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Utah Policy Daily Newsletter

The UtahPolicy.com daily newsletter gets you up to speed on the top local and national news about politics and public policy. Send news tips or feedback to editor@utahpolicy.com

Situational Analysis - April 9, 2021

We made it to another Friday. I hope you have lovely plans for the weekend. I know I do.

I have a request for you. Will you please take just a couple of minutes and go fill out this survey? We want to make sure Utah Policy is meeting your needs and to do that, we need your input. Thanks ever so much.

News you need to know

Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh and husband of Queen Elizabeth II "passed away peacefully" at Windsor Castle. The couple celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary in November 2020. He was 99. The CDC declares racismCDC declares racism 'a serious public health threat.' Rep. Sandra Hollins worked on a resolution saying the same thing, but it lacked enough support to pass. Be smart out there. Search and rescue crews for Zion National Park have been out on three dehydration calls in the last week. And it's not even mid-April. The SC shooter who killed five people was former NFL player Phillip Adams who then killed himself. Russia has more troops at the Ukraine border than at any time since they "annexed" Crimea in 2014. And speaking of Russia, Putin opponent Alexei Navalny is not getting appropriate health care and Amnesty International says Russia may be slowly killing him. (Of course, that would be after they tried to swiftly kill him.)

Countdown

5 days until the end of the Cox/Henderson administration's first 100 days (04/14/2021)
15 days until the United Utah Party Organizing Convention (04/24/2021)
21 days until the Biden/Harris administration's first 100 days are up (04/30/2021)
22 days until the in-person Utah GOP Organizing Convention (05/01/2021)
155 days until half-way through the Cox/Henderson's administration's 500-day plan (09/11/2021)

Today At Utah Policy

Rural news round-up
By Holly Richardson
Restoring trust in Hildale, closing a wetlands preserve because of bad actors, Hyde Park mayor dies, new Golden Spike artist chosen, Kacey Bates becomes lieutenant in Summit County Sheriff's office and will oversee the jail, Tooele Tech is growing, church steeples and their Utah connection and finally, Chief Sanpitch gets a statue.Commentary: Timely UVU conference focuses on 'functional federalism'
By LaVarr Webb
I've been writing about balanced federalism a great deal lately. I'm doing it because I believe this fundamental and venerable tenet of American constitutional government is part of the solution to the difficult problems facing the nation, including (and especially) the burgeoning federal debt. Tweets of the day
By Holly Richardson
Dark Skies, handcuffing babies, Daily Universe to stop printing weekly paper, the Utah County Commission "reconsiders" and Secretary Haaland is in town.

Utah Headlines

Deseret News

'We all want pretty much the same thing,' Interior Secretary Deb Haaland says after Bears Ears tour - Utah's leaders call for an end to the political 'ping-ponging' President Joe Biden announces new gun control reforms, calling gun violence a 'public health crisis' - The president directed the Justice Department to recommend legislative changes that would modernize the nation's current gun laws and give lawmakers and communities tools to combat gun violence Utah delegation disagrees with Biden's executive action on guns - Following Biden's announcement on Thursday, Utah GOP Rep. Chris Stewart said the president is on the wrong path to effectively addressing gun-related issues. Parents, educators tell State School Board why equity, diversity in schools matters - Students need to learn how to talk about race 'out loud and not in whispered profanity,' Weber County mom tells board Republicans are outnumbered now more than at any time in nearly a decade - A new Gallup poll found the percentage of self-identified Republicans has fallen as the percentage of independents has gone up Is America losing her civil religion? - To rekindle faith in democracy, focus on 'enduring ideologies' that can bring Americans together, scholars say

Salt Lake Tribune

Biden has to 'get this right,' Deb Haaland says of monument decision after Bears Ears tour - Interior secretary is greeted by prayers, dueling protests and conflicting policy pushes in San Juan County. Next stop: Grand Staircase. Salt Lake City is going to start classes an hour later so high schoolers can sleep in - The district's new schedule will start in the fall. Ballet West promotes its first non-Asian dancers of color to the company's top level - Katlyn Addison and Hadriel Diniz will become principal artists for the 2021-2022 season. Biden's call for 'red flag' laws falls on deaf ears in the Utah Legislature - 'There's absolutely no appetite for this kind of law' says Republican Steve Handy who has repeatedly tried to pass such legislation During border visit, Burgess Owens warns that migrants are 'coming to your neighborhood' - Utahn who helps migrants calls that 'misinformation.'

