Tuesday, October 19, 2010

THIS MORNING 

REVENUE AND TAXATION will consider new legislation about eminent domain and the use of tax revenue for funding public schools. Utah Foundation will present their study of income mobility in Utah .  Then four draft bills will be discussed: Severance Tax; Assessment, Collections and Refunds; Determination of State Taxable Income; and Corporate Franchise and Income Tax Amendments. Taxing refined petroleum products and refineries will be considered also. (Capitol 445) 

NATURAL RESOURCES, AGRICULTURE, AND ENVIRONMENT will explore makeup and member qualifications for boards that advise the Department of Environmental Quality.  After considering a Water Rights Study and the impacts of Uintah Basin air quality standards on the petroleum industry, the committee and state Energy Advisor Dianne Nielson will review state energy policy. (Senate 210) 

The HEALTH SYSTEM REFORM TASK FORCE will hear how Utah 's new health insurance exchange will serve all small employers and a limited number of large employers. HealthInsight will report on their demonstration projects streamlining the way health care services are delivered and paid for. The committee will be briefed on the basics of prescription drug distribution, pricing and rebates, and hear about Bid Rx, an online company connecting prescription drug buyers and sellers. (Capitol 250)

THIS AFTERNOON

In PUBLIC UTILITIES AND TECHNOLOGY:  After reports on cost recovery for renewable energy generation and adoption of the National Electrical Code, Rocky Mountain Power will explain projected demands for electricity and the challenge of providing it at reasonable cost.   An Office of Economic Development plan for a high-speed broadband computer network will also be considered.  (House 20)

The EDUCATION COMMITTEE will consider reauthorizing Voluntary Extended Day Kindergarten. Then the State Board of Education will report to the committee on a teacher quality pilot program with performance-based compensation and present their ideas about equalizing funding for education.  And a citizen will propose that extending school schedule would use school buildings more efficiently and save money. (Capitol 445)

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MORE MORNING COMMITTEES

WORKFORCE SERVICES & COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT will hear from the Department of Community and Culture about their digitization project.     The Department of Workforce Services will report on General Assistance benefits available to Utah Citizens. General Assistance unlike many government programs is available for individuals without children.  The Utah Foundation will share their research regarding economic mobility in Utah , and the Governor's Economic Development office will report on motion picture incentives. (Capitol 450) 

JUDICIARY, LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMNAL JUSTICE will hear a report from the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice about how to reduce DUI repeat offenders.  Corrections, the State Board of Education and the State Board of Regents will report on their plan to reduce repeat offenders as well.  The Department of Corrections will report on the number of state offenders housed in each county jail and incarceration daily charges.  Legislation will be proposed to make Utah 's death penalty law consistent with federal constitutional requirements and to clarify how many times a death penalty conviction can be appealed and paid for. Improving the quality of criminal defense for poor defendants is on the agenda, along with an assessment of custodial interference enforcement.  (House 30) 

TRANSPORTATION will consider the operation of bicycles and mopeds on roadways, proposed legislation about railroads and railroad crossings, and whether electronic toll information collected on High Occupancy Toll Lane customers should be private under the open records act GRAMA.  Traffic accident management, consideration of potential additions to or deletions from the state highway system, crash statistics and repeat DUI offenders will be discussed also.  (House 20) 

MORE AFTERNOON COMMITTEES

GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS & POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS in their oversight role will hear progress reports about rates and fees being charged by the Department of Administrative Services and about updating of the Utah Procurement Code by the Division of Purchasing and the Attorney General. They will discuss who should approve of disposing state real property if the value of the property is more than $500,000, or the property is of historical significance. They'll also discuss bonding of state officials by a State Risk Management Policy, draft legislation that would standardize per diem and travel expenses for state boards and commissions, and a proposed bill considering whether a municipality should be required to hold an election if a candidate is unopposed and the write-in period has expired.  (House 30) 

BUSINESS & LABOR will consider several draft bills about worker classification, shareholder action without meeting, business entity mergers, and fire prevention and fireworks.  They'll also review proposed substantive changes to the State Construction Code and to the State Fire Code.  (Senate 210) 

HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES will discuss whether to sunset a law about Licensing Non-Medicaid Nursing Care Facility Beds. They'll consider draft legislation regulating Pharmacy Benefits Managers and discuss whether to ask Medicaid for permission to provide services to individuals with autism. The state Insurance Department will brief the committee on "Medigap" insurance--commercial insurance designed to fill gaps in Medicare. Joining an interstate compact to allow prescription drug monitoring programs to share data will be considered also.  (Capitol 250)

--Sandy Peck