Election season begins with just 8 Utah lawmakers not filing for re-elections, Ukraine is being pummeled but still stands | Thank you to our sponsor KEM C. GARDNER INSTITUTE |
| | | 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 | March 7, 2022 It's Monday, the session is over, tomorrow is caucus night for the GOP and UUP, it's freezing outside and people are dying in Ukraine. Be in the Know Utah's legislative session ended Friday at midnight and as always, some shenanigans were afoot. A late-hour bill substitution completely undid the compromise work that had been done on a transgender athlete bill and would implement a complete ban. The governor said he would veto it as soon as it hit his desk. The Lt. Governor said that in her ten years on the Hill, she had never "felt as sick over the debate or outcome of a bill" as she did on that one. In other legislative news, the state passed a $25 billion budget, spent a record amount for education and infrastructure, dealt with dozens of election bills, focused on water (including the Great Salt Lake) and some COVID mandates. For a lengthy list of summaries, see below. Campaign filing ended Friday at 5 pm. All but 8 state legislators in Utah have filed to return. In Congress, all 4 Reps have intraparty challengers. Chris Herrod is challenging John Curtis again, Vineyard Mayor Julie Fullmer is one of 4 Republicans challenging Blake Moore for the first district, even though she lives in the third, Erin Rider is challenging Chris Stewart and Jake Hunsaker is challenging Burgess Owens. There are 11 challenging Senator Mike Lee, including 6 Republicans and unaffiliated Evan McMullin. Sherrie Swenson did NOT file to run as the Salt Lake County Clerk, Utah County Commissioner Amelia Powers Gardner has 3 GOP opponents, while Commissioner Bill Lee has two, including former Commissioner Greg Graves. You can check your county websites for more information on county races and the state website for other races. Ukraine still stands, while Russia continues to pummel them. President Zelenskyy spoke with US Senators on Saturday morning, asking for more support. Russia agreed to a "humanitarian corridor" twice over the weekend and violated the agreement both times. Today, they offered a humanitarian corridor - right into Russia. They are also arresting protestors - sometimes violently - and yet protestors continue to show up within Russia, even as communication channels have been cut. The moms have shown up too. In Poland, mothers left strollers at the train station for newly arriving refugee moms and in Russia, moms are finding out their children have been sent to be "cannon fodder" and they are MAD. | | |
| | FROM OUR SPONSOR, KEM C. GARDNER INSTITUTE Join the Kem C. Gardner Institute, the Deseret News and Utah Policy for a legislative wrap-up on Tuesday, March 8th at 8:30 am. Legislative leadership will be discussing the session and how the laws passed this year will impact Utahns. Sign up here to join us for this free event. | | |
Utah Headlines General Donna Packer, wife of the late LDS apostle Boyd Packer, dies at 94 (Salt Lake Tribune) Experts warn of increased avalanche danger due to new layer of wet, heavy snow (KUTV) Legislative Round-Up All the things the 2022 Utah State Legislature did to your life (Fox13) Hot-button issues of the 2022 Utah Legislature: Everything you need to know about what lawmakers did with transgender sports, COVID-19 rules, water and more (Deseret News) Legislative week 7: winners and losers of the 2022 session (Hinckley Report) It wasnât just the âyear of the tax cut.â Hereâs what Utah lawmakers prioritized in 2022 session (Salt Lake Tribune) Passes, fails and DOAs. What happened during Utah's 2022 general legislative session (KUER) Pignanelli and Webb: How did Utah lawmakers do this year? Veteran observers understand the true measures are actions and results, not words. The 2022 proceedings exceeded the norm for many important reasons. (Deseret News) Brad Wilson: 10 ways Utah lawmakers made life better this year (Deseret News) Utah Legislature passes last-minute ban on transgender female athletes; Gov. says heâll veto (Deseret News)
Cox vows to veto last-minute bill banning transgender girls in female school sports. The proposal offered up by Sen. Dan McCay dramatically altered a bill that had been under consideration for weeks. (Salt Lake Tribune) Senator who changed transgender bill reacts to governor, says measure was heavily debated (KUTV)
