It's National Chocolate Milk Day; Utah's fall colors are popping; it's time to pick your Fat Bear bracket; & Silicon Slopes Summit today
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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 | September 27, 2023

It's Wednesday and National Chocolate Milk Day

What You Need to Know

  • The second GOP presidential primary debate is tonight at 7:00 pm Utah time. Seven candidates made the cut this time: Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Mike Pence, Tim Scott and Doug Burgum. Notably absent - again - is former President Donald Trump, who is heading to Michigan to speak at an auto parts supplier. Trump’s trip comes a day after President Joe Biden became the first sitting president in U.S. history to walk a picket line. United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain appeared at Biden’s side during his visit Tuesday and remained deeply critical of Trump. “I don’t think he cares about working-class people. I think he cares about the billionaire class, he cares about the corporate interests. I think he’s just trying to pander to people and say what they want to hear, and it’s a shame,” Fain said.

Rapid Relevance

 

Construction Underway, Scheduled Operation: 2025

The Intermountain Power Project's transformational “IPP Renewed” project is under construction and on track for mid-2025 start-up. The project includes new natural gas-fueled electricity generating units that will also utilize "green" hydrogen for long-term, dispatchable storage of renewable energy. There are currently 600 workers on site in Millard County, with 1200 expected during peak construction. Click here to watch construction unfold. For more information, visit www.ipprenewed.com

 

Utah Headlines

Political news

  • Does Congress get paid during a shutdown? Not is Rep. John Curtis has his way. (Deseret News)
  • Hungarian president warns of coming ‘demographic ice age’ in BYU speech. Katalin Novák encourages marriage, having children to save society, speaks of her Christian faith (Deseret News)
  • The editor of ‘Christianity Today’ is praising Mitt Romney for his integrity (Deseret News)
  • Poll: Republicans see Trump as a ‘person of faith’ ... more so than Mitt Romney, Mike Pence and others (Deseret News)

Election news

  • Race to replace Sen. Mitt Romney heats up as Republican Utah House speaker gets ready to enter (AP)
  • On election night, Celeste Maloy said ‘Rural communities are going to get this done!’ She wasn’t wrong. (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • Salt Lake City mayoral candidates address affordable housing issue during debate (KUTV)

General Utah news

  • ‘The highlight of my life:’ Utah man who rescued child from sinking truck honored with prestigious award (KSL TV)
  • Wallace B. Smith, great-grandson of Joseph Smith and pioneer for women’s ordination in the Community of Christ, dies at 94 (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • Timpview runner Jane Hedengren makes history in race to No. 1 in the country as she runs the fastest three-mile ever by a high school girl in the US (Fox13)

Business

  • ‘Entrepreneurial capital of the world’: Silicon Slopes set to launch 8th tech summit in Salt Lake City (Deseret News)
  • Utah Pride Center furloughs ‘majority of remaining staff.' This is the second round of layoffs at the LGBTQ+ nonprofit in less than two months. (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • U.S. sues Amazon in a monopoly case that could be existential for the retail giant (NPR)

Crime

  • 18-yr-old Utah woman planned death of premature baby, then disposed body off I-80, police say (KSL)
  • Operation Underground Railroad denies misleading donors; Tim Ballard explains ‘couples ruse’ (Salt Lake Tribune)
  • 'You've hurt enough people': Accusers react after anti-trafficking nonprofit CEO Candace (Rivera) Lierd denied bail (KSL)
  • Orem man describes virtual marriage counseling sessions with Jodi Hildebrandt in 2021 (KUTV)
  • USU professor pleads guilty to misusing over $11,000 of university funds (ABC4)

Culture

  • ‘Hocus Pocus’ will return to theaters in honor of its 30th anniversary (Deseret News)
  • Utah’s Most Haunted: Eerie guests on 11th floor of Ogden hotel (ABC4)
  • The enduring appeal of the ‘spiritual but not religious’ label (Deseret News)

Education

  • 5 things to know about BYU’s new president, C. Shane Reese (Deseret News)

Environment

  • Southwest Utah to house world's largest next-generation geothermal energy project (KSL)
  • 'Fire Sense' receives national award. Here's how much Utah wildfires have dropped in 2 years (KSL)
  • Colorado River’s Upper Basin will re-up plan to pay farmers and ranchers to use less water (KUER)
  • Colorado River growers say they’re ready to save water, but a trust gap exists (KUER)
  • This pesky crayfish showed up in Colorado. Wildlife managers are on high alert. (UPR)
  • One of the most intense El Niños ever observed could be forming (Washington Post)

Family

  • Why is a child care ‘cliff’ looming this month? (Deseret News)
  • Perspective: How we're failing kids who age out of foster care (Deseret News)
  • Utah’s Safe Haven law offers help to frightened pregnant women (KSL TV)

Health

Housing

  • Prices, rates and inventory continue to conspire against Utah first-time homebuyers (KUER)
  • ‘Zombie mortgages’ catching Utahns off guard (KSL TV)
 

National Headlines

General

  • Biden joins picket line in Michigan, a first for a sitting president (Deseret News)
  • United Autos Workers on strike demand 4-day workweek (Deseret News)
  • Over 100 masked teens ransack Philadelphia stores and arrests are made, police say (AP)
  • More schools are adopting 4-day weeks. For parents, the challenge is day 5 (AP)
  • The Hollywood writers strike is over after guild leaders approve contract with studios (AP)
  • American soldier Travis King to be deported by North Korea (Wall Street Journal)
  • Judge allows grant program for Black female entrepreneurs to continue (Washington Post)

