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It's Day 38 of 45. Also on deck, a study on improving the health of Utah Lake and disruptive behavior at school events
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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 | Feb. 23, 2024
It's Friday and National Banana Bread Day!
Three things to watch:
- HB562 Utah Fairpark Area Investment and Restoration District by Rep. Ryan Wilcox would create a district covering land on the west side of I-80 between 1000 West and Redwood Road. The bill would allow for tax increases, including a hotel tax of 15%, a resort tax and more. This bill will be heard in the House Government Operations Committee at 8 a.m.
- SB260 School Events Amendments by Sen. Karen Kwan would instruct the State Board of Education to make rules clarifying that principals and LEA administrators have the authority to remove a spectator or a participant from a school-sponsored activity for disruptive behavior. This bill will be heard in the Senate Education Committee at 8 a.m.
- SB270 Utah Lake and Great Salt Lake Study Amendments by Sen. Curt Bramble requires the Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands to conduct a study on restoring Utah Lake’s water quality, conserving water resources related to the lake, and improving access and opportunities. This bill will be heard in the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee at 4 p.m.
On the Hill Today, Day 38 of 45
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Utah Headlines
Legislative session
- Animal massage licensing, abortion laws and more at the 2024 Legislature (UPR)
Business and Labor
- Opinion: State employees shouldn’t be fired for presenting unpopular information. This bill could jeopardize that. (Deseret News)
- Medicaid ‘doomsday’ bill threatens vital services for vulnerable Utahns, advocates say (Standard-Examiner)
- Utah lawmakers look to expand religious protections in the workplace (KUER)
Government Operations
- House passes bill to end ranked choice voting option for Utah cities (Deseret News)
- ‘More secrecy’: Utah lawmakers advance bills targeting government transparency (KSL TV)
Education
- Mike Petersen: Your questions about the ‘Ten Commandments bill,’ answered (Deseret News)
- Ken Ivory: Protecting children from explicit material shouldn’t be controversial (Deseret News)
Health and Human Services
- Utah lawmakers consider ban on flavored vapes; business owners say it helps Big Tobacco (KSL)
- Ironing out Utah’s Medical Cannabis Program (KSL Newsradio)
- Proposed bill would no longer sell state hospital land, focuses on mental health crisis care instead (Daily Herald)
Judiciary
- Utah passes religious freedom bill with language to prevent anti-LGBTQ discrimination (KSL)
Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice
- Opinion: Utah has led the nation in standing up for kids with Big Tech and social media. Don’t back down now (Deseret News)
- Bill that’d set minimum mandatory sentences for DUI homicides gets favorable recommendation (ABC4)
Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
- ‘No organized train of thought’ when it comes to Utah water planning (Deseret News)
- Uranium mining leads to energy independence, lawmakers say. Native Utahns call it ‘genocide.’ (Salt Lake Tribune)
Revenue and Taxation
- Will Utahns get ‘a tax cut again, again, again and again’? Utah Legislature still deciding (Deseret News)
- $1 billion NHL bill filed in Utah State Legislature (Fox13)
- Mayor Mendenhall calls $1B taxpayer-funded NHL proposal ‘truly transformative’ for Salt Lake (Salt Lake Tribune)
Other Utah News
Political news
- Utah Gov. Cox calls gender-affirming care ‘genital-mutilation surgery’ during ‘Disagree Better’ event (Salt Lake Tribune)
Utah news
- Northern Utah food pantry in ‘desperation mode’ (ABC4)
- Utah man sues Maduro over trauma caused by nearly two years of imprisonment in Venezuela (KUTV)
Business
- Utah leads as the epicenter for high-paying jobs in America (Deseret News)
- Unhappy at work? You’re not alone, a Utah company’s report finds. (Salt Lake Tribune)
- Get Gephardt: Homeowners ask why authorities can’t shut down an unlicensed contractor (KSL TV)
Education
- 350+ complaints against Natalie Cline received in hours after controversial Facebook post (Fox13)
- University of Utah indefinitely pauses SAT and ACT admissions requirements (KSL Newsradio)
- Beyond DEI: Unpacking Utah’s debate over campus diversity initiatives (Deseret News)
Environment
- Turns out, the Bonneville Salt Flats have nothing to do with ancient Lake Bonneville (Salt Lake Tribune)
Health
- FDA alert: Don’t trust smartwatches and rings to measure blood sugar (Deseret News)
- From birth to death, Black Americans fare worse in measures of health compared to their white counterparts (AP)
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National Headlines
General
- Private lander makes first US moon landing in more than 50 years (AP)
- Vice Media says ‘several hundred’ staff members will be laid off, Vice.com news site shuttered (AP)