How the Utah Legislature continues to usurp power from city and county government. From COVID-19 restrictions to guns to building decisions, the Legislature continued to take power from local governments and school boards. (Salt Lake Tribune) Bill that would bar public access to internal police records heads to governorâs desk. Legislators heard public comment on the bill, HB399, only once, briefly in February. (Salt Lake Tribune) Lawmakers rename Utahâs Education Fund while looking for âflexibilityâ in budget. The Senate bill, which lawmakers have approved in both chambers, will rename the Education Fund to the Income Tax Fund. (Salt Lake Tribune) The IUP Panel on the legislative session and President Bidenâs approval rating (ABC4) Whatâs next for the effort to eliminate the food tax? (ABC4) City of Lehi can no longer collect impact fees for internal units (Fox13) Ukraine Latter-day Saint Charities put aid in place around Ukraine before the war and will stay till itâs over, leader says (Deseret News) Ukraine disaster âonly the very beginningâ of LDS aid, says churchâs humanitarian leader (Salt Lake Tribune) âI see youâ: How a Utah Airbnb host found novel way to help Ukrainians (Deseret News) What Mike Lee, Mitt Romney took from video call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Deseret News) Elections Utah County mayor announces 1st District run (Standard-Examiner) Environment It was the year of the Great Salt Lake for Utah lawmakers, but was it enough? Hereâs what experts have to say (Deseret News) Water bill roundup: Utah lawmakers approve a deluge of conservation measures (Salt Lake Tribune) Proposed Utah Lake Authority wins Legislatureâs approval (Salt Lake Tribune) Supreme Court will review controversial water rule. Critics claim the WOTUS rule is too vague - here's what's at stake (Deseret News) The Great Salt Lake is on life support. Can it be revived? (Deseret News) Looking to catch the Wave? BLM to replace walk-ins with new geofence lottery (Deseret News) Why Utah, 24 other Republican states are pushing for âenergy independenceâ (Deseret News) Water supply outlook report: Utah off to a dry start in 2022. A lack of snowfall has created more setbacks as the state continues to struggle with a âmegadrought.â (Salt Lake Tribune) Family A motherâs unrelenting crusade to help those trapped in the wilderness of the undiagnosed (Deseret News) COVID Corner Friday: 261 new cases, 11 new deaths There are no high risk counties in Utah, CDC says (Salt Lake Tribune) Death toll surpasses 6 million for pandemic now in 3rd year (AP) National Headlines General Firearms have cost 12.6 million years of life in just a decade. Gun deaths increased by 0.72 percent every year, rising from 47 percent to nearly 51 percent, researchers found (Washington Post) US markets set for lower open; oil prices continue to surge (AP) Politics Republican âunforced errorsâ threaten path to Senate control (AP) Ukraine AP PHOTOS: Day 11, Death on Ukraine's bombarded streets (AP) Ukraine's army is using a nimble 'game-changing' drone called The Punisher that has completed scores of successful missions against the Russians (Yahoo News) Russia Pummels Ukrainian Civilian Targets Ahead of Talks (Wall Street Journal) Arming Ukraine: 17,000 Anti-Tank Weapons in 6 Days and a Clandestine Cybercorps (New York Times) Russia controls half of Ukraine's nuclear plants, alarming international experts (NPR) With 202 schools and 34 hospitals hit, Russia is âgood at killing civilians,â Ukraine adviser says (NPR) Navalny aide urges Russian women to protest against Ukraine war (Reuters) The bride wore fatigues. The wedding party carried rifles and RPGs. (Washington Post) A Ukrainian familyâs dash for safety ends in death. (New York Times) Ukrainian airport "completely destroyed," says Zelenskyy (The Hill) | | |
News Releases Evan McMullin to speak at United Utah Party caucus night The United Utah Party announces its caucus night agenda, featuring U.S. Senate candidate Evan McMullin, and UUP Congressional candidates Jay Mcfarland and January Walker. The United Utah Party announced today that Evan McMullin, independent candidate for U.S. Senate, will be a featured speaker at all UUP caucus meetings this coming Tuesday, March 8, at 7:00 pm. The UUP will be hosting its caucus meetings at 25 locations around the state of Utah and online at https://www.unitedutah.org. (Read More) United Utah Party announces 2022 candidates The United Utah Party is pleased to announce that it has 24 candidates running for office this year. These include one statewide office, two Congressional offices, three countywide offices, and eighteen seats in the Utah State Legislature. âWe are proud to have so many excellent candidates running with us this year,â says Hillary Stirling, UUP Chair. âAll across the state people recognize the need for moderate and accountable leadership. Our candidates are the right people for the job.