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Committee approves bill to create temporary daytime cooling centers for extreme heat
Summary
SB 182, sponsored by Senator Wyler, would create a 'code red' cooling-center trigger to provide daytime relief for people experiencing homelessness when heat reaches dangerous levels. The committee passed the bill and directed additional technical work to define the heat-index trigger and shelter types exempted.
The Senate Health and Human Services Committee unanimously advanced Senate Bill 182, a bill to create a ‘code red’ cooling-center requirement for counties to provide daytime shelter or cooling services to people experiencing homelessness when excessive heat creates health risks.
Sponsor Senator Wyler described the bill as a companion to Utah’s existing ‘code blue’ cold-weather shelter statute. Wyler said code red would be triggered by a high heat threshold to require cooling centers during daytime hours so individuals do not suffer life-threatening heat exposure. Wayne Niederhauser, who led stakeholder discussions during the interim, told the committee the bill will likely use heat-index strata (the National Weather Service “orange” heat-index level) rather than a raw temperature number; the working draft mentioned 105 degrees as a starting point for discussion. Niederhauser said the committee and sponsor will continue technical work with the National Weather Service and Department of Health to refine the exact trigger language.
Stakeholders discussed whether congregate versus non-congregate shelters should be treated differently; Niederhauser said non-congregate facilities such as converted hotels or micro-shelter sites may not be appropriate for expansion requirements and the bill may exempt non-congregate sites. Molly Wheeler of the Utah League of Cities and Towns testified that the League has technical concerns and will work with the sponsor and the Office of Homeless Services on clarifications.
Senator Stevenson moved passage; the committee recorded a favorable vote and advanced the bill to the Senate floor (recorded 4–0). Sponsors said some technical amendments are likely, including specifying the heat-index measure and a seasonal window similar to the current code-blue statute.
