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The spotlight is back on Utah. The Beehive State is on something of a winning streak after a month of back-to-back-to-back good news. First, the biggest news is that the Winter Olympics will make a triumphant return to the state in 2034. While we have a lot of work to do to get prepared, I’m excited to welcome back the Olympics to Utah, and confident the volunteer spirit in Utah will once again make the games a spectacular success. Next, University of Utah’s Kingsbury Hall will host the third and final general election presidential debate in 2024 (speculation is already rampant on whether we can get the famous fly from the last Vice-Presidential debate to make a repeat appearance). And finally, Utah once again was awarded the crown for the most generous state in the nation – our fourth consecutive year.
I hope you will take a minute to browse my report below on a busy November in the Legislature. As an extra incentive, if you can make it through this long email, you will be rewarded with a Christmas Card from the Cutler Family.
Want to give you legislators a piece of your mind? Or just curious about what to expect from the 2024 Legislative session? Mark your calendars with these planned town halls:
- Thursday January 4th: 6-8PM, Kaysville Library (Rep Paul Cutler, Rep Ariel DeFay, Rep Stewart Barlow & potentially Sen Jerry Stevenson)
- Thursday January 11th: 6-8PM, Bountiful City Hall (Rep Paul Cutler, Rep Ray Ward, Rep Melissa Ballard, Sen Todd Weiler)
My colleagues and I met for our last interim meetings of the year this November. I was fortunate that both bills I had submitted for committee study were given favorable recommendations, which means they will be considered early in the 2024 legislative session in January.
I appreciate all the feedback from residents and legislative colleagues on my anti-road-rage bill. You can read a recent article about it here: State pushes forward with anti-road rage bill, prepares public campaign for safer roads
The other bill of mine that passed out of committee would increase transparency by requiring all State & Local elected officials, along with those officials appointed to State Land Use Authorities (like the Inland Port and Point of the Mountain Authority) to have their conflict of interest statements posted online at disclosures.utah.gov.
If you simply can’t sleep at night, you can watch the full recordings of those meetings at le.utah.gov or click here to read the highlights. I look forward to building on the research and work from the interim sessions that will help us prepare meaningful legislation in the upcoming 2024 general legislative session starting in January.
During last month’s interim meetings, the House convened in a special session to instate our newly elected Speaker of the House, Mike Schultz, and swear in Ariel DeFay, our newest legislator from Kaysville, who replaced Brad Wilson when he resigned to run for Mitt Romney’s Senate Seat.
We also debated and passed a Resolution of Supporting the State of Israel. While much of the world fails to acknowledge the full scope of horrors committed against the Israeli people, Utah continues to stand with Israel as we pray for peace.
As the second driest state in the nation, it's crucial that we are continuously planning for our water needs and preserving our water resources. This includes working diligently on the long term health of the Great Salt Lake by finding ways to increase flows to the lake. I’ve had the opportunity to meet with talented engineers working on technical solutions to improve ways to both transport and conserve the use our water.
With this goal in mind, the Utah House of Representatives recently hosted the third annual Utah Water Symposium, where we met with researchers, stakeholders and policy experts to discuss the current state of our water systems and learn more about potential technical and policy solutions to our water challenges. We heard from Seth Siegel, author of Let There Be Water: Israel’s Solution for a Water Starved World. If interested, you can watch the full recording of the Symposium here.
Chronic homelessness is one of the most challenging problems in our state and in the country right now. It’s complicated by an increase in addictive drug use, mental health issues, and a lack of affordable housing in Utah. The Governor has asked for a record $193M for homelessness and related mental health support in his budget. Many in the legislature, like me, are struggling with how to measure the results and balance accountability for the millions of taxpayer dollars spent on this issue.
This last month, I had the opportunity to meet again with leaders of the Other Side Village, an organization working to help Utahns coming out of chronic homelessness. The Other Side Academy and The Other Side Village take a long term, disciplined approach to helping people change and grow, similar to our successful Red Barn Academy, in Farmington. The new Other Side Village being built is going to make an amazing life changing difference for the small percentage of people who are willing to commit long term to the program.
