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Utah Headlines

Political news

• Utah legislature extends state of emergency for flooding (Fox13)
• Utah lawmakers hear good, bad news on state's massive snowmelt (KUTV)
• Foreign workers can — again — own firearms after Utah Legislature repeals accidental ban. The sponsor of the bill says his intent was not to prohibit gun ownership for those in Utah legally on guest-worker or student visas. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Emily Bell McCormick: What I learned when I went to advocate for period products in Idaho (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Rep. Blake Moore wants to extend COVID-era tax break for charitable giving (Deseret News)
• 'A statewide task': Utah's water future will require collaboration, House speaker says. (KSL)

General Utah news

• Are you negotiating your own debt ceiling? (Deseret News)
• Utah Department of Corrections has "culture of noncompliance", audit says (Fox13)
• Custody battle preceded murder-suicide of SLC father and son (Fox13)
• Utah teen headed to France to compete in international BMX competition (Fox13)
• American Fork Police Department adds a new therapy dog to the force (ABC4)
• Moab volunteer firefighter arrested after police officer poses online as 13-year-old girl (KUTV)
• Should Utahns get flood insurance? ‘Now’ is the time, Utah insurance commissioner says. (Salt Lake Tribune)

Business

• "To deprive anyone of saying “Taco Tuesday” ... is like depriving the world of sunshine itself," Taco Bell asserted when petitioning to cancel the "Taco Tuesday"  trademark owned by a rival (Washington Post)
• Retailers are being hit with a rash of thefts and in some case, closing stores and pulling out of locations because of massive losses, some tied to criminal gangs. (KUTV)
• In Utah’s robust influencer economy, a TikTok ban could upend hustles and day jobs (KUER)
• Utah’s workforce has a higher percentage of teens than any other state. Here's why (Salt Lake Tribune)

Culture

• A Lutheran congregation in Logan is starting a garden to feed hungry families (UPR)
• Utah man uses ‘dad joke’ humor to heal through viral social media account (ABC4)

Education

• 3 things to know about upcoming high school graduations in Southern Utah (St. George News)
• Handling of sexual assault at the forefront during forum for Utah State president candidates (Salt Lake Tribune)
• University of Idaho seeks to buy University of Phoenix for $550 million (Deseret News)

Environment

• Environmentalists celebrate 40-acre wetland expansion into Layton along Great Salt Lake's coast (Fox13)
• Rocky Mountain Power to roll out 20 fast-charging stations for Utah EVs (Salt Lake Tribune)
• New wetlands project near Great Salt Lake is nature’s great cleanser (Deseret News)

Health

• Utah has the healthiest seniors in the nation (UPR)
• The nation’s ongoing health care worker shortage — how bad is it? (Deseret News)

Housing

• Utah added more housing units than any other state the nation, by percentage, while a Salt Lake City suburb is among the fastest growing cities, according to new report from the U.S. Census Bureau. (KUTV)
• Deeply affordable housing for seniors and veterans experiencing homelessness unveiled (KSL)

National Headlines

General

• Lori Vallow Daybell indicted in Arizona on charge of attempt to kill niece's ex-husband (KUTV)
• The U.S. military caught Airman Jack Teixeira taking notes and conducting deep-dive searches for classified material months before he was charged with leaking a trove of secrets online, but left him in his job, a Justice Department filing shows. (New York Times)
• Deutsche Bank will pay $75 million to sexual abuse victims of Jeffrey Epstein who alleged the bank helped enable sex trafficking. (New York Times)
• When they installed the new surveillance system, local officials promised it would help tamp down a gang war menacing this forgotten steel town. But residents of Ohio’s Steubenville public housing soon learned the cameras were pointed at them (Washington Post)
• Concern over gun violence surges in new survey (The Hill)

Politics

• Naysa Woomer, communications director to embattled Rep. George Santos (R-NY), has resigned earlier this evening, saying in part: "Unfortunately, you never took one point of professional advice given." (Scripps)
• Republicans reject Democratic resolution to expel Rep. George Santos from Congress (NPR)
• The Village People has sent former President Trump a cease-and-desist letter over his usage of their hit song “Macho Man.” (The Hill)
• Democrats warn Biden against cutting debt ceiling deal with McCarthy (The Hill)
• Montana bans TikTok for all residents (Politico)
• Trump hits DeSantis after governor’s 2 endorsed candidates lose (Politico)

Ukraine 🇺🇦

• ‘Tell the world what’s been done’: How one grandmother survived the Bucha massacre (Deseret News)
• Ukraine could join ranks of ‘frozen’ conflicts, U.S. officials say (Politico)
• Russian scientists, experts in hypersonic technology, arrested for treason (Washington Post)
• Ukraine rejects Russia's claims, says Patriot air defense system not destroyed (Washington Post)
• Russia targets Kyiv overnight in 9th attack this month (New York Times)

World

• U.S. points to religious liberty atrocities in Russia, China and Afghanistan (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Formula 1 canceled this weekend’s Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix after heavy rain and deadly flooding in northern Italy made it unsafe to proceed with the race at Imola. (New York Times)
• The U.S. deported him. A Korean court says his adoption agency owes him. (Washington Post)
• Haitians fight back against gangs, drawing support — and worry (Washington Post)
• Cyclone Aid Stalled in Myanmar: ‘I Just Hope We Get Help Before We Die.’ (New York Times)
• China, birthplace of the COVID pandemic, is laying tracks for another global health crisis (Wall Street Journal)