Other

Shots fired in West Valley City, schools temporarily locked down (KUTV) - Multiple shots were fired in the area of 5300 W. 2700 South in West Valley City Thursday morning. No one was injured. Affordable housing becoming unaffordable? One Utah city considers changes (KUTV) - Ogden city councilwoman Angela Choberka hopes higher-density housing will become part of the plans for the next five years to help with affordability. Utah fire burning underground can't be extinguished (ABC4) - This underground fire is known by geologists as the "Big Smokey Fire," the Utah Geological Survey said. It is burning, or at least smoldering, underground and has been for hundreds - maybe thousands - of years. Brush fire in Price leads to evacuations, 2 people ticketed (Fox13) - It took 40 firefighters about an hour to get the fire under control, officials say wind and drought had major impacts on the spread of the fire. Some Utah employers struggling to find workers (Fox13) - Yvette Woodland with the Department of Workforce Services says now is the time to find seasonal employment. "In our job matching system we have over 46,000 jobs that are available right now for job seekers to access," said Woodland.

COVID Corner

If Utahns let their guard down, variants of concern could cause 'one last spike in cases before vaccination really puts this thing to bed' (ABC4) - The coronavirus has replicated 560 times in Utah, according to the Utah Department of Health. The mutations of most concern are California variants, B-1427 and B-1429, totaling 47% of the state's COVID-19 cases. Utah's mask mandate to end: What does it mean for you? (Fox13) - Life afterwards is likely to look very similar for Utah residents. 42,000 more Utahns got COVID-19 vaccines in one day, while 10 more died from the virus (Salt Lake Tribune) - More than 620,000 are fully inoculated. COVID-19 vaccine side effects are not dangerous, study says (Deseret News) - A new study says COVID toes, COVID arm and vaccine rashes are not dangerous Countries worldwide hit new records for virus cases, deaths (AP) - Brazil reported a 24-hour tally of COVID-19 deaths that exceeded 4,000, India hit a peak of almost 127,000 new cases in 24 hours, and Iran set a new coronavirus infection record for the third straight day, reporting nearly 22,600 new cases. 'This is war': Polish medics just taking naps between COVID shifts (Reuters) - Some Polish doctors and nurses are just taking naps between shifts as they fight a third wave of the coronavirus, the health minister said on Friday, amid reports of medical staff using oxygen and intravenous drips to boost their energy. Kati Kariko Helped Shield the World From the Coronavirus (New York Times) - Collaborating with devoted colleagues, Dr. Kariko laid the groundwork for the mRNA vaccines turning the tide of the pandemic.

National Headlines

Biden moves at the margins as Congress stalls on civil rights (Politico) The president is adopting a more aggressive strategy to promote civil rights, but there's only so much he can do from the White House. Kinzinger becomes the first Republican member of Congress to call on Gaetz to resign (Politico) - On Thursday, a court hearing indicated that former tax collector Joel Greenberg, one of Gaetz's closest friends, was likely cooperating with federal prosecutors. Key figure in Matt Gaetz probe likely cooperating with federal prosecutors (Politico) - "I am sure Matt Gaetz is not feeling very comfortable today," Joel Greenberg's defense attorney said. Gaetz paid accused sex trafficker, who later sent same amount of cash to teen girls: report (The Hill) - Gaetz sent two Venmo transactions amounting to $900 to accused sex trafficker Joel Greenberg in May 2018. Greenberg later sent money to three girls labeled as "Tuition," "School" and "School" that totaled $900. Second staffer for Matt Gaetz has resigned (The Hill) - Gaetz's legislative director Devin Murphy was the second staffer to leave, following Luke Ball, the communications director. Manchin on his increased call for bipartisanship: Capitol riot 'changed me' (The Hill) - "You can't have this many people split to where they want to go to war with each other," he said. US gun violence 'an international embarrassment,' says Biden (The Hill) - "Nothing I'm about to recommend in any way impinges on the Second Amendment," Biden said. "They're phony arguments suggesting these are Second Amendment rights at stake with what we're talking about. China report accuses US of causing humanitarian disasters (AP) - The report from the government-backed China Society for Human Rights Studies said foreign wars launched under the banner of "humanitarian intervention" have not only cost the belligerent parties a large number of military lives but also caused extremely serious civilian casualties and property damage, leading to horrific humanitarian disasters. Expert Witness Pinpoints Floyd's Final Breath and Dismisses Talk of Overdose (New York Times) - A pulmonologist told jurors that Derek Chauvin pressed 86.9 pounds onto the neck of George Floyd, who tried to push himself off the pavement with his fingertips. George Floyd died of low level of oxygen, medical expert testifies; Derek Chauvin kept knee on his neck 'majority of the time' (Washington Post) - Several prosecution experts refuted defense claims that drugs and Floyd's health contributed to his death.

