Utah Headlines

Political news

• Utah’s Planned Parenthood is suing over ‘defunding’ measure in Trump’s megabill. A judge pushed pause. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Utah lawmakers join rally for plastic surgeon accused of destroying $28K in COVID-19 vaccines (Salt Lake Tribune)
• As Musk threatens a new political party, one Utah party sees opportunity (Fox13)
• In its first year of work, Utah’s AI office laid out mental health best practices (KUER)

Municipal news

• Provo cancels 'Dirtylicious Dance Fitness' class, says it doesn't align with city values (KSL)
• Weber County League of Women Voters announces series of candidate forums (Standard-Examiner)
• Heroic actions help Herriman dodge disaster in massive weekend fire and explosion (KSL)

Utah

• Latino population still motoring Utah's population growth, as in rest of the nation (KSL)
• Will a national parks commission help these wonders? (Deseret News)
• ‘I have home-court advantage’: BYU chef to compete in national cook-off in Salt Lake City (Deseret News)
• Utah to inspect up to 80,000 homes for wildfire risk, homeowners will pay for program fee (KUTV)

Biz/Tech

• Utah-based Awardco earns valuation over $1B in latest funding round (KSL)

Crime/Courts

• 7-year-old girl killed in southern Utah ATV crash; driver arrested (KSL)
• Warrants reveal new details in Saratoga Springs shooting (KSL TV)
• Davis County Sheriff’s Office warns of ‘ankle monitor’ scam targeting inmate’s families (ABC4)
• Menzies' attorneys ask court to reconsider competency for execution (KUTV)

Culture/Community

• Holly Richardson: As news from Texas unfolds, I remember my own loss and the lessons I learned about mourning (Deseret News)
• Susan Madsen: Why we should be cautious about calling women ‘girls’ (Deseret News)
• Basketball program benefits refugee kids from Sudan (KSL TV)
• From a jail cell to a lifeline: Channae Haller’s nonprofit, Justice By Objectives, helps Utahns turn prison time into purpose (Deseret News)

Education

• Alpine School District set to issue bonds to help build new schools in Saratoga Springs, Eagle Mountain (KSL Newsradio)
• USU to offer limited veteran-only housing to students (KSL Newsradio)

Energy

• Trump to end ‘green energy’ subsidies via new action (Deseret News)

Environment

• Chantal strikes Carolina coast as first storm of the Atlantic season (Deseret News)
• Trump administration fast-tracks oil transport expansion in eastern Utah (Salt Lake Tribune)
• President Trump orders higher fees for foreign visitors to national parks like Utah's 'Mighty Five' (Fox13)
• Coyotes remain as wily as ever, even as Utah has paid millions in bounties (KUER)
• We can’t just brush it off: Preparedness is key in wildfire prevention (St. George News)

Faith

• Chinese government officials ban LDS Church activities in Beijing (ABC4)
• Religious organizations speak out against alleged hate crime at Krishna Temple (Daily Herald)

Family/Friends

• Silver Linings: ‘Let’s do lunch?’ (Deseret News)
• US adults want the government to focus on child care costs, not birth rates, AP-NORC poll finds (AP)
• As women have far fewer babies, the U.S. and the world face unprecedented challenges (NPR)

Health

• US measles cases hit 6-year high at 1277 cases, Johns Hopkins data shows (Reuters)
• Rural hospitals brace for financial hits or even closure under Republicans’ $1 trillion Medicaid cut (AP)
• American kids have become increasingly unhealthy over nearly two decades, new study finds (AP)
• Doctors and public health organizations sue Kennedy over vaccine policy change (AP)

Housing

• Voices: I’ve worked in housing for 20 years. Utah’s housing shortage is a full-blown emergency. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Investors snap up growing share of US homes as traditional buyers struggle to afford one (AP)

National Headlines

General

• Volunteers rally in Texas to clear debris, provide aid, support recovery (Deseret News)
• “Vast majority” of Americans are simply not willing to pay for news (Deseret News)
• Debate erupts over role job cuts played in weather forecasts ahead of deadly Texas floods (AP)
• Death toll from catastrophic flooding in Texas over the July Fourth weekend surpasses 100 (AP)

