The number of jobs in Utah has gone up two percent over the last year, according to new figures released by the Department of Workforce Services. The numbers show the state continues to add jobs in nearly every field, but as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, some are still trying hard to find work.
A war is raging over whether states can force out-of-state retailers to collect sales taxes on purchases made by their residents. For years, shoppers have been able to buy products out of state, whether through catalog or online merchants like Amazon, without paying sales tax. But as KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, some states and brick-and-mortar businesses are saying that’s not fair, calling on online merchants to pay up.
He’s not the first GOP candidate this has happeed to, and he likely won’t be the last, but former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman lost his campaign manager this week. Does this signal a big shake-up in the election, or is it just one of the many ups and downs of running for President? Every Friday, we talk with Thomas Burr, Washington Correspondent for the Salt Lake Tribune and author of Political Cornflakes, a daily, online round-up of Utah politics.
Although the bipartisan “Gang of Six” proposal has been getting a lot of attention in Congress, Republican Utah Senator Mike Lee says there is no real plan from the group on the table. Instead, he continues to hope for the passage of “Cut, Cap and Balance,” which the Utah Legislature supported in a resolution earlier this week. KCPW’s Jeff Robinson asked Senator Lee if he would reject any proposal except for “Cut, Cap and Balance.”
This November, South Salt Lake voters will have a choice: should they pay higher taxes to purchase the old Granite High School campus and give their community a space for recreation and civic events? The $25 million, 30-year bond would cost the average South Salt Lake homeowner $7 dollars a month, while businesses would pay more than $11.
State lawmakers sent a clear message to Washington in a special session Wednesday: Utah supports a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. But as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, some lawmakers thought the discussion happened in the wrong place at the wrong time.
A group of activists and state lawmakers rallied Wednesday afternoon during a special session of the legislature in support of repealing the guest worker law passed during the 2011 session. Brandon Beckham, who helped lead the effort to pass resolutions at the county and state GOP conventions, says the bill had warning signs from the start. He says those who voted for the bill and Governor Gary Herbert are traitors who will be held accountable in the 2012 election.
Utah lawmakers once again dove into the controversial discussion of reverting back to direct school board elections in a legislative committee this morning. A Democrat is pitching direct, non-partisan elections, which she says the general public supports. But as KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, others insist political parties should be involved.
Wednesday was not a good day to be the head of Utah’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Director Dennis Kellen was grilled by lawmakers on a legislative committee, like Senator John Valentine, over DABC losing $300,000 by shipping liquor to an Eden, Utah package agency that went bankrupt. The two had this exchange:
In March, the Utah legislature approved the creation of an advisory commission to study proposals to relocate the Utah State Prison away from Draper. But during a special session today, House Majority Whip Greg Hughes, the Representative who sponsored the bill, was back before his colleagues to change how that will work.
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