August Legislative Updates - Special Session

Capitol Pic of the Day

SPECIAL SESSION HIGHLIGHTS 

The legislature convened in a special session to consider five issues, including the final decision on the prison site location.

With 62 votes in the House and 22 votes in the Senate, the Legislature voted to support the unanimous bipartisan recommendation of the Prison Relocation Commission (PRC) to move the Prison to the northwest quadrant of Salt Lake City. Read the final bill, HCR101, here.

I voted in favor of moving it to the Salt Lake City site. After carefully evaluating all of the details and options, including keeping it in Draper, I felt that it was the right thing to do for the state, not only in terms of cost, but also in terms of other factors such as re-investments in programs to reduce recidivism, considerations for the employees who have to transport prisoners to locations in SLC, and proximity to volunteers and workforce, vendors, courts, hospitals, etc. The SLC site was the most beneficial and cost affective option in terms of ongoing operational costs.

The SLC site area is far away from residential area and bringing water and roads and other infrastructure will open up industrial opporunities in the area. Our nonpartisan fiscal analyst concluded that moving the prison to the west Salt Lake site would generate $94 million a year in new tax revenues. Under this site option, job creation opportunities for both SLC and Draper are established, which will bring in additional taxes to help pay for the cost of moving it.

Listen to the last meeting of the Prison Relocation Commission (PRC) meeting where all of the options are discussed, here. Listen to the House debate here. Listen to the Senate debate here. All of the reports related to the work of the PRC can be found here and all of the audio of each meeting is posted here.

Other issues on which the legislature took action included eliminating some of the qualifications of the Medicaid Inspector General in order to broaden the pool of applicants, reconsidering a bill that was vetoed by the Governor related to a fiscal fix, clarification on the statute of limitations code, and technical fixes to the Criminal Justice Reinvestment Act that was passed in the last session. Find all of the bills and audio through this link. 

INTERIM HIGHLIGHTS 

Government Operations Interim Committee - The committee listened to a proposal to redraw the state school board districts to more closely resemble local school district boundaries. The proposal will be revisited later this year.

Additionally, the committee revisited runoff elections and the cost associated with implementing this option in an effort to address the plurality issue. Most of the options come with a hefty price tag. There is still the option to do nothing or to revisit a bill that allowed the parties to choose the ultimate nominee, regardless of who gets the most votes. The committee will continue to study all of the options. 

Economic Development and Workforce Services Interim Committee - The committee heard an overview of efforts to establish affordable housing in transit oriented development areas and reviewed various issues that will come forward in the next legislative session. 

For additional details, visit the committee pages by clicking on the committee headers or the menu to the right of this blog page. 

OTHER RELATED CAP HAPS 

Salt Lake Community College opened up their campus in West Valley City on 3500 South and 5600 West. This campus will be an asset to the district and will open up doors not only for residents in the area, but also for local businesses that are seeking qualified people to join their workforce. It will also serve as an education hub for high school students in the four nearby high schools providing a quality, cost effective education to help them meet their life goals. 


It was great to participate in the Vivante Lives neighborhood party for the National Night Out, sponsored by West Valley City. I enjoyed visiting with the residents in the area. 

July Legislative Updates

Capitol Pic of the Day

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INTERIM HIGHLIGHTS 

Government Operations Interim Committee - Our committee has been tasked with coming up with proposals to address how our State Board of Education is elected. There are three policy approaches that have historically been proposed to no avail (partisan elections, non-partisan elections and governor appointments). The three senators who were supporters of different approaches came together to propose a hybrid approach that incorporates partisan, non-partisan, and governor appointments. It decreases board seats from 15 to 13, where four members run in a partisan election, four members run in a non-partisan election, and five members are appointed by the governor. The committee heard public input on the proposal and did not take action. This will be revisited later this fall. 

Economic Development and Workforce Services Interim Committee - The committee heard an overview of the various economic development incentive programs and learned about a new initiative on workforce development. The Aerospace and Composites industry has partnered with the state and higher education to establish a certificate that high school students may earn in their senior year that helps the students obtain an internship and potential scholarships. Also, check out this new interactive tool that pulls up an economic development snapshot of an area of interest.

