Situational Analysis | February 9, 2022

It's Wednesday and the halfway mark in the session. All downhill from here....

Be in the Know

1. Rep. Mike Winder posted that the bipartisan Capitol Chess Club was back this week at lunchtime. He lost big to Rep. Stephanie Pitcher. Did you know that she is also ranked WCM (Woman Candidate Master) by the International Chess Federation, and has won the Utah State Women's Chess Championship eight times? Wow!

2. Two more votes to go for HB124, which places new restrictions on how law enforcement conducts "no-knock" warrants. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Gwynn has already passed the House and passed favorably out of a Senate committee on Monday and now heads to the Senate floor for second and third readings.

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2022 Legislative Session

22 days done, 23 days to go

General

• Is misinformation becoming a trend on Utah’s Capitol Hill? False claims of U.N. takeovers and COVID-19 conspiracies might be an emerging pattern at the Utah Legislature (Deseret News)
• Gov. Spencer Cox substitutes at Salt Lake City junior high school (KUTV)
• Chris Stewart: What do Republicans stand for? Look to Utah for the answer. In a time of great fear and uncertainty, Utah’s Legislature has remained steadfast at every turn. (Deseret News)
• Students influence bills during legislative session (KUTV)
  
• Legislature honors Utah's Olympic legacy with eye to future bid (KUTV)
  

Today

Final sub-appropriations meetings, 8 am

• Higher Education, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environmental Quality 

Floor Time

• House - 11:00 - 11:50
• Senate - 11:00 - 11:50

Committee Meetings

12:30

• Senate Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Confirmation

2:00 pm

• House Government Operations, House Political Subdivisions, House Revenue and Taxation, Senate Business and Labor, Senate Education, Senate Health and Human Services

Tomorrow

Committee Meetings, 8 am

• House Business and Labor, House Education, House Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology, Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice, Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment

8:30 am

• House Health and Human Services

9:00 am

• Senate Transportation, Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology

Floor Time

• House - 11:00 - 11:50, 2:00 - 4:00
• Senate - 11:00 - 11:50, 2:00 - 4:00

4:10

• Executive Appropriations

4:15 

• Senate Health and Human Services

Government Operations

• Utah Senate committee passes public records bill; no longer applies to news media (KUTV)
• Utah bill proposes annual commemoration date for the incarceration of Japanese Americans during WWII (St. George News)

Judiciary

• Advocates identify gaps in domestic and sexual violence resources, push for legislation to help (KSL)

Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment

• Opinion: Why a proposed secondary water metering mandate wouldn’t work (Deseret News)
• Is Legislature having second thoughts about Utah Lake dredging deal?
  Committee votes along urban-rural lines to increase scrutiny of controversial ‘restoration’ project. (Salt Lake Tribune)

Transportation

• Utah lawmaker won't pursue dog transportation bill anymore this session (KUTV)

Utah Headlines

General

• Parents deserve the right to choose how they will raise their children, whether that's having both parents in the workforce or having one stay at home. (Mitt Romney)
• "COVID-19 has thrown into sharp relief the need for separate shelter spaces for people who are older, chronically ill & frail. These individuals are more vulnerable to communicable diseases that can spread through crowded shelters." (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Sticker shock: Overwhelming number of Utahns concerned about record inflation (Deseret News)
• Rent in Lehi skyrockets past SLC, Provo (Fox13)
• How do Utah voters rate President Joe Biden? New poll reveals answers (Deseret News)
• LDS leader Brad Wilcox apologizes for remarks about Black members; BYU ‘deeply concerned’ (Salt Lake Tribune)
• St. George’s is set to double in the next 40 years. Here’s how the new mayor wants to prepare. (Salt Lake Tribune)

Elections

• Diana Bate Hardy: Don’t dismiss the women running for office in Utah (Salt Lake Tribune)

Environment

• Last month was Utah's third-driest January dating back to 1895, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. Only 1919 and 1961 produced drier Januarys on record. (KSL)
• What are inversions? An explainer on the natural phenomenon that traps Salt Lake Valley pollution (Salt Lake Tribune)
• When is the next big snow storm going to hit Utah? Not soon (Deseret News)
• Powerful Utah politicians back Tooele rail spur, but see why EPA and others are wary (Salt Lake Tribune)

COVID Corner

• 1341 new cases, 32 new deaths
• Utah’s COVID long-haulers are predominantly young — and many were previously healthy, doctors say (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Utah National Guard deployed to St. George hospital in response to a shortage of health care workers (KSL)

Olympics

• Olympics roundup: Park City resident Colby Stevenson is lucky to be alive. Now he’s a silver medalist (Deseret News)
• Men’s Figure Skating Highlights: With World Record, Nathan Chen Is Halfway to Gold (New York Times)
• Before he could race in the Olympics, Park City speedskater Casey Dawson had to race around the world (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Shiffrin emotional after 2nd quick exit in 2 Beijing races (KSL)
• Five female Olympians disqualified because of their ski suits in one of the ‘darker days’ for ski jumping (Washington Post)

National Headlines

General

• The Missouri Supreme Court indefinitely suspended the law licenses of two St. Louis attorneys, Mark McCloskey and Patricia McCloskey, who waved guns at Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020. (NPR)
• A Las Vegas bartender was robbed at gunpoint and then forced to repay his company for the stolen money, according to a lawsuit filed by the employee. (NBC News)
• Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, was whisked out of an event Tuesday at a Washington high school by Secret Service agents following an apparent security incident. (KUTV)
• Right-wing conspiracies have a new target: a tool that fights actual voter fraud (NPR)

