Let Utah Manage Utah Land

Utah has filed a landmark lawsuit over control of unappropriated federal lands. State statute prohibits the privatization of public lands except in rare circumstances, underscoring Utah’s commitment to keeping public lands in public hands and locally controlled. Learn more: standforourland.utah.gov.

Utah Headlines

Political news

• How Utah Rep. Angela Romero’s grandparents made her who she is today (ABC4)
• Long-time Utah legislator Mike Dmitrich dies at 87 (Deseret News)
• Opinion: Utah GOP leaders must refocus on serving the public, not themselves (Deseret News)
• Utah Senate delegation playing outsized role in battle over GOP leadership (Deseret News)
• New expungement law takes effect making process more efficient (KUTV)

Election news

• Can a hike heal Washington? Utah’s next senator thinks so (Deseret News)
• How to vote your economic values (Deseret News) 
• The nation’s largest teachers union just contributed nearly $400,000 to help fight Utah’s Amendment A (Deseret News)
• 'Their voice counts': League of Women Voters registers homeless people at Ogden shelter (KSL)
• Meet the candidate: Rep. Brian King, running for Utah governor (KSL Newsradio)

Municipal news

• Logan Municipal Council finalizes code amendments on Short-Term Rentals, other issues (Cache Valley Daily) 
• CAPSA and downtown Logan businesses 'Light the Night' for Domestic Violence Awareness Month (Cache Valley Daily)

Utah

• Beloved youth lacrosse coach dies of heart attack, community honors his memory (KSL TV) 
• NAMI Utah halts all mental health classes and support groups, citing financial problems (Salt Lake Tribune)
• SLC clears the way for a new hospital, taller buildings at the old Sears site — with strings attached (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Voices: I work with Utah’s immigrant Latino population. Anti-DEI laws will have adverse effects on their health. (Salt Lake Tribune)

Biz/Tech

• Australian Crumbl fans import, resell hundreds of cookies (KSL)
• Crumbl cookies are overhyped and underbaked (Washington Post)
• How the cookie crumbles: Imposters cause uproar by taking Crumbl cookies down under (Fox13)
• Standard Optical CEO says customers will get their orders after the Utah eyecare provider closed its stores this week (KSL TV)
• Amazon, Target and other retailers are ramping up hiring for the holiday shopping season (AP)

Crime/Courts

• Cottonwood Heights police arrest woman for investigation in husband’s death (Deseret News)
• First statistics released after several months of a new road rage law (KSL Newsradio)
• Police say Kearns High students are being robbed (KSL Newsradio)
• Protective orders fail to stop violent ex from kidnapping Utah mother and kids (KUTV)

Education

• Jewish students need support. Synagogues can provide it (Deseret News) 
• Parents want known gang members barred from attending in-person school (KSL)
• USU joins list of forfeits to team with transgender athlete, gains support of Gov. Cox (Deseret News)
• Utah Tech University’s top academic officer placed on leave (Salt Lake Tribune)

Environment

•  The status of the Great Salt Lake and hopes for another good year of snowpack (Deseret News)

Health

• 1 in 12 Utahns suffers from long COVID, health department study says (KSL)
• Utah health official laments swelling rate of vaccine skepticism, illness outbreaks (Standard-Examiner)
• Saving a Generation: The Fentanyl Crisis (ABC4)

Housing

• Finding budget-friendly homes in Utah’s real estate landscape (Deseret News)

National Headlines

General

• Editorial Board: What we can learn from a horrible baseball team (Deseret News)
• Homeland Security issues warnings ahead of Oct. 7 anniversary, 2024 presidential election (Deseret News)
• Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs gets hit with over 100 sexual assault allegations. The alleged victims range in age from 9 to 38. (Deseret News)
• Latter-day Saint missionaries helping with Hurricane Helene relief efforts (KSL Newsradio)
• Hurricane Helene exposes FEMA assistance gap in Appalachian areas (Reuters)
• Human connections bring hope in North Carolina after devastation of Helene (AP)
• Hurricanes contribute to thousands of deaths each year in the U.S.—many times the reported number (NPR)
• When North Carolina mountains become Hurricane Alley (New York Times)

Political news

• Prosecutors lay out new evidence in Trump election case and accuse him of having ‘resorted to crimes’ (AP)
• 5 takeaways from the big new filing on Trump’s 2020 election plot. “So what,” “Make them riot,” “It doesn’t matter if you won or lost the election,” and what it all means legally and politically. (Washington Post)
• Former Colorado county clerk Tina Peters to be sentenced for voting data scheme (AP)

Election news

• Opinion: A civil debate seemed almost jarring (Deseret News)
• The Bible verse Tim Walz used to explain his stance on immigration (Deseret News)
• Court says betting on US congressional elections can resume, for now (AP)
• Harris woos Republican votes with Liz Cheney event, centrist moves (Reuters)
• Vance says immigrants caused a housing shortage. Economists disagree. (Washington Post)
• Trump’s continued callousness toward injured soldiers (Washington Post)
• Trifecta of challenges unravel for Harris, White House ahead of Election Day (The Hill)