Capitol Pic of the Day

Prison Relocation Commission - The PRC reviewed the need for a new prison, as well as the details of the four sites being proposed. The analysis included a review of the current Draper site. The commission also reviewed a transportation assessment and talked about the considerations that should be made with respect to the final recommendation. Listen to the last meeting by clicking on the audio links here. The PRC will propose a final recommendation no later than October 1st for the Legislature and Governor to consider. 

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APPROPRIATIONS 

The Legislature has updated their website to make it more user friendly when it comes to learning about our budget and the appropriations process. 

Click here to get a deeper understanding of where the money comes from and where it goes. 

Also, if you are interested in seeing the details of what was funded in the last general session, you may either reference an interactive budget visualizer or the final appropriations book. 

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OTHER RELATED CAP HAPS 

I had the opportunity to participate in the bipartisan Clean Air Caucus meeting this month where we heard an update from the new executive director of the the Department of Environmental Quality. We reviewed status updates of the various clean air bills that were passed in the last couple of years and talked about the continued challenges ahead. 

On another note, it was an honor to be recognized by the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce as a champion for business. 

The "Business Champion" award is the business community's highest honor given to legislators who stand for pro-Utah, pro-business, and pro-economy legislation. 

It is important to ensure we maintain a business-friendly environment where businesses can thrive and prosper. 

June Legislative Updates

Capitol Pic of the Day

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INTERIM HIGHLIGHTS 

The Legislature met for interim meetings on June 17th and June 24th. In the Conservative Caucus meeting, we heard an overview of a scientific research study on air quality and its impact on health. The study validated the need to address air quality.

The House Majority Caucus heard an update on the Prison Relocation Commission's (PRC) activities, as well as a status update on Medicaid expansion.

The PRC held multiple open houses to hear public input. The screening process uses weighted criteria to assess site suitability. Click here for the last report reflecting how the proposed sites were selected. The Commission will present the engineering and environmental studies results in July and prepare a site recommendation for the Legislature and Governor in August. 

As for Medicaid expansion, the "gang of six" (Governor Herbert, Lt. Governor Cox, Senate President Niederhauser, Senator Shiozawa, Speaker Hughes, and Majority Leader Dunnigan) met with HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell in late May. They will continue to evaluate solutions over the next month.

Government Operations Interim Committee - Our committee was assigned two major tasks during the interim period. One is to evaluate options to address the plurality issue. An issue that occurs when there are multiple winners in a primary and no one receives a majority vote. 

The other is to address state school board elections, an issue that didn't get resolved during the general session. Consequently, miscellaneous reports that are typically heard in the Fall, were heard in May and June. 

We received an update from the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs on the various programs they have available and the initiatives they are working on. If you or someone you know is a veteran, please share this link with them. There are a lot of resources available to assist veterans in this state. Also take a look at the newsletter to see the many veterans events that are taking place this summer. 

As for the plurality issue, we evaluated the following options so far. 

1) Preferential voting - Ranked choice voting

2) Party choice - Party decides nominee 

3) Runoff elections - Voters vote multiple times until there is a winner

4) Do nothing

Over the coming months, we will continue to look at potential solutions to address this issue. 

Economic Development and Workforce Services Interim Committee - The committee heard a presentation from the Department of Workforce Services which provided an overview of their programs. 

We also heard an update on the Intergenerational Poverty Five and Ten Year Plan. Multiple state agencies are working together to develop a long term plan to address intergenerational poverty. 

The committee will continue to study this item going forward. The full report may be viewed here. 

Retirement and Independent Entities Interim Committee - The committee heard an overview of the Utah Retirement Systems, a performance audit (Response), and policy issues related to post-retirement employment restrictions. We opened up two bill files to address transparency improvements and post-retirement employment restrictions. We will revisit these bills in future meetings. 

June interim highlights in more detail for all of the interim committees may be found here. 

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OTHER RELATED CAP HAPS 

It was a pleasure to celebrate with two constituents who earned the Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship award. 

Congratulations to Johnson Huynh and Ana Soto. They were selected among a competitive pool of students across the state. 

These two individuals from West Valley City were recognized for their leadership skills, academic achievement, and a commitment to community services. This is a great contribution that Comcast makes to the community.

