Plus, Russia and Ukraine still heating up, an explosion in Ghana, fake electors and hospitalizations for COVID rising fastest for babies | | | The Utah Policy newsletter is your one-stop source for political and policy-minded news. We scour the news so you don't have to! Send news tips or feedback to Holly Richardson at editor@utahpolicy.com. | | |
Situational Analysis | January 21, 2022 We made it to Friday! It's National Hugging Day and Squirrel Appreciation Day - but you probably don't want to combine the two. ð¿ï¸ð¤ Be in the Know Governor Cox delivered his second State of the State address last night. In his remarks, he addressed COVID and its impact on students and teachers, saying that "while we can never thank you enough, I do believe that we can pay you better." He also proposed eliminating school fees for the basic coursework required for graduation, a focus on a strong reading foundation and education funding that reaches at-risk and disadvantaged students. He praised Utah's election integrity and called out "unsubstantiated claims and flat-out lies" that "destabilize our constitutional republic and make it harder for their opponents to participate and vote." He announced the creation of a new office focused on the family - to make sure, he said, "that government policies are not harming families and that we are coordinating government services to help parents and children succeed." He concluded by asking Utahns to reject false choices, "Please don't give up on the idea of America," he repeated. "Let's do the big things. Let's do the things that matter." | | |
| | FROM OUR SPONSOR Conversations with today's most inspirational and influential voices Join Deseret News and Utah Business in this VIP limited engagement series featuring Mike Conley, Joe Ingles and more. Attend for personal meet and greets, photo sessions and intimate conversations with the voices who have engaged and captured our attention. Buy tickets for the April 12 event. | | |
2022 Legislative Session 3 days done, 42 to go General Utah Gov. Coxâs 2022 State of State message: âUtah is the last great hope of Americaâ (Deseret News) Gov. Spencer Cox blasts âflat-out liesâ about elections, condemns efforts to restrict voter access (Salt Lake Tribune) Hereâs what Utah Democrats are prioritizing in the 2022 Legislative Session (Deseret News) Utah Democrat accuses Republican COVID-positive lawmakers of ignoring isolation and mask guidelines (Salt Lake Tribune) Jay Evensen: Why Utah's redistricting commission was ignored (Deseret News) Today Appropriations meetings at 8 am Business, Economic Development, and Labor Infrastructure and General Government Public Education Social Services Floor time Senate Floor time: 11-11:50 House Floor time: 11:00-12:15 Committee Meetings Occupational and Professional Licensure Review, 12:30 pm House Judiciary Committee, 2 pm House Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment (2 pm) House Transportation, 2 pm Senate Economic Development and Workforce Services, 2 pm Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions, 2 pm House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, 2:10 pm Education Day 3: Legislature poised to end Test to Stay program for schools (Deseret News) How will Utahâs education budget tackle staff shortages and large class sizes? (KUER) Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice House bill focuses on punishment for major fraud by state employees (KUTV) Utah Senate committee gives thumbs up to hiring more 19-year-olds as corrections workers (KUTV) Revenue and Taxation Cut Utah's income tax rate to 4.5%? Senate leaders say that's too much (KUTV) Transportation Legislation creating virtual driverâs licenses is now in the fast lane towards a vote in Utah Senate. The Senate transportation committee gave a green light to SB88, the digital license bill, on Thursday. (Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Headlines General Derek Miller: What a busy pizza parlor taught me about todayâs economy (Deseret News) BYU responds to federal investigation of its LGBTQ policies (Deseret News) Thomas R. Lee announces retirement from Utah Supreme Court (KSL) BYU responds to federal investigation of its LGBTQ policies (Deseret News) 'FOX 13 Investigates: Utah police chief was collecting sick pay while promoting other employment (Fox13) Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah celebrates new health care center, brings additional resources to Cedar City (Salt Lake Tribune) Utah judicial commissioner resigns after calling people âheifersâ and other slurs (Salt Lake Tribune) COVID Corner 11,608 new cases, 22 deaths, 756 currently hospitalized Park City High School students stage walkout to protest Legislature's effort to end mask mandate (KCPW) Ogden