- Meta staff found Instagram subscription tool enabled child exploitation. The company pressed ahead anyway. (Wall Street Journal)
- Black student’s suspension over hairstyle didn’t violate law, Texas judge rules (New York Times)
Political news
- Some Republicans are voicing doubt over Alabama IVF ruling. Democrats see an opportunity (AP)
- Federal judge affirms MyPillow’s Mike Lindell must pay $5M in election data dispute (AP)
- Inside the GOPs state party problem (New York Times)
- Bible-quoting Alabama chief justice sparks church-state debate in embryo ruling (AP)
- GOP shutdown fears grow: ‘We could be in a world of hurt’ (The Hill)
Election news
- South Carolina veterans feel disrespected by Trump. Many will support him anyway (Reuters)
- Haley bashes Trump on Russia as she seeks to gain ground in GOP primary (Politico)
Ukraine 🇺🇦
- AP PHOTOS: Ukraine endures a second year of war with scenes of grief, suffering and also joy (AP)
- After fleeing home, Ukrainians face uncertain future across Europe (Reuters)
- With lives shattered by war, Ukrainian teens build new dreams (Reuters)
- US and EU pile new sanctions on Russia for the Ukraine war’s 2nd anniversary and Navalny’s death (AP)
- Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer makes trip to Ukraine as US aid hangs in the balance (AP)
Israel 🇮🇱
- MSF (Doctors Without Borders) slams US on Gaza at UN, says children as young as 5 want to die (Reuters)
- Gaza aid delivery hampered by Israeli attacks on police, rising chaos (Washington Post)
- Netanyahu seeks open-ended control over security and civilian affairs in Gaza in new postwar plan (AP)
World news
- In Ethiopia, a secret committee orders killings and arrests to crush rebels (Reuters)
- China says it aims to 'contain' foreign interference over Taiwan this year (Reuters)
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Number of the Day
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News Releases
Utah’s economy starts 2024 strong
The Salt Lake Chamber, in partnership with the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, has released the January 2024 Roadmap to Prosperity Economic Dashboard to inform business leaders’ understanding of Utah’s economy. This tool prioritizes key data on the state’s economic outlook and actionable context for decision-makers...
Three essential insights from the January 2024 Roadmap to Prosperity Dashboard include:
- SLC Airport passengers in 2023 topped previous annual record. More than 26.9 million passengers came through the airport in 2023, beating the 2019 record as airport capacity increased and travel continued its strong post-pandemic recovery.
- Year-over inflation falls slightly but remains stubbornly above target rate. January inflation came in at 3.1%, down from 6.4% one year earlier. Inflation continues to slow, indicating progress toward the Fed’s 2% goal.
- Utah’s median home sales price falls to lowest point in 11 months in December. High interest rates and limited supply continue to slow price increases in Utah’s housing market. January 2023 represented the only month during the previous calendar year reporting a lower median home sales price than December. (Read More)
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Tweet of the Day
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Upcoming
- Mar. 1 — Legislative session ends
- Mar. 5 — Caucus night
- Mar. 20 — Utah Foundation Annual Lunch, 11:45 am-1:30 pm; Grand America, Purchase tickets here
- Apr. 20 — United Utah Party convention
- Apr. 27 — State GOP and Democratic Conventions
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On This Day In History
- 1455 - Johannes Gutenberg prints his first Bible.
- 1836 - The siege on the Alamo begins.
- 1868 - W.E.B. DuBois is born. An American sociologist, historian, civil rights activist, Pan-Africanist, he was awarded the Spingarn medal by the NAACP in 1920 and the Lenin Peace Prize by the USSR in 1959.
- 1940 - Woody Guthrie writes This Land Is Your Land.
- 1945 - U.S. Marines raise the American flag on Iwo Jima.
- 1954 - 1st mass inoculation against polio with the Jonas Salk vaccine takes place at Arsenal Elementary School in Pittsburgh
- 1968 - The US Equal Opportunity Commission rules that a candidate’s gender (female) or marital status (single) could not be a required qualification for employment as a flight attendant.
- 1979 - Frank E. Peterson, Jr. is named the first Black general in the Marine Corps.
- 1991 - President George H. W. Bush gives Iraq a 24-hour deadline to withdraw from Kuwait or face a ground war.
- 1998 - Osama bin Laden publishes a fatwa declaring jihad against all Jews and Crusaders.
- 2020 - Ahmaud Arbery shot to death after being chased down by two white men in Brunswick, Georgia. Video of the killing emerges in May, prompting arrests.
Quote of the Day
“DEI offices don’t take away anything from students who don’t want or need to access them, but their absence will have a negative impact on students who rely on them.”
—MJ Powell, speaking to the Deseret News
On the Punny Side
Why did the computer go to the beach during spring break?
To surf the net! | | |
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