)
  • US job growth beats expectations in April; unemployment rate falls to 3.4% (Reuters)

Politics

  • Jury convicts Enrique Tarrio of the Proud Boys on seditious conspiracy charge (NPR)
  • Kari Lake’s lawyers fined in failed Arizona election lawsuit (AP)
  • Clarence Thomas’s problems multiply at Supreme Court (The Hill)

Ukraine 🇺🇦

  • Russia’s Wagner boss threatens Bakhmut pullout in Ukraine (AP)
  • Ukraine delegate hits Russian at Black Sea summit in Turkey (AP)
  • Funeral held in Ukraine for American man killed in action (AP)
  • The Dnipro river, axis of life and death in Ukraine (New York Times)

World

  • Two kidnapped Nigerian girls freed, return to Chibok with babies (AP)
  • World food prices rise for first time in a year, UN food agency says (Reuters)
  • 'A nightmare.' The background of the military conflict in Sudan, explained. (New York Times)
 

News Releases

Business community releases new family-friendly workplace guide for employers to build stronger workforce

Utah Community Builders, in partnership with the Salt Lake Chamber, United Way of Salt Lake, and Voices for Utah Children, debuted a new resource for the business community entitled Family-Friendly Workplaces: A Guide for Utah Business Leaders. The guide spotlights valuable data, what to consider, and actionable steps with best practices for businesses to elevate the culture and leadership around child care support. (Read More)


Salt Lake Chamber endorses national LIBERTY campaign for immigration reform

The Salt Lake Chamber supports the national LIBERTY Campaign (Legal Immigration and Border Enforcement Reform This Year), led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and was part of a letter issued to Congress calling for action on border security and legal immigration to meet ongoing workforce needs. So far, the campaign has garnered support from over 430 business associations in all 50 states, representing a cross-section of industries, such as health care, manufacturing, hospitality, retail, construction, agriculture, engineering, and food processing, among others. (Read More)


Utah small business owners worry about accessing capital as Washington scrambles to avert default on national debt

Utah small business owners – much like the U.S. Government – are facing a credit crunch, with 82% of respondents reporting they are concerned about their ability to access capital, a stunning shift from one year ago when 77% said they were confident in their ability to access capital. This jarring turnaround is just one key takeaway from a new survey of small business owners from Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Voices released during National Small Business Week. (Read More)


Romney: Politicking and blame games won’t solve our fiscal challenges

At a Budget Committee hearing today to discuss the recent House-passed bill that raises the debt limit and reduces spending, U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) criticized the politicization of our country’s fiscal situation. He urged his colleagues to put posturing aside and come together to save the U.S. from defaulting on its debt, rein in federal spending, and address the main drivers of the debt—our entitlement programs. The $1 trillion in debt being added each year poses great risk to the U.S. economy and ultimately jeopardizes our national security. (Read/Watch More)


Romney, Menendez, Risch, Van Hollen unveil Taiwan Tax Agreement Act of 2023

U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations (SFRC) Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy, joined Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Jim Risch (R-ID), Chairman and Ranking Member of SFRC, and Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Chairman of the East Asia Subcommittee, in unveiling the Taiwan Tax Agreement Act of 2023, bipartisan legislation to authorize the Biden Administration to negotiate and conclude a tax agreement with Taiwan. Similar to a tax treaty, this agreement would play a key role in facilitating investment between the United States and Taiwan, including in key strategic industries such as semiconductors, by making it easier for businesses in the U.S. and Taiwan to avoid double taxation while protecting against tax evasion. (Read More)

 

Number of the Day

Number of the Day, May 5, 2023

 

Tweet of the Day

Screenshot 2023-05-05 at 7.13.20 AM

 

Upcoming

  • Mount Liberty College Spring Youth Seminar on The Virginian — May 6, 9 am-7 pm, Register Here
  • Taxes Now Conference with the Utah Taxpayers Association — May 8, 9:00 am - 1:00 pm, Grand America Hotel, Register here
  • Below the Belt screening and discussion (a film on endometriosis) — May 10, 7 pm, UVU Noorda Theater, Register here
  • YWCA Leader Luncheon featuring Dr. Bernice A. King — May 12, 11:30-2:00, Grand America. Register here
  • Interim Day — May 16-17, Utah State Capitol, le.utah.gov
  • Utah Democratic Convention May 19-20, SUU (More information here)
  • Intellectual Property Rights webinar with the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation — June 1, 10:00 am, Register here
  • Interim Day — June 13-14, Utah State Capitol, le.utah.gov
 

On This Day In History 

  • 1809 - Mary Kies becomes the first woman to receive a US patent for her method of weaving straw with silk to create women’s hats.
  • 1813 - Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher, is born in Copenhagen, Denmark
  • 1818 - Karl Marx is born.
  • 1821 - Napoleon dies in exile on Saint Helena.
  • 1862 - An outnumbered Mexican army defeats a powerful French army at the Battle of Puebla, giving us the Cinco de Mayo celebration.
  • 1864 - Elizabeth Seaman, aka Nellie Bly is born. She became an investigative journalist who wrote an expose of mental asylums in 1887. She also set a record for circling the world in 72 days in 1890.
  • 1925 - John T. Scopes arrested for teaching evolution in Tennessee
  • 1938 - Dr. Dorothy H. Andersen presents results of her medical research identifying the disease cystic fibrosis at a meeting of the American Pediatric Association.
  • 1961 - Alan Shepard becomes the first American in space.
  • 2021 - Evidence of Africa's earliest burial, a three-year-old boy who died 78,000 years ago, is published

Quote of the Day

"Once you label me, you negate me."

—Søren Kierkegaard


On the Punny Side

My favorite word is drool.

It just rolls off the tongue.

 

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