Policy News

WEBINAR: Developing effective employment policies for the new way we work
Employment law is radically different than it was a year ago, and many businesses may need to update their policies to better reflect the new work environment we are in. Salt Lake based SixFifty worked with the law firm Wilson Sonsini to update over 50 employment policies that account for the COVID pandemic, vaccines, and a workforce that's more remote, mobile, and diverse.GOED announces Sunwest Bank to grow in Utah
The Utah Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) is pleased to announce that Sunwest Bank will be expanding its office in Utah, adding up to 63 new high-paying jobs in the state in the next five years. GOED announces Denali Therapeutics adding a Utah office
The Utah Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) is pleased to announce that Denali Therapeutics, Inc. plans to open an office in Utah, potentially adding up to 100 new high-paying jobs in the state in the next 10 years. Ten Utah student body presidents endorse carbon dividends climate plan
Student government presidents from colleges and universities across Utah are calling on Congressional leaders to act on climate change and support the bipartisan solution known as carbon dividends. In a letter sent to Utah's Congressional leaders today, ten Utah student body presidents--who represent more than 180,000 Utah students--called for lawmakers to recognize and respond to the urgency of the climate challenge and champion solutions that both protect the environment and strengthen the economy.Are Californians to blame for Salt Lake's rising housing and rental rates?
The Utah Foundation has released a series of Significant Statistics on the relative importance of housing affordability among Utah voters, noting the steep increases in housing prices and rental prices.

Business Headlines

500 million LinkedIn users' data is for sale on a hacker site (CNN) - An archive including user IDs, names, email addresses, phone numbers, genders, professional titles and links to other social media profiles was being auctioned off on the forum for a four-figure sum. However, the database for sale "is actually an aggregation of data from a number of websites and companies" and not a breach. The guy who started the GameStop mania will soon be chairman of the board (CNN) - GameStop said Thursday that it planned to nominate Ryan Cohen, whose investment firm RC Ventures owns a nearly 13% stake in the company, to be its next chairman. Amazon union organizers deflated as vote tilts against them (AP) - With nearly half the ballots counted Thursday night, 1,100 warehouse workers had rejected the union while 463 voted in favor of it. US jobless claims up to 744K as virus still forces layoffs (AP) - The Labor Department said Thursday that applications increased by 16,000 from 728,000 a week earlier. Before the pandemic erupted, weekly applications typically remained below 220,000 a week.

On This Day In History

(From History.com)

1865 - Civil War Ends and the Black Hawk Indian War begins in Utah. It was the longest and most destructive conflict between pioneer immigrants and Native Americans in Utah History 1917 - Irene Morgan Kirkaldy is born. She defied a bus driver in 1944 who ordered her to give up her seat and move to the segregated back then kicked the sheriff when arrested. Her actions led to a SCOTUS decision that outlawed segregated seating on interstate bus lines. She was awarded the Freedom Medal by President Clinton who said she "took the first step on a journey that would change America forever" 1939 Marian Anderson sings an Easter Sunday concert for more than 75,000 at Lincoln Memorial 1945 - Anti-Nazi theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer is hanged at Flossenburg, only days before the American liberation of the POW camp. 1959 - NASA introduces America's first astronauts. 1996 - The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission files a lawsuit on behalf of over 300 women who had been sexually harassed at the Mitsubishi Motors plant in Normal, Illinois. 2003 - Baghdad falls to US forces 2018 - Senator Tammy Duckworth becomes the first US Senator to give birth while in office.