| Expansive and expensive: Summit County's largest open-space purchase; crossing guard pleads with drivers to slow down, pay attention .png?width=1200&upscale=true&name=Utah_Policy_Logo_Email_Full%20(1).png) | 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. If you're a candidate in 2024 and want to advertise on UtahPolicy.com, contact Suzanne Benitez. | | |
Situational Analysis | Aug. 19, 2024 It's Monday and National Potato Day. Boil them, mash them, stick 'em in a stew.... Happy birthday to Rep. Brian King and Speaker Mike Schultz! ð ð ð What you need to know - The Utah Legislature is seriously considering calling a special legislative session to address a recent Supreme Court ruling that curtailed its ability to change voter-led ballot initiatives. âThe peopleâs exercise of their right to reform the government through an initiative is constitutionally protected from government infringement, including legislative amendment or repeal that impairs the intended reform,â the Supreme Courtâs unanimous opinion stated. âI think that the ruling from the Utah Supreme Court establishes an expectation that is so out of line with the principles of a constitutional republic that we need to make the correction,â Utah GOP chair Rob Axson said.
Rapid relevance On the Hill Today | | |
.jpg?width=1200&upscale=true&name=12824-8_PLPCO_DesNews_Photo%20(1).jpg) | Stand for Our Land Recently, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has significantly restricted access to Utah public lands and continues to restrict access. We need you to get involved. Learn how your access is being affected and voice your concerns to the BLM. Your input will help shape the future of Utah. | | |
Utah Headlines Political news - Dozens speak out against 48% property tax increase in Utah County (KSL)
- Alpine School District Board of Education approves 7% property tax hike (Daily Herald)
- Why Utah lawmakers should implement universal school lunch (Deseret News)
- Emily Bell McCormick: âTampon Timâ isnât the insult you think it is. In Utah, we know better. (Salt Lake Tribune)
- Editorial Board: Utah members of Congress must do better for our Downwinders (Salt Lake Tribune)
- Utah legislators eye special session, maybe this week. Will it deal with abortion, redistricting? (Daily Herald)
Election news - Why Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver believes heâs the candidate most aligned with Utah values (Deseret News)
- What the proposed Utah Constitution amendment means for education and food taxes (KUER)
Utah - Black Desert Resort, with its signature lava, is hustling to get ready for PGA visit (Deseret News)
- Michelle Kaufusi: Provo wins gold in post-Games venue use (Deseret News)
- Sunday Edition: Scott Miller (KSL TV)
- Felecia Maxfield-Barrett: Utah has a âsecret sauceâ to Olympic success â and youâre part of it (Salt Lake Tribune)
- From Cache Valley to the cosmos: Utah-built satellite that mapped the universe and hunted asteroids powers down (Salt Lake Tribune)
Business/Tech - Do babies belong at work events? (Deseret News)
- Utah-based Beehive Meals announces major service expansion plans (KSL TV)
- USU UWLP shares best practices for Utah companies championing women in 2024 (Utah State Today)
Courts - Court ruling tears at the fabric of a Southern Utah familyâs life (St. George News)
Culture - A reunion, a vigil and reasons to celebrate. Pacific Islanders share bonds as they forge a unique identity in the U.S. (Deseret News)
- Ballerina Farm and the problem with âchoiceâ: How the debate is dividing LDS women (Salt Lake Tribune)
Education - In many Utah schools, 95%-100% of kindergartners go to school full day (Deseret News)
- BYU declined tens of millions in COVID relief; other schools struggle as federal funds dry up (Deseret News)
- What teachers are worried about as students start the new school year (KSL Newsradio)
- Ahead of new school year, police say don't share too much about kids on social media (KUTV)
- âSo eagerâ: Utah refugees, immigrants prep for new school year (KSL Newsradio)
- USU research to supply crops with resources to withstand climate change, drought (Utah State Today)
Environment - Burros vs. the desert tortoise. A fight over who belongs (Deseret News)
- BLM adds to its herbicide arsenal to fight invasive plants in Utah and the West (KUER)
- USU researcher studies how human use of public lands impacts wildlife (UPR)
- DWR requests anglers harvest specific fish species at four waterbodies (Cache Valley Daily)