News Releases

Salt Lake Chamber honors lawmakers as 2023 Legislative Business Champions

The Salt Lake Chamber presented the Legislative Business Champion awards today to legislators who passed laws on building our economic foundation and expanding prosperity for all Utahns during the 2023 General Legislative Session. This year, 68 lawmakers received the Legislative Business Champion Award. This award is given to legislators who supported at least 90% of the Salt Lake Chamber’s priorities during the 2023 Legislative Session. The title of Legislative Business Champion is directly tied to a legislator’s support and voting record on the Salt Lake Chamber’s “Priority Votes.” During each legislative session, the Chamber’s Board of Directors designates the top priorities of the business community as “Priority Votes.” Each of these lawmakers represents a strong voice for Utah’s economy and future prosperity. (Read More)  

Salt Lake Chamber urges Utah’s leadership to address the national debt ceiling

The Salt Lake Chamber recognizes that failing to raise the debt ceiling and to constrain federal government spending will have negative impacts on our national economy and unintended consequences on every Utah business. As such, Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Chamber, sent a letter to Utah’s Members of Congress urging them to do all they can to find a bipartisan solution that can address both problems. (Read More)

Utah’s bonded indebtedness stands in sharp contrast to that of the nation

The State of Utah’s bonding practices vary dramatically from the practices of the  federal government. An analysis by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute shows borrowing in both the U.S. and  Utah increased dramatically over several decades in nominal terms. Yet even with those higher nominal debt  loads at both levels of government, major differences exist. (Read More)

Moore leads legislation to boost employee ownership in small business

Yesterday, Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT), alongside Reps. Dean Phillips (D-MN), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), and Dusty Johnson (R-SD), and Sens. Van Hollen (D-MD) and Rubio (R-FL), introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to support small business owners who pursue an employee-owned business model. Their Employee Equity Investment Act (EEIA) reduces cost barriers small business owners currently face when transferring ownership to their employees, empowering them to preserve family legacies and community jobs – even after their retirement. (Read More)

Lee stands with House Republicans on debt ceiling negotiations

On the steps of the U.S. Capitol, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) joined Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, Senate Conference Chairman John Barrasso, House Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, Congressman Dusty Johnson, Senate Conference Vice Chairwoman Shelley Moore Capito, and Congressman Chip Roy, along with other members of the House and Senate, for a press conference hosted by Speaker McCarthy. The conference was held amidst ongoing debt limit negotiations between the Speaker and President Joe Biden. (Read More)

Moore and colleagues introduce legislation to encourage charitable giving

Today, Representatives Blake Moore (UT-01), Danny K. Davis (IL-07), Michelle Steel (CA-45), and Chris Pappas (NH-01) introduced the Charitable Act to empower Americans to contribute to charitable causes and support local communities. In addition to a broad, nationwide coalition that touches nearly every sector of our economy, the bill is endorsed by more than 100 nonprofits in Utah. (Read More)

Treasurer Oaks joins multi-state effort to defend Americans’ investment returns against politicized shareholder proposals

Utah Treasurer Marlo M. Oaks joined 21 other treasurers, auditors and financial officers from a total of 19 states in letters to the nation’s largest asset managers and proxy advisory firms to determine if they are in violation of their fiduciary obligation to American workers by voting for politicized shareholder proposals. (Read More)

Utah Inland Port Authority unveils new look

The Utah Inland Port Authority (UIPA) is pleased to announce the completion of a major rebranding initiative, marking an exciting chapter for the organization. UIPA’s new mission, vision and values signifies the forward momentum of the Inland Port’s new focus and serves as the guiding points for all directives moving forward. (Read More)

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Upcoming

• Utah Democratic Convention — May 19-20, SUU (More information here)
• Northern Utah Conference to End Sexual Violence — May 31, USU Eccles Center, 8:30 am-4:00 pm, Register here
• Intellectual Property Rights webinar with the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation — June 1, 10:00 am, Register here
• Bolder Way Forward Launch — June 9, 9 am-1 pm, Zions Technology Campus, Register here
• Interim Days — June 13-14, Utah State Capitol, le.utah.gov

On This Day In History

• 1860 - Abraham Lincoln is nominated for the presidency at the Republican Convention.
• 1896 - The US Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson, that “separate but equal” accommodations is Constitutional. It remained until the Brown v Board of Education ruling 48 years later.
• 1953 - Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman to break the sound barrier.
• 1971 - US President Richard Nixon rejects 60 demands of Congressional Black Caucus.
• 1973 - Jeannette Rankin, American politician, 1st woman elected to US Congress (R-Montana), women's rights advocate and pacifist, dies at 92
• 1980 - Mt. Saint Helens erupts
• 2012 - Facebook raises $16 billion in largest tech IPO in U.S. history
• 2022 - Amid a nationwide US baby formula shortage, President Joe Biden invokes the Defense Production Act, requiring suppliers to fulfill orders to baby formula manufacturers first

Quote of the Day

"We're half the people; we should be half the Congress."
—Jeannette Rankin

On the Punny Side

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