Utah Headlines

Legislative session

• ‘It’s a shock’: Utah Senate leaders respond to Trump funding freeze
  More than a quarter of the state’s budget comes from federal funds. (Deseret News)

Criminal Justice

• Proposed bill would ban gender-affirming health care for trans prisoners in Utah (UPR)

Education

• Some Utah schools are struggling to keep up with migrant students. This bill would give them emergency funds (Deseret News)
• Utah might remove background checks for homeschooling parents (Deseret News)
• Legislative bill: Kids, stash those cellphones during class time (Deseret News)
• Free school lunch for every Utah child? (Deseret News)
• ‘So tired of being scared’: Utah’s only openly LGBTQ lawmaker tearfully argues against transgender dorm bill (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Bill that would place sunset review dates on more public education programs stirs debate (KSL)
• Utah students could earn money for good attendance (KSL Newsradio)
• ‘Discrepancies’ indicate dozens of Utah voucher recipients are enrolled in public school as lawmakers push for more voucher funding (Salt Lake Tribune)

Natural Resources

• Bills would provide more Utah campgrounds options, acquire federal land advance (Deseret News)

Other Utah News

Politics

• State of the City: Salt Lake City Mayor Mendenhall: future is bright ... ‘present is urgent’ (Deseret News)
• What Utah representatives are pushing to include in Trump’s massive spending bill (Deseret News)
• Editorial Board: Getting tough with Colombia hurts America, too (Deseret News)
• 'It is time': Washington Terrace OKs backyard chickens after nearly 3 years of debate (KSL)
• ‘Extremely drastic’: Utah County agency says federal funding freeze would have overwhelming impacts (Daily Herald)

Utah news

• These business owners oppose the Little Cottonwood Canyon gondola (Deseret News)

Biz/Tech

• Takeoff: New agreement clears the runway for Utah electric aircraft network (Deseret News)

Crime

• Tremonton fire chief arrested, accused of sharing child sex abuse material (KSL)
• Massive Ogden apartment fire ruled as arson, arrest of a 16 yo made in case (ABC4)

Culture

• Post Malone drops by Sundance — and leaves a generous tip at his hometown Pizza Hut (Deseret News)
• ‘Finau party of 8!’: Tony Finau and wife, Alayna, share surprise baby news (Deseret News)

Education

• At BYU, Constitutional expert reveals what the Founding Fathers meant by the ‘pursuit of happiness’ (Deseret News)
• Opinion: American students need civic education (Deseret News)
• President of Wasatch County School Board submits resignation (Fox13)

Environment

• Why Peter Sinks, Utah, gets some of the coldest temperatures in the US (KSL TV)

Health

• US FDA approves Novo Nordisk's Ozempic to cut risk of diabetic kidney disease progression (Reuters)

Housing

• Volunteers needed for Utah’s statewide Point-in-Time Count this week (Cache Valley Daily)

National Headlines

General

• Quakers cite religious liberty in lawsuit against immigration raids on churches (Deseret News)

Political news

• Judge puts hold on Trump grant freeze (Deseret News)
• Americans sour on some of Trump's early moves, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds (Reuters)
• ICE to use U.S. military base in Colorado to detain migrants (Reuters)
• Pentagon pulls security clearance of former Joint Chiefs of Staff Milley (Reuters)
• Caroline Kennedy warns senators that cousin RFK Jr. is a ‘predator’ (AP)
• A US shutdown on foreign aid is hitting worldwide. Rubio adds more exemptions (AP)
• Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September (NPR)
• Hawaii Governor, a Doctor, Blames Kennedy for Measles Deaths in Samoa (New York Times)
• Trump’s ‘Flood the Zone’ Strategy Leaves Opponents Gasping in Outrage (New York Times)
• States lose access to Medicaid payment portal amid Trump federal aid freeze (The Hill)
• Trump Signs Executive Order to Restrict Medical Treatments for Transgender Children, Teens (Wall Street Journal)

Ukraine and Russia

• Ukraine war briefing: Putin refuses direct talks with Zelenskyy (The Guardian)

Israel and Gaza

• Palestinians return to Gaza City as mediators look ahead to next stage (Reuters)
• Israel Says 8 of the 26 Hostages Listed for Imminent Release Are Dead (New York Times)