Politics

• McConnell pushes back on RNC censure of two lawmakers for role in probe of Jan. 6 Capitol attack. “The issue is whether or not the RNC should be sort of singling out members of our party who may have different views from the majority. That’s not the job of the RNC." (Washington Post)
• McConnell laughs off Trump's 'Old Crow' nickname: 'It's my favorite bourbon' (The Hill)
• GOP frustration mounts as Trump focuses on Jan. 6 (The Hill)

International

• Europe Calls for Peace, but Not at Any Price (New York Times)
• Fears of Ukraine invasion rise as top Russian commanders fly to Belarus for massive joint military drill (Washington Post)
• New COVID surge batters Afghanistan’s crumbling health care (AP)
• Exclusive: Belarusian skier flees country after ban for political views (Reuters)

News Releases

Gov. Cox substitute teaches in local junior high school, encourages state employees and Utahns to help keep schools open

Leading by example, Gov. Spencer Cox filled in as an 8th grade history teacher at West Lake STEM Junior High School in the Granite School District today. 

The action comes after he issued an executive order on Jan. 31, 2022, granting state employees 30 hours of administrative leave to substitute as teachers and other school support positions during a period of school staffing shortages. 

“Spending time in the classroom gave me even more respect for what our educators do every day. We can’t thank them enough for their skill and dedication, especially their extraordinary efforts during the pandemic,” Gov. Cox said. “Seeing the curiosity of these students and how they interacted with their peers and me as their substitute reinforced my view that in-person learning is the best environment for our students. We must do everything we can to keep our schools open.” (Read More)

Salt Lake County receives additional $10 Million from Treasury for rent relief, launches new application assistance

Nearly two years into the pandemic, many Salt Lake County families are still feeling the impacts and fear losing their housing. Because of Salt Lake County’s strong performance in distributing rental assistance funds to residents during COVID-19 thus far, the U.S. Treasury is providing the County with an additional $10 million in aid.

Salt Lake County is also forming a new program with Utah Community Action (UCA) and Centro de la Familia. The organizations will work with residents struggling to make rent by helping them apply for and complete applications for rent assistance. The program will extend much needed support to families of all backgrounds and situations dealing with housing insecurity.

“Housing stability continues to be critical for our residents as we navigate new COVID-19 variants and their impacts on our workforce,” Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said. “We are constantly striving to improve access to our most vulnerable and diverse populations and are grateful for UCA’s and Centro de la Familia’s commitment to provide application assistance.” (Read More)

Congressman Blake Moore appointed new ranking member of the House Committee on Natural Resources’ Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations

Congressman Blake Moore has been appointed the new Ranking Member of the House Committee on Natural Resources’ Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations by Ranking Member Bruce Westerman.

“I am honored and grateful for the opportunity to serve as the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations,” said Congressman Blake Moore. “Under Ranking Member Bruce Westerman’s leadership, Republicans on the House Natural Resources Committee have worked hard this past year to conduct rigorous, thoughtful oversight over the Biden Administration’s harmful policies that are driving up energy prices, mismanaging our lands, and making America dependent on foreign countries for energy products and critical minerals. As we enter this new year, it is becoming increasingly clear to all Americans that this Administration is on the wrong track, and I look forward to serving in this leadership role to hold it accountable and get us on the right track.” (Read More)

Number of the Day

Tweet of the Day

Upcoming

• Lt. Governor Town Hall – Feb. 10, 6:30 pm meet-and-greet, 7 pm town hall, River Bridge Event Center, Spanish Fork Register here
• The Emergence of the Crypto Economy with the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation and special guests – Feb. 16, 10 am MST. Register here.
• Independent American Party Organizing Convention – Feb. 16 from 4-6 pm at the Millcreek Library (2266 East Evergreen). Credentialing begins at 3:30 pm. 
• Campaign filing period: Feb 28-March 4 (early this year!)
• State of the Union address – Mar 1, 7 pm MST
• Utah legislative session ends – Mar 4, 2022, midnight
• Fireside chat with Justice Clarence Thomas hosted by the Hatch Foundation – Mar 11, 2022, 7 pm. Register here.
• Campaign Management Training with Utah Farm Bureau – Mar 24-25, registration deadline March 1. Register here

On This Day In History

• 1773 - William Henry Harrison is born. Harrison went on to serve as the ninth U.S. president for a brief 32 days in 1841, the shortest term ever served. Harrison is also credited with the record for the longest inaugural address in history. Delivered on a bitterly cold March morning, it clocked in at one hour and 45 minutes. He contracted pneumonia after his inaugural speech and died in April. 
• 1825 - The Presidential election is decided in the US House, as no candidate received the majority of electoral votes. John Quincy Adams came out on top.
• 1942 - Daylight Savings Time is instituted during World War II. It was repealed in 1945, then standardized again in 1966.
• 1943 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs an executive order setting a minimum 48-hour work week in a number of critical war industries
• 1944 - Alice Walker is born. In 1983, she became the first Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction for her book, “The Color Purple.”
• 1950 - Senator McCarthy says there are over 200 communists in the State Department.
• 1960 - Joanne Woodward earns the very first star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
• 1964 - The Beatles appear on the Ed Sullivan show
• 1971 - Leroy “Satchel” Paige becomes the first Negro League veteran to be nominated for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
• 1995 - Bernard Harris becomes the first Black astronaut to take a space walk.

Wise Words

"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any."

– Alice Walker

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