- Project 2025 push to resume nuclear testing in Nevada sparks fallout in Utah (Salt Lake Tribune)
- USU researchers studying tens of thousands of trees to help predict future forest growth (Utah State Today)
Family - Perspective: Vacationing with kids? Consider the all-inclusive resort (Deseret News)
- Why Utah must cover doula services through Medicaid (Deseret News)
Health - Study finds too much caffeine raises risk of heart damage, stroke (Deseret News)
- Utah medical cannabis patients leave stores empty-handed due to software glitches (Salt Lake Tribune)
Housing - How new rules taking effect will impact Utah homebuyers and sellers (KSL)
| | |
National Headlines General - What is grievance journalism and how do you know when youâve encountered it? (Deseret News)
- How to watch Augustâs supermoon, which kicks off four months of lunar spectacles (AP)
Political news - Civility â the problem no presidential candidate can solve (Deseret News)
- George Santos due in court, expected to plead guilty in fraud case (AP)
- House GOP investigators accuse Biden of âimpeachable conductâ in long-awaited report (Politico)
- Sen. Bob Menendez ends independent run days before heâs set to resign (Politico)
Election news - The wrestle in the West. For many conservative people of faith, the 2024 presidential election is a moral and political conundrum (Deseret News)
- As the Democratic convention kicks off, will Harrisâ honeymoon continue? (Deseret News)
- What to expect this week at the Democratic National Convention (Fox13)
- Secret Service finds protecting Trump is extraordinarily challenging (Washington Post)
- Biden DNC speech on Monday will highlight his legacy â and his departure from the scene (Washington Post)
- McCarthy-Gaetz feud reaches apex in Florida primary (The Hill)
- GOP pollster Frank Luntz: Trump driving gender gap among voters with insults (The Hill)
Ukraine ðºð¦ - Russia says third bridge damaged in Ukrainian incursion in Kursk region (Reuters)
- Ukrainian officials order mandatory evacuation from Pokrovsk for families with children (AP)
Israel and Gaza - Hamas, Islamic Jihad claim responsibility for bomb blast in Tel Aviv (Reuters)
- Blinken, in Israel, says now is âmaybe the lastâ chance for a Gaza cease-fire deal (AP)
World news - Venezuelans stage global protests, seek recognition of election victory (Washington Post)
| | |
Number of the Day 
| | |
 | News Releases Utah Democrat Party files to join Proposition 4 lawsuit
The Utah Democratic Party has filed a motion to participate in the pending Proposition 4 litigation, League of Women Voters of Utah, et al. v. Utah State Legislature. The framers of our state constitution were clear: ultimate power lies with the voters, not the legislature. Republicansâ attempt to defy the will of the voters by repealing Proposition 4 and imposing lopsided congressional districts on Utahns is nothing more than a power grab, designed to squash opposition and cut themselves off from the democratic process. (Read More)
Sutherland calls for constitutional amendment Sutherland Institute released the following statement: âWe understand that a special legislative session may be scheduled next week. Typically, special sessions are intended to address some pressing policy issue. As decisions are made about what issues may be included, Sutherland Institute strongly recommends the consideration of a constitutional amendment to correct the flawed understanding of the Utah Constitutionâs principle of proper exercise of legislative power reflected in the Utah Supreme Courtâs recent ruling in League of Women Voters v. Utah State Legislature. âIn that decision, the court determined that laws enacted by ballot initiative were âprotected from undue ⦠infringementâ from the Utah Legislature. In effect, the court determined that that Utah Constitution establishes two categories of fundamentally unequal law: (1) laws enacted by the Utah Legislature, which legislators may reform according to the constitutional legislative power vested in them by a vote of the people, and (2) laws enacted by ballot initiative, which legislators are constitutionally barred from changing without court approval. This bifurcated view of Utah law â aside from being constitutionally suspect â makes certain that bad public policy enacted by ballot initiative that fails to serve the public good cannot be corrected." (Read More)
