2020 Legislative Session – Week 3 update

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

We have completed week 3 of the legislative session and it is hard to believe that we will hit our halfway mark on Wednesday! With only 57 bills passed at this point, we still have hundreds of bills we need to consider before we conclude the session. Here are some of the highlights from week 3:

Fallen Soldiers
During each Legislative Session, the Utah Senate honors families of Utah’s fallen service members on the Senate floor. It is deeply sobering to see so many people walking onto the Senate floor to represent family members who have passed away during the past year. We paid tribute to those left behind – parents, spouses, siblings, children and friends. 

Senate Art Contest
 
This week on the Senate floor, we recognized winners of our 6th Annual Senate Art Contest. There was no theme this year, which led to a wonderful variety of subject matter. The contest received over 250 submissions from 9th–12th graders throughout the state. Twenty students won $500-$5,000 scholarships. I am proud to announce that Eleanor Smith from Timpview High School was awarded a $500 scholarship for her piece, “Northern Harrier”. Winning entries are currently on display on the third-floor exhibit at the Capitol building. Congratulations, Eleanor, on your accomplishment!

My Bills

This week my bill  S.B. 67 Disposition of Fetal Remains seeks to give women the right to choose the final disposition of fetal remains following an abortion or miscarriage and requires the hospital or clinic to handle those remains in a respectful manner. There is a misconception circulating that this bill would require women to bury or cremate the aborted or lost child. This bill simply gives women the option to bury, to cremate or to make no decision on the final disposition of the fetal remains. Nothing is required of parents wanting healthcare facilities to handle the final disposal. This is an important bill because there is nothing in current Utah law protecting a woman’s right to make this decision in any clinic or hospital. This bill passed in the Senate this week and will now be considered in the House.

Budget

We continued to hear Requests for Appropriations (RFA) presentations in our appropriations subcommittee meetings each morning this week. 
In recent years we have implemented increasingly strict RFA submissions standards, requiring more detailed budget information, performance measures and prior state funding history. By requiring this additional information, we’re working to eliminate excess spending and unnecessary budget requests. 

After submitting all required documentation, legislators and groups sponsoring requests address assigned subcommittees to explain their budget requests and answer questions. After subcommittees carefully review all presentations, they submit priority lists to the Executive Appropriations Committee for final review and consideration before inclusion in the final budget bill.

Higher Education Governance

In an effort to better meet higher-education needs of both students and employers throughout Utah, S.B. 111 Higher Education Amendments proposes to create a unified system of higher education, bringing Utah’s eight public two- and four-year colleges and universities (USHE)  and Utah’s eight technical colleges (UTech) under the same umbrella. This bill aims to help Utah students in a variety of ways including allowing school credits to transfer seamlessly between all 16 state colleges and universities. This will protect students’ investments of time and money.

Merging the two systems will reduce overlap and duplication, provide better coordination, promote comprehensive strategic planning, and make administrative efforts more efficient. Stakeholders from both USHE and UTech were actively involved in the drafting of this legislation and shared their support publicly during the committee hearing. This bill passed out of the Senate Education Standing Committee unanimously with a favorable recommendation.

You can listen to the committee presentation here. 

Electric Driver License Amendments 
 
Nowadays we can use our phones for nearly everything—paying for groceries, electronic plane tickets, depositing checks, etc. Last year, as you may recall, the legislature passed a bill to request research on the ins and outs of issuing electronic driver licenses. This year we will consider, S.B. 110, Electronic Driver License Amendments which would require the Driver License Division to create a pilot program to initiate the process of issuing electronic driver license, and to later create a permanent process for obtaining an electronic driver license.  

150th Anniversary of Women’s Voting in Utah

This week we celebrated the 150th anniversary of women’s suffrage in Utah. On February 12, 1870, a law was signed allowing all women over 21 to vote in Utah Territory. The territorial legislature had voted unanimously in its favor, making Utah the second state to pass such a law. Two days later, on February 14, Seraph Young cast the first female vote in the country under equal suffrage laws. The 19th Amendment allowing women to vote throughout the United States wouldn’t be passed until 1920 — 50 years later.

To honor the 150th anniversary, on February 12, the Utah Legislature unanimously passed H.J.R. 12, celebrating trailblazing women of Utah and our state’s role in the women’s suffrage movement. Members of the Legislature wore yellow roses to commemorate the day.

What do you think?

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to represent you in the Utah State Senate. I hope you will reach out to me with your thoughts on the issues we are considering this session!
 
Thank you,
Curt Bramble
Senate District 16
 
Curt@cbramble.com
801-361-5802