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While the legislative session doesn’t officially start until January, I’m working hard now to prepare. I invite you to join me for a Town Hall discussion 6-8PM on Wednesday Oct 4th at the Centerville Library. Celeste Maloy, who is the Republican Party nominee to replace Chris Stewart in District 2, will be there to answer questions on Congressional issues, and Rep Ray Ward of Bountiful and I will take questions on State issues. I would love to update you on some of the issues I’m preparing legislation on (like Road Rage and more transparent conflict of interest disclosures). I hope you can join us!
I appreciate KSL recently highlighting the very serious issue of road rage that appears to be getting worse in Utah. My colleagues Sen Todd Weiler, Rep Candice Pierucci and I are working closely with law enforcement to consider increased penalties for road rage and aggressive driving. Our goal is to make our streets safer for everyone. https://ksltv.com/590162/highway-patrol-20-deaths-so-far-this-year-in-road-rage-crashes/
This past month, my colleagues and I took interim meetings off Capitol Hill and down to beautiful St. George. I enjoyed meeting with and hearing from the people in Southern Utah. You can read the highlights of those interim meetings here. This month’s interim meetings will take place on October 10th and 11th at the Capitol. You can participate in person or online at le.utah.org.
While in St. George, we also met as a Legislature for the Long-Term Planning Conference, where we had the opportunity to study and discuss topics like transportation, housing affordability, mental illness, homelessness, water, and technology innovation. I visited the Switchpoint homeless shelter and resource center, which takes an innovative “hand-up” approach helping people get back on their feet by building skills working in small enterprises like their thrift store, boutique, pet hotel, and aeroponic garden,
In addition to introducing my son to a favorite local mountain bike trail, I took an extra half day to tour some of the water infrastructure Southern Utah is upgrading to allow them to reclaim, capture and reuse sewer water to use for irrigation. It's important that we work together plan long term for our future.
 Speaking of long term planning, The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) just released the I-15 Draft Environmental Impact Study (EIS) which presents the preferred alternative for improvements to I-15 from Farmington to Salt Lake City, which could start as early as 2026. For example, UDOT has eliminated one of the options for the Centerville Parrish Lane interchange along with the Farmington Glover Lane interchange option.
If you feel strongly about our transportation infrastructure like I do, I encourage you to take some time to review and submit comments on the website: i15eis.udot.utah.gov or via one of the following meetings:
- Monday, October 16, 2023, 5:00 - 7:00 pm: Virtual meeting via Zoom
- Wednesday, October 18, 2023 5:00 - 7:00 pm: In-person open house and public hearing at the South Davis Recreation Center
Utah was recently ranked the Happiest state in the Nation! There are many reasons why I am proud to call Utah home, from our beautiful landscapes to our unmatched opportunities, but I believe the thing that makes Utah truly special is our amazing people and communities. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve each of you.
September included some inspiring celebrations of our Founding Fathers, the Constitution, and 9/11 commemorations of our first responders. Thanks to all of you who participated in the 9/11 Day of Service. For a nice overview of what our schools did to commemorate, check out this video: Davis School District celebrates Utah's "Constitution Month"
I was personally moved by the commemoration in Farmington as local veterans and firefighters rang a single bell at 7:46am (time the first plane struck), fired off a salute, and played Taps to commemorate the bravery of many first responders.
 I appreciate the Sego Lily Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution who put together an inspiring flag ceremony and devotional at the Freedom Hills Park to commemorate Constitution month.
Last month, I was pleased to attend the opening of the Children’s Center mental health campus. The work on this started long before I joined the legislature and I’m grateful to all those who have worked for years to make the facility possible. I believe that supporting families with mental health services is important and can prevent more costly problems later.
During this past session, my colleagues and I passed the largest single teacher pay raise in state history and teachers across Utah are already benefiting. In total, the Legislature allocated nearly $5.6 billion towards public education. We know that education is the key to upward mobility and I remain committed to setting our students and teachers up for success. You can learn more here.
County and municipal general elections will take place next month on Tuesday, November 21st. Voting is an important constitutional right and I encourage you all to participate. Find more info at vote.utah.gov.
Listening to our House podcast is a great way to get a behind the scenes look at the Legislative process. In the latest episode, Mary Catherine Perry from the Utah based advocacy group, The Policy Project, joins us to discuss how the creation of “Teen Centers” in schools across the state will benefit disadvantaged students. Listen here.
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