Keeping House

by Representative Kraig Powell

February 10, 2009

Two weeks into the Utah Legislature’s six-and-a-half-week session, several legislative proposals are shaping up as hot-button issues. I will be holding Town Hall meetings this week to hear your thoughts on these subjects and on any other topics that are on your mind. The Town Hall meetings will be held as follows: Friday, February 13 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Wasatch County Library/Senior Center in Heber City; and Saturday, February 14 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Crossroads Senior Center in Roosevelt. I hope you will come and share your views with me.

Legislative Ethics: Several pending bills propose to ban or severely limit the practice of lobbyists giving gifts and meals to legislators. Also on the docket are measures to require retiring lawmakers to donate any unused campaign funds to charity or political parties and the creation of an independent ethics commission to investigate alleged ethical violations. I support these measures, but my own pending ethics bill goes even further: I would place caps on the amount of campaign contributions a donor can give to a candidate and prohibit current officeholders from spending campaign funds for personal use.

Cell Phones in Vehicles: Several bills attempt to regulate the use of cell phones while driving. One bill to ban text-messaging while driving is already moving forward. Other bills aim to prohibit all use of cell phones by drivers. Some proposals contain exceptions to the ban if the driver uses a hands-free device while talking.

Alcohol Regulation: Governor Huntsman has proposed repealing the law that requires patrons to register as club members when entering a bar or private club that serves liquor. The Governor’s reasoning for the proposal is to make Utah more friendly for out-of-state tourists and in-state residents who drink alcohol. Opponents are concerned that removing this provision may lead to more drunk-driving, underage drinking, and alcoholism.

Same-Sex Initiatives: Bills have been introduced to prohibit firing a person from a job or evicting a person from rental property based on the person’s status as homosexual, heterosexual, bisexual or transgendered. Related bills would create a statewide domestic partner registry and protect unmarried partners’ rights to insurance, adoption, inheritance, and housing.

Illegal Immigration: Last year, the Legislature passed a bill denying certain public assistance benefits to undocumented aliens, requiring state agencies and contractors to more rigorously verify the legal immigration status of their employees, and enlisting local law enforcement officers in policing federal immigration violations. The law has a delayed implementation date of July 1, 2009. Legislation has been introduced to further delay the effective date of these measures for another year. Other bills would eliminate driving privilege cards for illegal immigrants and require aliens to certify that they are not employed before receiving in-state tuition rates at a state-run college or university.

Education Funding: In order to make public education funding more equal across the state and assist heavily-populated areas, several lawmakers from the Wasatch Front have introduced bills that raise property tax rates statewide to support education, but eliminate the ability of individual school districts to impose local levies to support their own district’s programs.

Sales Tax on Food: Many legislators are considering re-imposing the full sales tax on food (which was partially repealed two years ago) as a means to avoid cutting education and social services.

Cigarette Tax: Several bills propose to significantly increase the tax on cigarettes to help fill the state’s budget gap.

The legislative session is hectic and I still have much to learn, but I am doing everything I can to represent your opinions and desires at the Capitol. Please come to the Town Hall meetings to speak with me this week if you can. As always, you are also welcome to contact me at kraigpowell [at] utah.gov or 435-654-1550.