Monday, February 26, 2007

 

Today

 

Legislators have three more days this session to deal with proposed bills, including major tax and appropriations bills that may come up later today.

 

Floor sessions go from 8 or 9 am until as late as necessary, with a lunch break  and  a 5:00 Executive Appropriations Committee meeting if needed.

 

The House will address two child support bills.   HB 15, which suspends the driver's license of a parent who fails to pay child support, has passed both House and Senate, but a disagreement over when the bill takes effect must be settled.  Second Substitute SB 23 updates the guidelines for child support payments.

 

HB 361 appropriates $7.8 million to buy property for Southwest and Dixie Applied Technology Colleges. And HB 473 authorizes revenue bonds and other funding for several  building projects, including a warehouse for Utah Correctional Industries, dormitories at Southern Utah University, and a Lifelong Learning Center at Weber State.

 

The Senate will consider final approval for HCR 5, which encourages getting preschoolers ready to read by reading to them 20 minutes a day.  Substitute HB 273 delays the state ban on smoking in private clubs that are fraternal organizations, such as veterans organizations, until 2009 so that they can compete with other establishments that still allow smoking.

 

Fourth Substitute HB 108 gives the go-ahead to the Department of Transportation to study the need for east-west transportation corridors in Salt Lake County and counties of the second class. Limited access highways, improved arterial roads and multi-modal transit projects would be studied.

 

Also in the Senate, HB 176 forgives loans of nearly $6 million issued for disaster relief.  The loans were issued for flood relief in southern Utah. The repayments go into the Rainy Day Fund.  Substitute HB 242 aims to prevent Medicaid fraud, such as false claims or kickbacks committed knowingly and intentionally.  Criminal penalties would increase as the dollar amount of the fraud increased.  The state could also impose civil penalties.

 

To leave telephone messages, call the House at 538-1029, the Senate at 538-1035, or the Governor at 538-1000

 

Sandy Peck

League of Women Voters, 3804 Highland Drive 8-D, Salt Lake City UT 84106

801.272-8683     fax  801.272-5942 

www.lwvutah.org

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