Ukraine 🇺🇦

• Russia launches major drone attack on Ukraine, damages energy infrastructure (Reuters)
• Putin signs law giving criminal defendants immunity if they join the army (Washington Post)

Israel and Gaza

• Israel calls for evacuations from south Lebanon as explosions heard in Beirut (Reuters)
• On Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, many Israelis longed for a return to normalcy after a year of escalating wars. (New York Times)

World news

• Escalating contest over South China Sea disrupts international cable system (Washington Post)

Number of the Day 

News Release

Utah consumer sentiment falls in September

Utah’s consumer sentiment decreased by 6.1% in September (from 83.0 in August to 77.9 in September), according to the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute’s Survey of Utah Consumer Sentiment. A similar survey conducted by the University of Michigan found a 3.2% increase in sentiment among Americans as a whole during the same time (from 67.9 to 70.1).

“With Utah’s decrease in consumer sentiment and a slight increase in U.S. consumer sentiment, the gap between the two narrowed slightly in September,” said Phil Dean, chief economist at the Gardner Institute. “These results highlight the mixed economic signals right now. Easing inflation and lower interest rates should contribute to increased consumer sentiment. However, rising unemployment and slowing employment growth likely weigh on consumer confidence. Additionally, international conflicts and the pending U.S. election likely contribute to consumer uncertainty.” (Read More)

World Trade Center Utah awarded $525,000 SBA grant to boost small business export growth

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has awarded the state of Utah $525,000 through its State Trade Expansion Program (STEP). World Trade Center Utah (WTC Utah), in collaboration with the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity (GOEO), will administer the grant to help boost the state’s export economy by empowering businesses to reach new international markets. Funding is available to Utah businesses through September 2025. (Read More)

Tweet of the Day

Upcoming

• Oct. 3 — Salt Lake County Mayoral Debate, 6 pm, KUER
• Oct. 4 — Conservative Climate Summit, 7:30 am - 3:00 pm, UVU, Register here
• Oct. 4 — Hatch Foundation hosts Civil Dialogue Symposium with Dana Perino, 2:00 pm, USU, Register here
• Oct. 7-9 — One Utah Summit, SUU, Register here
• Oct. 8 â€” CD1 Debate, UT Debate Commission, 6:00 pm
• Oct. 10 — US Senate Debate, UT Debate Commission, 6:00 pm
• Oct. 14 â€” CD2 Debate, UT Debate Commission, 6:00 pm
• Oct. 15-16 — Interim Days
• Oct. 16 — Nurturing Hope in Ourselves and Others: The Science of Hope and Well-Being sponsored by the Utah Women and Leadership Project, 12:00 - 1:15 pm, Register here
• Oct. 17 — CD3 Debate, UT Debate Commission, 6:00 pm
• Oct. 24 — CD4 Debate, UT Debate Commission, 6:00 pm
• Nov. 5 — Election Day!
• Nov. 15 — Women & Business Conference & ATHENA Awards Luncheon with the Salt Lake Chamber, Grand America Hotel, Register here
• Nov. 19-20 — Interim Days
• Jan. 9 — What’s Up Down South Economic Summit. St. George. Register here
• Jan. 10 — Rural Utah Data Symposium. St. George. Register here

On This Day In History

• 1226 - Saint Francis of Assisi, Italian founder of the Franciscan Order, dies at 44 or 45
• 1656 - Myles Standish, Plymouth Colony leader, dies at 72
• 1863 - President Lincoln proclaims the official Thanksgiving holiday to be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of every November.
• 1904 - Mary McLeod Bethune opens her first school for African-American students in Daytona Beach, Florida
• 1913 - US Federal income tax signed into law (at 1%) by President Woodrow Wilson.
• 1917 - Congress passes the War Revenue Act, increasing income taxes to unprecedented levels in order to raise more money for the war effort.
• 1922 - Rebecca Latimer Felton became the first woman to serve in the US Senate when she was appointed to fill a vacancy. She served for only 24 hours. 
• 1942 - FDR forms the Office of Economic Stabilization
• 1955 - Children’s programming gets a boost from the debut of both Captain Kangaroo and the Mickey Mouse Club.
• 1995 - OJ Simpson acquitted
• 1990 - East and West Germany reunite after 45 years
• 2008 - The $700 billion bailout bill for the US financial system is signed by President George W. Bush
• 2021 - Pandora Papers investigation reveals secret wealth of 30 current and former world leaders

Quote of the Day

"Our children must never lose their zeal for building a better world. They must not be discouraged from aspiring toward greatness, for they are to be the leaders of tomorrow."

—Mary McLeod Bethune

On the Punny Side

My entire life can be summed up in one sentence…

Well, that didn't go as planned.

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