Schools shift to online learning due to student, teacher absences from illness (KUTV) Utahâs COVID-19 death toll climbs above 4,000 (Salt Lake Tribune) Got COVID-19? How to know if you need to go to the hospital (Deseret News) Utahâs COVID-19 hospitalizations rising fastest for babies, small children (Salt Lake Tribune) Americans are showing up sick to work even as Omicron spreads (CNN) Unvaccinated seniors nearly 50 times more likely to be hospitalized than boosted peers (Washington Post) Environment Permitting process moving ahead for controversial copper mine expansion in San Juan County (Salt Lake Tribune) The contentious debate over the future of Utah Lake heats up as developers sue critic (Deseret News) National Headlines General US and Russia try to lower temperature in Ukraine crisis (AP) âChina will be Chinaâ: Why journalists are taking burner phones to the Beijing Olympics (Washington Post) Rep. John Curtis, Congress puts pressure on Beijing Olympic sponsors to recognize human rights violations (Salt Lake Tribune) Meat Loaf, 'Bat out of Hell' rock superstar, dies at 74 (Fox13) "She should not have been put in this situation." Video of a TV reporter in West Virginia being hit by a car during a live shot has been met with outrage by broadcast journalists who said it underscored the risks of sending reporters out on their own. (New York Times) A Georgia sheriffâs deputy called Ahmaud Arbery a âcriminalâ who âgot the death penalty.â He just resigned. (Washington Post) Disney in the pandemic: Laid off 28,000 workers, issued a $1.5 billion dividend, 68% of workers said they're food insecure, cut median worker pay and just gave its CEO a $14.3 million bonus, doubling his pay to $32.5M (Deseret News, MarketWatch) Politics Biden as a New F.D.R.? Try L.B.J. (New York Times) The Senate voted to make Holly Thomas the second Black woman to ever serve on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, as a Senate panel deadlocked on three of President Biden's judicial nominees including a prominent voting rights activist. (Reuters) 'Dangerous precedent': Jan. 6 committee trains its sights on false pro-Trump electors. GOP officials in five states illegitimately claimed to be qualified to declare Donald Trump the winner in 2020. And Trump allies were openly involved. (Politico) International Ghana blast: Many feared dead after huge explosion near Bogoso (BBC) Kazakhstan unrest: 'If you protest again, we'll kill you' (BBC) A Dam in Syria Was on a âNo-Strikeâ List. The U.S. Bombed It Anyway. (New York Times) Chevron, Total exit Myanmar over deteriorating human rights (AP) At least 60 reportedly killed, including children, in airstrikes in Yemen, aid agency says (Washington Post) | | |
News Releases Gov. Cox calls on Utahns to work together on quality of life issues in his 2022 State of the State address In his second State of the State address, Gov. Spencer Cox called on Utahns to rally around the stateâs children and move forward together on the most pressing challenges facing the state. â⦠I pledge my hands and my heart in this work,â Gov. Cox said. âIt is our privilege to represent the great citizens of this state for but a moment in time. Letâs do the big things. Letâs do the things that matter.â ... âTo those teachers with us tonight, I know that you are on mile 42 of what was promised to be a 26.2 mile COVID marathon,â the governor said. âAnd while we can never thank you enough, I do believe that we can pay you better ⦠Thatâs why I am proposing more than $970 million in education funding with a priority focus on at-risk and disadvantaged students. A childâs zip code should never determine their future or their opportunities.â He also unveiled a new state initiative to support Utahâs children and parents, and proposed hiring a senior advisor to lead these efforts... (Read More) Utah Senate President Adams responds to the State of the State address President J. Stuart Adams issues the following statement following Gov. Spencer Cox 2022 State of the State address: âI agree with Gov. Cox that Utah is the hope of America. Our state has the opportunity to lead the nation. In the Senate, we are dedicated to improving our state today by making a better tomorrow. We will form and execute plans by investing in education, sustainable energy, water and transportation infrastructure. While we may have different opinions on how to allocate some funds and provide tax relief to Utahns, I look forward to collaborating and working with Gov. Cox and Lt. Gov. Henderson towards Utahâs collective vision.