Proposal to livestream courtroom proceedings seeks $450,000 one‑time to pilot public access
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Summary
A senator and state court leaders proposed a five‑year pilot, hosted by Utah Education Network, to livestream public court proceedings with an initial one‑time appropriation of about $450,000 to build infrastructure and hosting.
State lawmakers and Utah courts discussed a proposal on Feb. 4 to pilot public livestreaming of courtroom proceedings across the state. Senator Dan Stratton introduced the concept and court officials described a five‑year arrangement with Utah Education Network (UEN) to host and distribute streamed hearings.
Why it matters: Proponents said searchable, public livestreams would increase transparency and give citizens easier access to court proceedings, particularly for those who cannot travel to courthouses. The court stressed the need for rules to protect vulnerable testimony and to define which hearings ought to be streamed.
Senator Stratton said the initial ask is $450,000 one‑time to pay for UEN hosting and infrastructure for five years; the courts would review the pilot and propose a smaller ongoing cost if the program continued beyond the pilot. State Court Administrator Ron Gordon said UEN could host servers and make streams available publicly without a fee. Carlos Packard, a technology entrepreneur, testified the proposal could support searchable public access and encourage the use of AI tools for transparency and public engagement.
Court leaders noted legal and privacy limits. Gordon told the committee the Judicial Council would need to develop rules about which proceedings to stream; he cited concerns about livestreaming some testimony, for example child testimony or sensitive sexual assault proceedings, even when the hearings are public. The proposal includes legislative intent language to sequence the pilot (envisioned to go live in the fall) and to allow courts time to craft streaming rules and exceptions.
The committee asked whether the streams would be behind a paywall; Gordon and Packard said the pilot would make livestreams publicly available without a paid subscription.
Ending: The courts asked for time to draft rule recommendations and requested the committee’s consideration of a time‑limited pilot. If funded, the pilot would be evaluated and adjustments made before any broad expansion of livestreaming.