Earlier this month, I was interviewed by Fox13 News about my participation on an undercover raid with the Attorney General's Office. I learned a lot about the great work Attorney General Sean Reyes and his team are doing to mitigate human trafficking in Utah and I gained a deep appreciation for what they do for the taxpayers in this state. View the interview here. 

On another note, the Utah Search and Rescue Assistance Card that was established through HB324 will be available soon. The Office of Outdoor Recreation is working with the Search and Rescue Advisory Board to implement the card and they anticipate rolling it out to the public in the next couple of weeks. Check out the recent Trib Talk on this topic. 

May Legislative Updates

Capitol Pic of the Day - House of Representatives

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COMMUNITY NOTIFICATIONS

SLCC West Valley City Center

I had the opportunity to attend an open house hosted by Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) for the purpose of engaging the community for feedback related to the new community learning center site on 3500 South and 5600 West. This new site is purposefully located near four high schools (Granger, Kearns, Cyprus, Hunter) and will focus on concurrent enrollment, freshmen general education course requirements and ESL courses (English as a Second Language). 

SLCC is seeking input from the community on other types of courses desired, as well as any other feedback you would like to provide. To provide input, either call Jen Seltzer Stitt, Director of Community relations at 801-957-4753 or email WestValleyCenter@slcc.edu. 

Prison Relocation Commission

The Prison Relocation Commission is hosting a series of open houses over the next few weeks. Get updates on the latest developments and share your thoughts by attending one of these meetings. 

Wednesday, May 20, 2015, 4:00 - 9:00 p.m. Promontory Building, Utah State Fairpark 155 N 1000 W Salt Lake City, UT 84116

Thursday, May 28, 2015, 4:00 - 9:00 p.m. Grantsville High School 155 E Cherry Street Grantsville, UT 84029

Tuesday, June 2, 2015, 4:00 - 9:00 p.m   . Frontier Middle School 1427 Mid Valley Road Eagle Mountain, UT 84005

Utah State Office of Education

The Utah State Office of Education has recently released new science standards and are seeking your input. Provide your feedback at this link. Additionally, here are some upcoming open houses that start at 7pm: 

Wednesday, May 6, 2015, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Provo School District Office 280 West 940 North Provo, UT 84604

Wednesday, May 13, 2015, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Cache County School District 2063 North 1200 East North Logan, UT 84341

Tuesday, May 19, 2015, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m   . Salt Lake Center for Science Education Media Center 1400 Goodwin Ave., Salt Lake City, UT 84116

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INTERIM HIGHLIGHTS 

Now that the 2015 general session is completed, we will begin our interim work where we meet for a couple of days every month to get a deeper understanding of the various issues that face our state.

I have been assigned to the Economic Development and Workforce Services Interim Committee as well as the Government Operations Interim Committee. I look forward to studying the issues that come before these committees.

Here is a list of the various study items that were selected by the chairs of each interim committee and approved by the Legislative Management Committee on April 22, 2015.

2015 INTERIM STUDY ITEMS BY INTERIM COMMITTEE

BUSINESS AND LABOR

1. Consumer Credit Laws - Study recent and impending federal regulatory impacts on consumers and financial institutions, and examine implications on state regulations. 

2. New Motor Vehicle Sales - Study issues related to the automobile dealer franchising process. 

3. Building Code Revisions and Timeline - Study the impending changes to the various codes that will occur this year, and also examine the statutorily established timeframe that the codes are updated.

4. Bail Bonds - Study issues related to bail bonds, including a court's use of bail bonds for a purpose other than ensuring the accused person appears in court at the appointed place, date and time. 

5. Occupational and Professional Licensing Court Case - Review the U.S. court case regarding a conflict of interest for those licensing board members who also practice in the profession. 

6. Study of 2015 General Session S.B. 127, Transport of Railroad Employees (as requested by Sen. Mayne). 

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WORKFORCE SERVICES

1. Intergenerational poverty - Review DWS 5 and 10-year plans and build on state-based research to address perpetual poverty among generations of families. 

2. Economic Development and Air Quality - Follow-up on the Economic Development Task Force recommendations, study the economic impact of air quality issues, and consider market-based approaches to improving air quality. 