Other world news

• Holly Richardson: Walking the grounds of Auschwitz-Birkenau was sobering - and a vivid reminder of why we must never forget (Deseret News)
• Myanmar refugees face sudden discharge from Thai hospitals shuttered by US aid freeze (Reuters)

Number of the Day 

News Releases

Utah House Democratic Caucus on H.B. 269 Privacy Protections in Sex-Designated Areas

The Utah House Democratic Caucus released the following statement on H.B. 269 Privacy Protections in Sex-Designated Areas:

“Utah’s public universities already have robust systems in place that allow students to request changes to their living arrangements. Conflicts between students should be resolved at the campus level, not overruled by exclusionary legislation that alienates and marginalizes our transgender community." (Read More)

Sutherland releases new research audit on Utah’s federalism rating

Sutherland Institute released a new research publication evaluating how well Utah’s governance lives up to the principle of federalism and shows ways the state could improve. (Read More)

UVU unveils new applied AI apprenticeship program

UVU is partnering with Utah-based Clarion AI Partners (Clarion), SchoolAI, and AskElephant to provide paid apprenticeships in applied AI to prepare students for the workforce and provide them with pathways to well-paying jobs.

The three companies will offer students competitive wages based on the industry and role that are in line with federal guidelines. (Read More)

Landmark agreement brings electric aircraft to Utah

Thursday morning, 47G | Utah Aerospace & Defense (47G) and industry-leading aircraft manufacturer, BETA Technologies, signed a historic agreement that creates an opportunity to bring electric aircraft and charging stations to Utah. The agreement represents a major leap forward in establishing a well-functioning, statewide transportation system in anticipation of the 2034 Winter Olympic Games. (Read More)

Tweet of the Day

Upcoming

• Jan 29 â€” A Conversation with Pat Jones on Women's Leadership with UWLP, 11:30 am - 12:30 pm, Register here
• Feb 3 â€” Building Bridges: Leading as Women in Local Government with the Utah Women and Leadership Project, 11:30 am - 12:30 pm, Register here
• Feb 4 - State of the County with Mayor Jenny Wilson, 5 pm
• Feb 5 â€” Women and Policy, Strategy, Politics, and Change with UWLP, 11:30 am - 12:30 pm, Register here
• Feb 10 â€” Gail Miller: Making a Difference with UWLP, 11:30 am - 12:30 pm, Register here
• Feb 11 — "Heart on the Hill" Day with the American Heart Association, 9:30 am - 12:00 pm, Copper Room in the Senate Building
• Feb 12 â€” Navigating the 2025 Tax Reconciliation Bill webinar with the Hatch Center, 10:00 am - 11:00 am, MST, Register here
• Feb 12 â€” Crossing the Divide: Making an Impact in Career and Community with UWLP, 11:30 am - 12:30 pm, Register here
• Feb 20 â€” BioHive Live, 9:00 am - 3:00 pm, Hale Centre Theater, Sandy, Register here
• Mar. 7 â€” Utah legislative session ends

On This Day In History 

• 1820 - King George III dies after years of mental illness.
• 1843 - William McKinley is born. He later becomes the 25th president of the United States.
• 1863 - Bear River Massacre occurs
• 1891 - Lili‘uokalani was sworn in as the first and only queen of the Hawaiian Kingdom
• 1892 - The Coca-Cola Company is incorporated in Atlanta, Georgia.
• 1896 -  Emile Grubbe is the first doctor to use radiation treatment for breast cancer.
• 1926 - Violette Neatly Anderson becomes the first black woman to practice law before the U.S. Supreme Court
• 1977 - “Roots” premieres on television.
• 2002 - George W. Bush describes an “Axis of Evil” in his state of the union address. 
• 2012 - American snowboarder Shaun White achieves the first ever SuperPipe perfect score (100) in Winter X Games history.
• 2014 - Archaeologists discover the oldest Roman Temple (6th C BC) at Sant’Omobono
• 2018 - Marvel film "Black Panther" directed by Ryan Coogler and starring Chadwick Boseman premieres in Los Angeles

Quote of the Day

“I was weeping for all of history's incredible atrocities against fellowmen, which seems to be mankind's greatest flaw...”
― Alex Haley, Roots: The Saga of an American Family

On the Punny Side

I want to open a restaurant that fuses Chinese and Middle Eastern cuisine.

I'd call it "Wok Like an Egyptian".

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