Monday, January 31, 2011

THIS MORNING

APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEES are discussing base budgets and supplemental requests from 8 to 10 AM.

In HIGHER EDUCATION a base budget followup, if necessary, plus budget information from the Utah System of Higher Education, are on the agenda.

NATURAL RESOURCES, AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY is examining budgets for the Public Lands Office and Divisions of Forestry Fire and State Lands; and Oil, Gas and Mining.

PUBLIC EDUCATION is considering Supplemental Recommendations for the current FY 2011 budget plus FY 2012 Base Budget Recommendations.

SOCIAL SERVICES will discuss and vote on Federal funds and their FY 2012 budget, and consider statutory changes needed to balance the budget.

This afternoon at 5:15 these SUBCOMMITTEES will begin reporting their budget adjustment requests to the EXECUTIVE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE in Senate Room 210.

FLOOR DEBATE is from 10 to 12 today, and lunch is from 12 to 2.

AT 1 O’CLOCK

The BUSINESS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND LABOR APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE meets to take action on their FY 2012 base budget.

STANDING COMMITTEES MEET AT 2 O’CLOCK AND 4 O’CLOCK

AT 2 O’CLOCK

SENATE WORKFORCE SERVICES AND COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT will look at SCR 2, designating February 20 through 27, 2011, as Utah Saves Week. It urges Utahns to increase their personal savings rate and recommends websites such as utahsaves.org.

The committee will also discuss HB 219, designating the Browning M1911 automated pistol as Utah’s state firearm.

In HOUSE TRANSPORTATION

HB 63 would increase penalties for turn lane violations that result in a death. Penalties include a $500 fine, and driver license suspension for from 30 days to 6 months.

SENATE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS AND POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS will discuss SJR 8, which designates February 6 as Ronald Reagan Day.

SB 123 would prohibit schools, school districts or charter schools from using state-appropriated money to pay a lobbyist.

AT 4 O’CLOCK

SENATE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES will consider SB 124, which makes it a class C misdemeanor to leave a child unattended in a motor vehicle under conditions that present a risk to the child’s health or safety.

HOUSE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS will hear HJR 2. The resolution asks Congress to call a Constitutional Convention to propose a Constitutional Amendment permitting the repeal of any federal law or regulation if the repeal is ratified by two-thirds of state legislatures.
HJR 2 states that Congress has exceeded its authority by encroaching on the powers reserved to the states and the people in Article X of the Constitution by accumulating debt and unfunded mandates on states.

ALSO IN COMMITTEE THIS AFTERNOON

AT 4:00 PM

HOUSE POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS will consider HB 226. It would forbid local government from charging fees such as the fee charged for law enforcement, fire protection and emergency services in unincorporated Salt Lake County.

HOUSE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS is looking at HB 31. It says that the right to vote after a misdemeanor violation of the Election Code can be restored when probation or parole is granted or a sentence is completed. In addition, that person’s right to hold elective office can be restored by expungement or by waiting 5 years.

HB 33 has several election law changes including: requiring county clerks to provide as many by-mail registration forms to political parties as they request, instead of basing allocations on how many votes a party’s candidates received or whether the party qualifies for the next election.

Regarding primary elections, HB 33 eliminates the requirement that pollworkers ask unaffiliated voters whether they want to affiliate with a party before they vote.

It clarifies who can write pros and cons for local government ballot propositions or referenda.

It changes the deadline from September 1 to August 1 for the Governor to certify two state school board candidates to go on the ballot; the date for notifying the Lt. Governor of the two candidates would be changed to September 8 from September 15.

HB 239 prohibits a political party from filling a candidate vacancy created by failure to file a campaign finance interim report.

Sandy Peck
sandypeck@xmission.com