3. Affordable Housing and Transit - Work with transit-oriented development partners to provide due consideration to affordable housing as part of development near transit stations. 

4. Economic Development Incentives - Study existing incentives to consider effectiveness and potential improvements. 

5. Workforce Recruitment and Training - Find ways to help existing businesses recruit needed talent and to study the provision of custom training programs for employees and potential employees of the state's changing workforce needs. 

6. Committee Housekeeping, Agency Issues, and Code Clean-up - Provide normal and customary "investigation and study of possibilities for improvement in government services with a given subject area" including sunset reviews, agency written reports, vetting of specific agency issues, and Utah Code revisions (see IR2-1-201). 

7. Land use data compiled by governmental agencies to see that they are consistent across the state (requested by Senator Adams). 

EDUCATION

1. State Education Governance - Study the method for selecting State Board of Education members. 

2. Educator professional development - Study best practices and determine whether to fund a statewide approach. 

3. Charter Schools - Stud governance, oversight, and accountability and determine the role of charter schools in Utah's public education system. 

4. Student Assessment Requirements - Study testing mandates, the number of hours spent on testing across LEAs, and the extent to which testing limits students' access to technology as a learning tool. 

5. Early Grade Reading and Math Proficiency - Study interventions that may be needed to improve early grade reading and math proficiency. 

6. Alternatives to Funding Higher Education Buildings - (Requested by Pres. Niederhauser).

7. Review Effects of Performance Funding - (Requested by Pres. Niederhauser). 

GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS

1. School Board Elections - In England v. Hatch, the constitutionality of Utah's method of selecting state school board members was called into question. In the 2015 General Session, legislators proposed several pieces of legislation to address the issue, but ultimately none of the legislation passed. If the legislature does not act, the courts will have significant discretion to apply a remedy of their choosing. 

2. Plurality - Determining a winner in a multi-candidate primary race - 2014 General Session HB54 created multiple methods by which a candidate can access a primary election ballot. A primary election ballot may therefore list several individuals running for the same office, creating the possibility that a candidate could with the primary election with less than a majority vote. In the 2015 General Session, legislators proposed several pieces of legislation to address the issue, but ultimately none of the options passed.

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

1. Medicaid Preferred Drug List Expansion - Study whether to authorize the Dept. of Health to include all psychotropic and anti-psychotic drugs on the Medicaid program's preferred drug list (HB156). 

2. Medicaid Liability - Study whether a health care provider should only be responsible to the spouse, parent, or child of a patient for providing or failing to provide health care (HB405).

3. Medical Marijuana - to study whether to permit the possession, use, and growing of medical cannabis (SB 259). 

4. Care for the Elderly (as time permits) - A: Caregiver support - Study how to support individuals and agencies who provide or facilitate care of the elderly; and B: Continuous care facilities - Study how to regulate the industry (HB436).

5. Homecare Cottage - Study the homecare cottage concept as a long-term portable care option for senior citizens. 

JUDICIARY

1. Family Law - To include study of the statute and issues relating to alimony (length, cohabitation, and rehabilitative alimony provisions).

2. Civil Rights - Study the statute and current use of surveillance, subpoenas, and police use of force. 

LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE

1. Impact and Implementation of HB348 on state agencies - This item consists of bringing in the Dept. of Corrections, the Sentencing Commission, the Courts, and Adult Probation and Parole, prosecuting and defense attorneys, etc. to discuss the implementation of HB348 and how it impacts their respective areas. Also key would be any unintended consequences/side effects of the legislation realized since its enactment. 

2. The Use of Body Cameras by Law Enforcement Officers - Related to HB386.

3. Use of Force by Law Enforcement Officers in Utah - Focus on 1) Historical data regarding use of force and lethal use of force; 2)POST training provided to officers; 3)Public perception of law enforcement and how that has changed, as well as what can be done to improve this in Utah; and 4) How investigations of use of force by law enforcement is conducted in Utah. 

NATURAL RESOURCES, AGRICULTURE, AND ENVIRONMENT

1. Natural Resources: 1) Water - Pricing, infrastructure funding mechanisms, Leg. Audit on resources and needs (water issues such as development and cost given the highest priority); 2) Bear Lake - Site visit, development, access, quagga, phragmites; 3)State Parks - Expansion, spin off tourism from national parks.