â The UUP presents a platform centered around political moderation, cross-partisan dialogue, and governmental accountability. âWe hope everyone who agrees with our message can support our candidatesâ campaigns and vote for them in November.â (Read More) ER Dr., Naloxone advocate Jen Plumb files for Utah Sen. District 9 Jen Plumb, a pediatric emergency room doctor and familiar face on Capitol Hill for her successful advocacy for Naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal drug, as well as for the rights of transgender children like her own daughter, filed her candidacy for Utah State Senate District 9. The district is comprised of Downtown, parts of the Avenues, the University of Utah area, Central City, 9th & 9th, Yalecrest, much of the East Bench, parts of Glendale, Liberty Wells, and Poplar Grove, and Emigration Canyon. (Read More) Lannie Chapman files to run for Salt Lake County Clerk Lannie Chapman, Salt Lake County Chief Deputy Clerk, has filed to run for County Clerk. Lannie has served as Chief Deputy Clerk since 2019, previously serving as a Deputy District Attorney in the Salt Lake County District Attorneyâs Office. Lannie spent her childhood in Flint, Michigan and received a juris doctorate from Western Michigan Universityâs Cooley Law School. Lannie came to Salt Lake to complete an internship with the United States Department of Trusteeâs Office. Like so many, she fell in love with Utah and all it has to offer and decided to stay. Lannie and her husband, Chris, are raising their two daughters in Salt Lake County. (Read More) Senator Lee leads letter to defund federal vaccine mandates Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) today led a group of Senators in defense of Americans targeted by President Bidenâs vaccine mandates, making clear in a letter to colleagues they will not consent to expedited passage of a funding bill that allows the vaccine mandates to continue. At minimum, the Senators demanded a roll call vote on an amendment to defund the enforcement of remaining federal vaccine mandates on government contractors, members of the military, all other federal employees, and medical care providers. (Read More) | | |
Upcoming Legislative wrap-up with Kem C. Gardner Institute, Deseret News and Utah Policy â Mar 8, 2022, 8:30 am, Register here GOP caucus night â Mar 8, 2022 United Utah Party caucus night â Mar 8, 2022
Fireside chat with Justice Clarence Thomas hosted by the Hatch Foundation â Mar 11, 2022, 7 pm. Register here. Utah Association of Counties Building Utah Conference - March 23-25, Carbon County Events Center. Register here Campaign Management Training with Utah Farm Bureau â Mar 24-25 Dem. caucus night â Mar 22 Last day for a registered voter to change voter affiliation before the regular primary election. - Mar 31 Ballots are mailed - June 7 Primary election day - June 28 General election - Nov 8 | | |
On This Day In History 322 BC - Aristotle dies 1530 - King Henry VIIIâs divorce request is denied by the Pope. 1850 - Daniel Webster endorses the 1850 Compromise dealing w slavery. 1876 - 29-year-old Alexander Graham Bell receives a patent for his revolutionary new invention - the telephone. 1912 - Roald Amundsen announces discovery of the South Pole. 1923 - âStopping by Woods on a Snowy Eveningâ by Robert Frost is published. 1938 - Janet Guthrie is born. She was the first woman to compete in Indianapolis 500 and Daytona 500. 1942 - The first cadets graduated from the Black flying school at Tuskegee. 1965 - Alabama state troopers and 600 black protesters clash in Selma during "Bloody Sunday", protesters, including future congressman John Lewis who was beaten and hospitalized and Amelia Boynton is beaten terribly. White Unitarian minister, Rev. James Reeb died of his injuries. 1977 - Israeli PM Yitzhak Rabin meets US President Jimmy Carter. 1985 - We Are the World single is released to benefit African famine. 1998 - Amanda Gorman is born. 1999 - Stanley Kubrick dies at age 70. 2010 - Kathryn Bigelow becomes the first female director to win an Oscar for her movie âThe Hurt Locker.â 2021 - Oprah Winfrey interview with Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex broadcast on CBS, alleges Meaghan was made suicidal and subject to racist treatment by the palace Wise Words âFor itâs our grief that gives us our gratitude,
Shows us how to find hope, if we ever lose it.
So ensure that this ache wasnât endured in vain: Do not ignore the pain. Give it purpose. Use it.â
- Amanda Gorman | | |
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