University of Utah asks committee to clear cloud on Research Park title

The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Federal Lands heard testimony May 1 on H.R. 2,876, the University of Utah Research Park Act, which would remove a reported reversionary interest and clarify permissible uses of land the university has occupied since 1968.

Taylor Randall, president of the University of Utah, said the university acquired the land under a patent that has been interpreted as requiring university purposes consistent with the Recreation and Public Purpose Act (RPPA). He told the committee the Department of the Interior previously confirmed operation of a research park was a valid RPPA purpose in a 1970 letter but that recent Bureau of Land Management guidance has raised new questions about the park’s commercial, residential and transportation uses.

"Research Park has become a successful innovation hub for Utah," Randall said, adding the park is home to more than 50 companies and a workforce of more than 14,000 people. He asked the committee to vote in favor of H.R. 2,876 to "put this issue to rest and to provide guidance to both the university and the BLM."

Members described the land as an established, built research campus rather than undeveloped BLM land. Representative Malliotakis (identified in questioning as the gentlewoman from Utah) said the parcel "looks like a typical research park with many buildings and start up companies" and not "sagebrush" the BLM typically manages.

University and local witnesses said uncertainty constrains the university’s ability to upgrade facilities, plan housing and transportation improvements, and attract private investment; they warned that continuing ambiguity could harm students and jobs tied to the park.

No committee vote was recorded at the hearing; witnesses were asked to supply supporting documents into the record.