When the Utah House and Senate quickly passed a bill to restrict Utah’s open records or GRAMA law late last week, they seemed positive it was the right thing to do. Now, it’s a different story. Jeremy Votaw, a Salt Lake County Republican, is the creator of Veto477.com, an online petition that has picked up a lot of steam in the last 24 hours.
State school board candidates could soon be running as Republicans or Democrats. Senate Bill 224, sponsored by Republican Senator Howard Stephenson, was approved by the Senate yesterday. It creates direct, partisan elections for the State Board of Education. Currently, a 12-person committee nominates three candidates for school board seats, and the governor chooses two names that go on the ballot.
After a lot of compromise between the Utah House and Senate, and a late-night debate Friday, three Utah immigration bills are now ready for Governor Gary Herbert’s approval. KCPW’s Jeff Robinson talks with host Eric Ray about what the bills would do, if they get his signature.
A Republican lawmaker is fuming over a guest-worker bill that cleared the Utah Legislature late Friday night, attracting national attention for allowing undocumented immigrants to get a permit to work in Utah. Now, as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, Representative Chris Herrod says he’ll help anyone looking to sue the state over illegal immigration.
The Utah legislature may recall a controversial bill that restricts Utah’s open records law.
With four days left in the legislative session, lawmakers will be talking numbers, finalizing a budget for 2012 that will likely have minimal cuts and leave the state’s reserve fund mostly untouched. And as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle seem to be on board.
A “dirty” label has been attached to Salt Lake City by Forbes magazine. The publication ranked Utah’s capital city as the ninth most toxic metro area in the country. But as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, air quality hasn’t been a focus of Utah lawmakers during this legislative session.
The immigration bills passed by the legislature this session could set the stage for what several other states aim to do in the future. Republican Senator Curt Bramble, the sponsor of what is being called the comprehensive approach to immigration, says national immigration panels, conferences, and media outlets have been reaching out to see what Utah is working on.
Flavored e-cigarettes and other nicotine products aimed at ex-smokers are the target of State Representative Paul Ray, who’s trying to ban them to protect children from getting their hands on them. But two local ex-smokers say the products have changed their lives – and the lives of their children — for the better.
A bill that has gotten stuck in the Utah legislature is causing a conflict between two lawmakers on opposite sides of the aisle. Democratic Representative Janice Fisher’s HB 146 seeks to prevent Utah Transit Authority board members from being financially involved in the agency’s transactions. But it’s opposed by House Majority Whip Greg Hughes, chairman of the UTA Board of Trustees. Now, as KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports, Fisher is calling on the Attorney General to get involved.
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