Politics

  • Congress says it wants to avoid a shutdown. But the House and Senate are moving even further apart (AP)
  • 19 Senate Republicans voted against advancing short-term funding bill, including Utah Senator Mike Lee (The Hill)
  • Government shutdown would put pay for over 1M military members at risk, Pentagon says (Politico)
  • Sen. Bob Menendez will appear in court in his bribery case as he rejects calls to resign (AP)
  • Supreme Court rejects Alabama's defiance in voting case (NPR)
  • N.Y. judge finds Donald Trump committed business fraud for a decade and sanctions his attorneys for repeating arguments that were "borderline frivolous" (Washington Post)

Election news

  • Wednesday’s real debate? Trump versus Reagan. (Deseret News)
  • Poll: Trump ahead of Biden by 10 points in potential rematch (Deseret News)
  • Former Speaker Paul Ryan says Republicans will lose if Donald Trump is nominee (AP)
  • Republican candidates embrace Reagan. But he’d be out of step in Trump’s GOP. (Washington Post)
  • The 2024 field braces for a ‘devastating’ fall, with drop-outs on the horizon (Politico)

Ukraine 🇺🇦

  • The war in Ukraine is also a giant arms fair (Wall Street Journal)
  • A new grain corridor highlights Ukraine’s military successes in the Black Sea, experts say. (New York Times)

World

  • Fire at Iraqi wedding hall kills at least 100, injures 150 (Washington Post)
  • A rare success emerges in the war on terror: Somalia (Wall Street Journal)
  • Libya floods wiped out entire family trees. Clans in the port city of Derna that can trace their bloodlines back centuries lost scores of relatives in the catastrophe. (Wall Street Journal)
  • As mental health worsens among Afghanistan’s women, the UN is asked to declare ‘gender apartheid’ (Politico)
 

Number of the Day 

Number of the Day, Sept. 27, 2023

 

News Releases

Rep. Moore introduces legislation to enhance use of Health Savings Accounts

Congressman Blake Moore introduced the Advancing Health Savings Act to help patients access the benefits of their health savings accounts (HSA) as soon as they are covered under an HSA-eligible high deductible health plan (HDHP), lower their cost of care, and empower patients to take charge of their health care...

This legislation would establish a special rule for qualified medical expenses incurred prior to the establishment of a health savings account (HSA). Under this proposal, if an HSA were established within 60 days of the effective coverage date for an HSA-eligible high deductible health plan, an individual could use distributions from their HSA to pay for qualified medical expenses incurred during the 60-day period between when their HDHP coverage began and when the HSA was established. (Read More)


Rep. Owens fights to protect archery, hunting programs in America’s schools

As President Biden’s Department of Education attempts to gut archery, hunter safety, and other extracurricular programs, Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04) advocated for H.R. 5110, the Protecting Hunting Heritage and Education Act, which passed the House of Representatives tonight....

The Protecting Hunting Heritage and Education Act has received bipartisan support among members of the House and endorsements from stakeholders, including Heritage Action, National Rifle Association, Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, Council to Advance Hunting and the Shooting Sports, Boone and Crockett Club, and the National Shooting Sports Foundation. (Read More)

 

Tweet of the Day 

Screenshot 2023-09-27 at 6.53.34 AM

 

Upcoming

  • Launching the Dan Jones Center for Public Service — Sept. 27, 6:00-8:00 pm, Hinckley Institute of Politics, RSVP here
  • Understanding Sexism in Utah with the Utah Women and Leadership Project— Oct. 10, 12:00-1:15 pm, Register here
  • Civics Educator Conference with "Sharon Says So" — Oct. 10, UVU, More information and registration here
  • Interim Day — Oct 10-11, le.utah.gov
  • Martha Hughes Cannon Award with Utah Women Run — Nov 2, 6:00-8:00 pm, Nominate someone here
  • Interim Day — Nov 14-15, le.utah.gov
  • General election — Nov. 21
 

On This Day In History 

  • 1722 - Samuel Adams is born. He was an American revolutionary (Boston Massacre-Tea Party) and politician (Lt Gov-Mass, 1789-94).
  • 1779 - John Adams appointed to negotiate peace terms with British
  • 1817 - Hiram R. Revels is born. He became the 1st African American US Senator.
  • 1905 - E=mc2 is introduced in an Albert Einstein paper published in a German physics journal
  • 1908 - The first Model T leaves the Piquette Plant in Detroit.
  • 1909 - US President William Howard Taft sets aside some 3 million acres of oil-rich public land (including Teapot Dome, Wyoming) for conservation purposes
  • 1939 - Warsaw falls to German forces, who then begin a systematic program of terror, murder and cruelty, executing members of Poland’s middle and upper classes.
  • 1962 - Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring is published
  • 1966 - Stephanie Wilson is born. The NASA astronaut flew three Space Shuttle missions and was the second African American woman in space.
  • 1998 - The day Google celebrates its birthday
  • 2016 - Amy Schumer becomes the first woman to hit the Forbes highest paid comedians list
  • 2018 - US Securities and Exchange Commission files lawsuit accusing Elon Musk of securities fraud

Quote of the Day

"Being adventurous and being explorers is in our nature."

—Stephanie Wilson


On the Punny Side

You've heard of Murphy's Law, have you heard of Cole's Law? 
It's pretty much cabbage and mayonnaise.

 

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