2. Agriculture: 1)Bee Keeping; 2) State Fairpark (Legislative Management Committee study by Oct interim meeting on the long term viability of the State Fairpark in its current location SB2)

3. Environment: 1) Air quality - Solid fuel burning program, ozone in Uintah Basin, Tier III fuels; 2) Disposal of depleted uranium in west desert. 

POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS

1. Community Development and Renewal Agencies: (Harper and Handy; SB55)

2. Good Landlord Program - Study issues related to the program HB268, HJR26, Item 10, and HJR26, Item 11). 

3. Municipal and County Code Enforcement - Study municipal and county enforcement of ordinances regarding abatement of weeds, garbage, refuse, unsightly objects, and other conditions deemed to be a public nuisance (HJR26, Item 136). 

4. Historic Districts - Study parameters and creation guidelines of historic districts (HJR26, Item 204). 

5. Subdivision Base Parcels - Study delinquent taxes on subdivision base parcels *HJR26, Item 24).

6. Assessment Area Bonding - Study assessment area bonding and foreclosure. 

7. Subdivision Bonding - Study subdivision bonding and security. 

8. Local Government Transfer of Development Rights (TDRs) - Study whether to allow a municipality and county to enter into an agreement to allow the transfer of development rights between their respective jurisdictions. 

9. Insurance for Lateral Sewer Lines - Study whether local government and sewer districts should provide insurance to how owners for lateral sewer lines. 

PUBLIC UTILITIES AND TECHNOLOGY

1. Interstate Transmission Lines - the Code is silent in regard to planning and location for interstate transmission lines. The issue is that these lines will create corridors in perpetuity, through select mountain canyons and may or may not connect to the Utah electrical grid. 

2. Big Data / Longitudinal Data Management - Development of longitudinal state databases that are creational and can be used for planning all types of infrastructure. 

3. EPA Rule 111(d) - the EPA will be issuing its final ruling this summer and that may affect the generation of power in Utah, transportation and pollution control. 

4. Telehealth / Telemedicine and Technology - The use of technology to offer cost-effective direct delivery by providers of healthcare services for both urban and rural environments. 

REVENUE AND TAXATION

1. Sales Tax Exemptions - Study and review all sales tax exemptions.

2. Corporate Franchise and Income Taxes - Study single sales factor and the economic benefits of a corporate income tax cut or repeal. 

3. Centrally Assessed Taxes - Study issues related to centrally assessed taxes including new growth. 

4. Excise Taxes - Study excise taxes including the taxation of e-cigarettes. 

5. Sales and Use Tax Earmarks - Review earmarks of the sales and use tax and recommendations provided by the Tax Review Commission. 

6. Historic Preservation Credit - Study whether to grant a historic preservation tax credit exemption. 

7. Tax Code Changes - Study simplifying the tax code, elimination tax credits, and reducing tax rates. 

8. Property Taxes and Water Rates - Study whether to lower property taxes and replace the taxes with water fee increases. 

TRANSPORTATION

1. Consolidation of the Sales and Use Tax Earmarks for Transportation 

2. Implementation and Impacts of the Transportation Funding Revisions made in the 2015 General Session including UDOT's intended uses for revenue increases (maintenance funding and bridge rehabilitation projects). 

3. Transportation Commission prioritization process review. 

4. Coordination between UDOT and School Districts on Locating New Schools (as time permits).

5. Review Large I-15 Construction Projects (as time permits). 

6. Interim Study Items 200 and 205 related to vehicle towing (as time permits): 1) 200. Study issues related to the use of a tow truck motor carrier, vechile towing, other to require tow truck drivers to have a criminal background check before performing tow truck services, and towing vehicles from private parking lots; 2) Study statewide towing policies. 

7. Interim Study Item 206 - Nighttime work zone noise (as time permits).

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OTHER RELATED CAP HAPS 

I had the opportunity join the Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy in welcoming visitors from Bangladesh with Rep. Becky Edwards, Rep. Sandra Hollins and Sen. Jani Iwamoto. 

We learned that Bangladesh has a long history of electing women Prime Ministers and currently requires a 33 percent quota for all elected seats -- an interesting factoid!