Apr
Back In Session
The Utah Legislature is now into the fourth week of its six and a half week session. Thankfully, we have had only a few really divisive issues this session and so have been able to avoid the distractions and posturing that accompanied much of last year’s session.
That is not to say we are not addressing important legislation. Far from it. The abortion bills that died a quiet death on the floor of the Senate on the final night of last year’s session were resurrected and addressed early in this session. The first bill eliminates public funding for abortion and the second bans late-term abortions. Both have passed through the House and the Senate and are awaiting the signature of the governor. I heartily support both of these bills.
A bill was proposed which would exclude the option of death by firing squad for a felon convicted of capital murder. This practice has drawn a great deal of national and international media attention and has diverted the focus from the victim or victims to the perpetrator. Certainly, this is unfortunate and unintended. This bill will take the choice away from the defendant which was bad public policy. I was concerned about reports I had heard that death by lethal injection, the only other option for capital punishment, may be challenged in the courts. So, to avoid a situation where the state would be unable to carry out death sentences due to its only option being declared unconstitutional , I put forth an amendment that would reinstate death by firing squad should lethal injection be found to be unconstitutional. The bill is currently moving through the Senate.
Medical arbitration has been hotly debated both in and out of the Capitol. A bill passed last year allowed but, I would point out, did not require health insurance companies to mandate arbitration in cases of a dispute between a patient and a service provider. In response to public outcry and proposed legislation, IHC has voluntarily agreed to suspend their mandate that patients sign arbitration agreements or forego non-critical medical care.
Education funding is taking many forms this session including tuition tax credits which has yet to be debated in the House and the Jones/Mascaro bill. It is true that Utah currently ranks last in per capita spending for education. Certainly, we will never be toward the top of that list because of the number of school-age children our state has and will continue to produce. Our state constitution supports public education with 100% of income taxes and a large portion of property taxes. As the economy flourishes and jobs are created, funding for public education increases. We have all heard of the large projected influx of students projected over the next ten years. These children will not devoid of parents and, as the economy grows to support the growing number of parents, so too will the economy support education.
There are resources currently available to schools which we are working to better manage such as State Trust Lands. The APPLE initiative which would require compensation from the federal government for federal lands not sold per the original agreement between the state of Utah and federal government could also provide additional funding for education. Parental choice requires additional private funding into the educational system of our state.
It is critical to the success of our state that our children be highly educated. We do, however, have other needs such as roads, water, and other appropriate state services which need to be supported and considered. I will do all in my power to balance these competing interests.
This year, I am sponsoring nine bills and two resolutions. The resolutions, one supporting a lifetime retirement savings account and another supporting a self-directed social security retirement account, have the full support of the Bush administration and would, I believe, be excellent. Five of my bills relate to the construction industry - changes to the filing of preliminary lien notices and changes to bonding requirements. I am running a bill suggested by Spanish Fork City regarding weed abatement.
I have been surprised at the interest in two of my bills. HB 89 is entitled, “Special Group License Plate - Adopt - Choose Life”. Choose Life, Inc. is a national organization whose mission is to promote and facilitate adoption. Because of my personal experience with adoption, I wholeheartedly support this effort. However, the media has painted this bill as an anti-abortion measure. I have chosen to focus my attention on the positive aspects of adoption. In response, another legislator is currently running a bill for Planned Parenthood for another license plate entitled “Respect Choice”, setting up a potential court challenge. It may be in our best interest to limit specialty license plates to avoid this problem in the future.
HB 181 is an attempt on my part to require fiscal responsibility in the initiative process. We have all heard stories about initiatives which have been proposed to voters with an estimate cost. However, once these initiatives have been approved, costs have skyrocketed to three and four times the estimated costs. My intent in running this bill was to require any group proposing an initiative to spend the time to formulate an accurate estimate by stipulating that any initiative which exceeds its original estimate by more than 25% must go back to the voters. Because of current court challenges with two of the three different types of initiatives, I opted at the advice of the Office of General Counsel to address only the uncontested type of initiative which happens to be fluorine initiatives. Because of that controversial “f” word (fluorine), this bill has received incredible scrutiny through every phase of the process. Currently, it has passed through the House and is being discussed in a Senate committee. Although this bill is not intended to discuss the pros and cons of fluoride, only the financial implications of the process, fluorine initiatives are a very emotional issue.
This has been a busy session with a myriad of issues and bills. The fundamental principles of smaller government, fiscal responsibility, and strengthening the family continue to guide my actions as I serve in the House of Representatives. As I evaluate legislation this year, I do so in view of these important principles and tried to align my voting with them.
If you would like to discuss any issues or bills before the legislature, I would be happy to hear from you at mikemorley@utah.gov