Bipartisan statement by the Salt Lake County Council on public safety bond In a bipartisan vote, the Salt Lake County Council supported placing a public safety bond on the November ballot. Our jails are at capacity and urgently require expansion. The proposed public safety bond will enable us to consolidate two jails into one, add more beds, expand mental health treatment services, and create a facility to support inmates transitioning back into the community. (Read More)
Romney welcomes historic investment for semiconductor manufacturing in Utah U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today applauded an agreement between Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) and the U.S. Department of Commerce to use up to $1.6 billion in funding from the CHIPS and Science Act in support of three 300mm semiconductor wafer fabrication plants (fab) already under constructionâincluding its fab in Utahâs Silicon Slopes. In February 2023, TI announced it had selected Lehi, Utah, as the site of its next fabâbringing an $11 billion investment to the state. These investments were made possible by the Romney-sponsored CHIPS and Science Actâlandmark legislation to advance and solidify the United Statesâ leadership in scientific and technological innovation through increased investments in the discovery, creation, and manufacturing of technology critical to U.S. national security and economic competitiveness. (Read More)
Princetonâs Bradford Wilson appointed as first Distinguished Visiting Scholar at UVUâs Center for Constitutional Studies
Utah Valley University (UVU) announced today that Dr. Bradford Wilson, Princeton Universityâs executive director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions, will spend one year at Utah Valley Universityâs Center for Constitutional Studies as its first James Wilson Distinguished Visiting Scholar in Civic Thought. He will start on September 1, 2024. In this role, Wilson will teach undergraduate courses in American constitutional and political thought and contribute to the centerâs scholarly work, including the annual First Amendment Conference and its preparations to play a leading role in the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. (Read More) | | |
Tweet of the Day 
| | |
Upcoming - August 20-21 â Interim Days
- September 17-18 â Interim Days
- October 4 â Conservative Climate Summit, 7:30 am - 3:00 pm, UVU, Register here
- October 4 â Hatch Foundation hosts Civil Dialogue Symposium with Dana Perino, 2:00 pm, USU, Register here
- October 7-9 â One Utah Summit, SUU, Register here
- October 15-16 â Interim Day
- November 15 â Women & Business Conference & ATHENA Awards Luncheon with the Salt Lake Chamber, Grand America Hotel, Register here
- November 19-20 â Interim Days
| | |
On This Day In History - 1791 - An accomplished mathematician, astronomer and son of a former slave, Benjamin Banneker writes to Thomas Jefferson, urging justice for African Americans using Jeffersonâs own words from the Declaration of Independence.
- 1851 - Charles Hires is born. The Philadelphia pharmacist developed a drink he called root beer. Utah thanks you, Charles.
- 1919 - U.S. President Woodrow Wilson appears personally before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to argue in favor of its ratification of the Versailles Treaty.
- 1920 - Donna Allen is born. She founded the Womenâs Institute for Freedom of the Press in 1972 to publicize and research womenâs issues which she thought were ignored by the mainstream media.
- 1946 - Bill Clinton is born. He became the 42nd US president.
- 1953 - CIA-assisted coup overthrows the government of Iran and reinstates the Shah.
- 2014 - NASA satellites take photos showing that the eastern basin of the Aral Sea had for the first time completely dried up
- 2010 - The last American combat brigade leaves Iraq
- 2020 - Apple becomes the 1st US company to be valued at $2 trillion, just 2 years after it reached $1 trillion valuation
Quote of the Day âPresumption should never make us neglect that which appears easy to us, nor despair make us lose courage at the sight of difficulties.â âBenjamin Banneker
On the Punny Side Teacher: Class, we will have only half a day of school this morning.
Class: Hooray!
Teacher: We will have the other half this afternoon. | | |
â Advertise With Us â Subscribers may receive special messages with information about new features, special offers, or public policy messages from clients and advertisers. |
|