Political news 

• Exclusive: DOJ, FBI conclude Epstein had no "client list," died by suicide (Axios)
• A Marco Rubio impostor is using AI voice to call high-level officials (Washington Post)
• Trump to put 25% tariffs on Japan and South Korea (AP News)
• There's $1 billion in Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' for the LA Olympics in 2028. So how will that money be used? (Deseret News)
• Elon Musk wants to create a new political party, but can it succeed?(Deseret News)
• Trump announces new tariffs on 14 countries and warns them via letters to not retaliate (AP)
• IRS says churches can endorse political candidates to congregations (The Hill)
• Senate GOP not happy with Trump beatdown of Tillis (The Hill)

Immigration/deportation

• US will try to deport Abrego Garcia before his trial, Justice Department attorney says (AP)
• Man killed after firing at US Border Patrol station in Texas (Reuters)
• Eight migrants deported from Djibouti to South Sudan, Homeland Security says (Reuters)
• Troops and federal agents briefly descend on LA’s MacArthur Park in largely immigrant neighborhood (AP)

Ukraine/Russia

• Sacked Russian transport minister found dead in his car with gunshot wound (Reuters)
• Trump says US must send more weapons to Ukraine, days after ordering pause in deliveries (AP)
• How old-school tech is rewiring drone warfare in Ukraine (Wall Street Journal)

Middle East

• Iran president says Tehran open to dialogue with US, accuses Israel of assassination attempt (Reuters)
• Valerie Hudson: Would an Emirate of Hebron help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? (Deseret News)

World news

• An Australian woman is found guilty of murdering her in-laws by toxic mushrooms (NPR)
• Sacked Russian transport minister found dead in his car with gunshot wound (Reuters)

Number of the Day

Utah Global Diplomacy to host Global Ties U.S. Regional Summit

Utah Global Diplomacy and Global Ties U.S., in partnership with the U.S. Department of State, will convene national and local leaders in security and technology for the Diplomacy Begins Here Regional Summit, held at the Little America Hotel on July 18, 2025.

In an era where national security is deeply intertwined with technological advancement, this summit will examine how diplomacy—particularly citizen diplomacy and international exchange programs—plays a critical role in fostering a safer, stronger, and more prosperous United States. (Read More)

Tweet of the Day

Upcoming

• Aug 7 â€”  Titan of Public Service gala with Sen. Tom Cotton hosted by the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation at the Grand America Hotel. More Information Here
• Aug 12 â€” Municipal primary
• Aug 19-21 â€” Interim Days
• Nov 4 â€” General election
• February 4-7, 2026 — Summit, with Silicon Slopes and Visit Salt Lake

On This Day In History

• 1776 - Liberty Bell tolls to announce Declaration of Independence
• 1831 - John Pemberton, American pharmacist (inventor of Coca-Cola), is born in Knoxville
• 1902 - Gwendolyn Bennett is born. The Harlem Renaissance poet, short story writer and artist, wrote a column “The Ebony Flute” for the journal “Opportunity,” co-founder of “Fire!!” a literary journal
• 1926 - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross is born. A writer and lecturer, she developed techniques for counseling the dying and their families and “stages of grief” to explain the process of grieving.
• 1932 - The low-point of the Depression as the Dow Jones Industrial Average hits 41.22
• 1941 - German general’s diary reveals Hitler’s plans for Russia: “To dispose fully of their population.”
• 1951 - Paris celebrates its 2,000th birthday. The history of Paris can be traced back to a Gallic tribe known as the Parisii, who sometime around 250 B.C. settled an island (known today as Ile de la Cite) in the Seine River
• 1959 - The first Americans are killed in South Vietnam
• 1994 - Kim Il-sung, Founder, dictator and Supreme Leader of North-Korea (1948-94), dies of a heart attack at 82
• 2008 - American businessman T. Boone Pickens announces his "Pickens Plan", an energy policy that moves away from imported oil
• 2011 - Betty Ford, First Lady of the United States (1974-77) and founder of the Betty Ford Center clinic, dies at 93
• 2019 - US financier Jeffrey Epstein indicted on further charges of sex trafficking of minors

Quote of the Day

"People are like stained - glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within."

– Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

On the Punny Side

How does the man in the moon get his hair cut?

Eclipse it.

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