â Sen. Lee statement on Justice Thomas Lee announcement Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) released the following statement on the announcement that Associate Chief Justice Thomas Rex Lee will be stepping down from the Utah Supreme Court. âMy brother Tom is truly a model jurist and public servant, and has fulfilled his role on the Utah Supreme Court with an unparalleled commitment to excellence and professionalism over the last twelve years. Heâs a pioneer and expert in the use of linguistic theory and tools in interpreting the language of the law. âHis work has brought increased transparency and determinacy to the work of textualism and originalism, thus enhancing the rule of law. His judicial opinions and scholarly publications in this field have been cited in state and federal courts throughout the country, including in the Supreme Court of the United States. I couldnât be more proud to be his brother.â Utah students to be honored for winning statewide investment competition at January 21 awards banquet Utah Treasurer Marlo M. Oaks announced that his office is hosting an awards banquet to honor the winners of the Fall 2021 Utah Stock Market Game on Friday, January 21. The banquet will feature student speeches and a keynote address by Bryan Cowley, Director of Licensing and Registration for the Utah Division of Securities. Nearly 2,900 students from across the state participated in the Fall 2021 game, competing in elementary, middle, and high school divisions. (Read More) Clarification from the Road Home We at The Road Home would like to clarify a statistic that was used in a Guest Opinion article titled: A new path forward to help Utahâs homeless. The stat we would like to clarify is: âOn any given night, 62% of the beds at The Road Home are used by homeless clients who are staying at the shelter longer than 6 months.â The stat, as written, in the article, actually comes from The Road Homeâs data as we have it described on our Running Man chart (which is from 2018 â our most recent version). This chart has not been updated or reproduced in the last three years while operating under the new system. The problem is in the interpretation of the stat that this means that flow is stagnant. While 62% of all beds are being used by people who stay 6 months or more, they only represent 13% of the total population we work with experiencing homelessness. To clarify, 87% of our population stays less than 6 months, which implies a high level of flow out of the system. | | |
Upcoming The Emergence of the Crypto Economy with the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation and special guests â Jan. 26, 10 am. Register here. Legislative Bootcamp with Americans for Prosperity and Libertas Institute â Jan. 29, 9 am - 1 pm. Register here. State of the Union address â Mar 1, 7 pm MST Utah legislative session ends â Mar 4, 2022, midnight Fireside chat with Justice Clarence Thomas hosted by the Hatch Foundation - Mar 11, 2022, 7 pm | | |
On This Day In History From History.com 1648 - Long before the suffrage movement, Margaret Brent asked the Maryland General Assembly to grant her voting privileges. While the assembly of men denied Brent her request for not one, but two votes, she proved to be a savvy attorney and landowner in her own right. 1738 - Ethan Allen, future Revolutionary War hero and key founder of the Republic of Vermont is born. 1793 - King Louis XVI executed by guillotine during the French Revolution. 1924 - Vladimir Lenin dies of a brain hemorrhage at age 54. 1935 - Raye Montague is born. The groundbreaking "Hidden Figures" engineer and ship designer smashed both gender and racial barriers to revolutionize Naval ship design and become the U.S. Navy's first female program manager of ships. 1950 - George Orwell dies at age 46. 1953 - Childrenâs author Richard Scarry is born and so is Paul Allen, who went on to start a little company in a garage, a company he and his partner Bill Gates called âMicrosoft.â 1975 - Female journalists are allowed into menâs professional sportsâ locker room for the first time, after the NHL All-Star Game in Montreal. 1977 - President Jimmy Carter pardons draft dodgers. 1978 - âSaturday Night Feverâ by the Bee Gees goes #1, where it stays for 24 weeks. 2008 - Black Monday for worldwide stock markets 2020 - Worldâs oldest asteroid impact (2.2 billion years) found in Yarrabubba, Western Australia. 2020 - First case of COVID-19 diagnosed in the U.S. Wise Words âChange obstacles into challenges. You might have to step back and go a different direction, but you can achieve.â -Raye Montague Lighter Side âA year ago, Biden pledged to address Covid, the economy, climate change and racial injustice. And good news â after 12 months of tireless effort, weâre all getting three free masks.â â JIMMY FALLON | | |
| â Advertise With Us â Subscribers may receive special messages with information about new features, special offers, or public policy messages from clients and advertisers. |
|
|
