Utah Headlines

General

• Utah was the fastest-growing state between the 2010 and 2020 censuses and its urban core was a major driving force (Deseret News)
• Utah County the youngest county in the nation, with almost 50% under age 24 (KSL Newsradio)
• Plan to ride an OHV in Utah? You may need to take an educational course first (KSL)
• Red-hot real estate market contributes billions to Utah’s economy (Cache Valley Daily)
• Make volunteering your New Year’s resolution and discover ways to help in Southern Utah (St. George News)
• After a deadly year for pedestrians, UDOT wants drivers to ‘lay off the aggression’ (KUER)

Politics

• Gender reassignment bill being amended to also address puberty blockers (KUTV)
• Gender identity policy bill would require schools to inform parents of certain changes (KUTV)
• Utah lawmakers call for ‘culture shift,’ budget increase for state’s child welfare system (KSL TV)
• Sen. Mike Lee says Japanese prime minister must bring Lt. Ridge Alkonis with him to a Washington summit (Deseret News)
• Will voter confusion increase with ranked-choice voting? Utah’s experience with ranked-choice voting shows it may not be all it’s cracked up to be. (Deseret News)
• US Supreme Court declines to hear another longshot 2020 election fraud challenge from Utah man (KSL TV)
• Sandy councilwoman proposes civility in campaigns with additions to voluntary pledge (KUTV)
• Speaker Brad Wilson visits Cache Valley, highlights legislative topics for upcoming session (Herald Journal)

Business

• New Lego kits for ’23 include fine art, new botanicals and a celebration of Disney’s 100th anniversary. Lego building bricks have never been more popular (Deseret News)

Culture

• ‘Color-blind’ people won’t heal America’s racial divide. Try to be ‘color-blessed’ instead (Deseret News)

Education

• Simulation gives Utah teachers experience of living, working on Mars (Fox13) 

Environment

• Whose river is it anyway? Stream access fight once again on the battlefield (Deseret News)
• Before statehood, Utahns fished in streams across private land. Does that mean they can today? Decision in Provo River case could impact 2,700 miles of fishable rivers, 42% of the total in Utah. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Reports probe deaths of 45 burros at Utah holding facility (Deseret News)
• Love Utah weather? The Weather Service’s volunteer observers keep an eye on our skies (KUER)

Family

• Utah not in the top-ten most family-friendly states, according to new study (Deseret News)
• ‘This is unimaginable for us,’ the sister of the killed Piute County teen speaks out (KSL TV)
• Leaving an abusive relationship can be complicated and dangerous, expert says (KSL Newsradio)

Health

• Are ice baths and cold showers good for what ails you? Popular claims include better sleep, less sore muscles and burning fat. (Deseret News)
• ‘Gas station heroin’ is being sold legally as a dietary supplement in 43 states. Here’s what you should know. (Deseret News)
• New phone performs mental health checks and monitoring for children (ABC4)
• Callers keep flooding 988 mental health, suicide helpline (AP)

National Headlines

General

• California storms persist with deluges, mudslide threats (AP)
• New nation, new ideas: A study finds immigrants out-innovate native-born Americans (NPR)
• Teacher shot by 6-year-old hailed as a hero for evacuating kids (Reuters)
• Disney to employees: Work in the office four days a week (Washington Post)

Politics

• House rules changes breeze through the chamber following a bitter speaker fight (NPR)
• House Republicans vote to rescind I.R.S. funding in a symbolic measure (New York Times)
• DOJ reviewing potentially classified docs at Biden center (AP)
• Senator: Ending US aid to Ukraine would be historic mistake (AP)
• U.S., Mexico discuss economy, drug gangs and migration at summit (Reuters)
• House Republicans pass ethics changes that Democrats say would hamper probes (Washington Post)
• Unpacking the House GOP's new rules: A handy guide to the changes (Politico)
• George Santos broke campaign finance laws, nonpartisan watchdog says (Washington Post)
• Rep. Jason Smith wins three-way contest for Ways and Means gavel. 42-year-old Missourian set to become youngest-ever chairman of powerful panel (Roll Call)

Ukraine 🇺🇦 

• ‘What madness looks like’: Russia intensifies Bakhmut attack (AP)
• Russia throws forces into assault on Ukraine's Soledar, stepping stone in Donbas campaign (Reuters)
• Brutal fighting as Russia focuses on seizing salt mining town near Bakhmut (Washington Post)
• Russian prison recruits are used to draw fire in the ‘savage’ fighting for Bakhmut, a U.S. official says. (New York Times)

World

•  Satellite images show crowds at China’s crematoriums as covid surges (Washington Post)

News Releases

Salt Lake Chamber and Women’s Business Center of Utah launch Diverse-Owned Business Accelerator

The Salt Lake Chamber and the Women’s Business Center of Utah (WBCUtah) are now accepting applications for its Diverse-Owned Business Accelerator. The seven-week cohort program, sponsored by Bank of America, was designed for diverse small business owners to enhance skills, direction or strategy for their businesses.

The Diverse-Owned Business Accelerator will provide a peer-to-peer environment, mastermind groups for support and accountability and weekly project assignments which are immediately implementable into their businesses. (Read More)

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Upcoming

• Utah Taxpayers Association annual legislative conference — Jan. 10, 9 am-noon, Grand America, Register here
• Utah Economic Outlook and Public Policy Summit with the Salt Lake Chamber — Jan. 12, 2023, Salt Lake City Marriott, 8 am - noon, Register here
• Legislative session begins, Jan. 17, 2023, le.utah.gov

On This Day In History

• 1870 - Labor union activist Maud Younger is born. She was instrumental in the passage of the 19th Amendment.

• 1898 - Katharine Blodgett is born. A physicist and inventor, she was the first woman research scientist for General Electric’s Schenectady, NY laboratory (1920), first woman awarded a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Cambridge (1926) and received eight U.S. patents, most famously for inventing low-reflectance “invisible” glass

• 1901 - A drilling derrick at Spindletop Hill in Texas hits an enormous gusher of crude oil and signals the start of the U.S. oil industry.

• 1917 - Suffragettes, the "Silent Sentinels," first protest outside The White House, in Washington led by Alice Paul and the National Woman's Party

• 1920 - The League of Nations is instituted. It is officially dissolved in 1946 with the establishment of the United Nations.

• 1923 - President Harding pulls troops home from Germany, 4 years after the end of WWI.

• 1941 - FDR introduces the lend-lease program

• 1946 - The United Nations holds its first General Assembly.

• 1962 - An avalanche on the slopes of an extinct volcano in Peru buries 9 towns and 7 villages, killing more than 4000.

• 2000 - AOL-Time Warner formed

• 2016 - David Bowie dies of liver cancer, 2 days after his 69th birthday and the release of his final album, Blackstar.

Wise Words

“God doesn’t want us to be colorblind. He wants us to be color-blessed, because if we’re colorblind, we are muting the creative genius of our Creator."

—Rev. Derwin Gray

On the Punny Side

I spend my time telling people about the benefits of dried grapes.

It’s about raisin awareness.

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