I appreciated the opportunity to participate in Salt Lake Chamber’s Government Affairs Boot Camp: where we discussed how Citizens can effectively work with elected officials. We discussed how a little effort to understanding legislative rules and process can go a long way, and how trust is your most valuable currency on the Hill.
 I also enjoyed welcoming the Policy Project to the Capitol and discussing how education is key to preventing childhood sexual abuse in Utah. This year, the Safe Child Project aims to expand prevention education to elementary students across the state.
With the resignation of our former Speaker Brad Wilson, we recently elected a new House leadership team. The new assignments are as follows:
Speaker of the House - Mike Schultz
Majority Leader - Jeff Moss
Majority Whip - Karianne Lisonbee
Assistant Majority Whip - Casey Snider
I am excited to work with these individuals and I know they will do great things for our state.
This month, the Legislative Audit Subcommittee gave approval for an audit of Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes and his office.
In a unanimous vote, legislative leadership tasked the Office of the Legislative Auditor General with auditing recent allegations involving the Utah attorney general and his office. The move comes after a bipartisan group of 26 lawmakers requested the audit, including 15 members of the House.
Legislative auditors expect the process to take anywhere from 10-12 months.
This November, Pew Charitable Trusts recognized the Beehive State for comprehensive and sustainable budget practices, including the deployment of long-term budget assessments and budget stress tests.
An early adopter to budget sustainability tools, Utah is one of only eight states to harness both practices and one of two to boast a AAA credit rating. These assessments help the Utah Legislature craft a balanced budget year after year.
Long-term budget assessments project revenue and spending several years into the future to determine whether the state of Utah is likely to face chronic budget deficits. Stress tests estimate the size of budget shortfalls from potential recessions or other economic events to gauge preparedness. The strategies paid off during the pandemic, allowing the Legislature to balance the budget “while minimizing harm to residents and the economy.”
Pew recommended other states follow Utah’s lead. “States could implement Utah’s strategy of paying for infrastructure with cash in most years to retain borrowing capacity for downturns,” says the report. “One advantage of Utah’s approach is that the state avoids some of the trade-offs between saving and spending, instead putting its dollars to work throughout the economic cycle rather than having them sit unused in an account potentially for years.”
Utahns deserve to know how the state spends their tax dollars. A decade ago, the Legislature authorized the creation of the tool that reasonably estimates how much you paid in taxes and what those dollars fund in state government.
The Taxpayer Receipt – an easy-to-use online tool – has been revamped for Utahns. Get an estimate for your household here.
Do you homeschool or are you considering private school? The Utah Board of Education selected the Alliance for Choice – a nonprofit with management experience in 12 states, including Utah – to oversee the program to provide up to $8,000 to eligible Utah students who attend private school or home school. Scholarship accounts can pay for education expenses and services, including private school tuition and fees, tutoring services, testing fees, materials and curriculum costs, contracted services, and more.
The application window closes May 15 and eligible families will receive notice about the award by May 27. Funds will be deposited in an ESA account by June 3. Learn more about the Utah Fits All Scholarship program here.
A draft proposal to empower parents to remove pornography from libraries and curriculum in Utah schools passed the Interim Education Committee with the full support of House Republicans.
The committee has worked through the interim to provide clarity and support for schools, and it’s important to set the record straight about what this proposal accomplishes:
“Should this bill become law, books and classroom materials that contain pornography as defined in Utah law, will be removed immediately,” according to committee co-chair Rep. Candice Pierucci. “Materials that do not meet that threshold, but are potentially harmful to children, will be reviewed by local schools and parents. Those decisions may be appealed through the local school board. This proposed legislation strikes the right balance in empowering parents, protecting children, and giving the needed support and guidance to schools and districts."
This time of year, we have the opportunity to spend increased time with our loved ones and reflect on our many blessings. I am grateful for the continued opportunity to serve each of you and to call this great state home. From my family to yours, wishing you all a very merry Christmas.
Given all the talk about election security problems in other states, do you ever have questions about how Utah has managed safe and secure elections? Here is a short and insightful podcast with State Elections director Ryan Cowley and one of our Auditors discussing election processes in Utah. Listen here.
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