Utah Senate advances package of bills on newborn screening, energy incentives, mining loan and more

The Utah State Senate on Feb. 10, 2025, approved multiple bills addressing public health screening, environmental and recycling policy, energy incentives and a proposed loan to support a minerals processing operation.

The chamber approved measures including a bill directing newborn screening considerations, amendments to the state—annabis program, a plan to allow certain landfills to acquire shredding equipment for waste tires, changes to energy incentives for commercial wind and solar projects that add battery storage, and a proposed loan to a critical-minerals processor. Several bills were amended on the floor before passage.

Why it matters: The package affects a range of state responsibilities: newborn screening policy could expand conditions reviewed by the newborn screening board; changes to cannabis oversight alter enforcement and licensing procedures; the waste-tire measure seeks to address accumulated tires in rural counties by enabling local shredding and reuse as landfill cover; energy legislation aims to incentivize storage capacity to firm renewable output; and the minerals loan would support a near-term processing facility the sponsor said could fill a supply gap.

Most significant items and key debate

Legislative procurement and internal rules (Second Substitute, Senate Bill 143) Senators replaced the body of SB 143 with a second substitute that, the sponsor said, applies joint legislative rules and consolidates policy such as workplace harassment and procurement to the Legislative Management Committee. Sponsor Senator McKell framed the change as consolidating rules "to bring things into conformity to what's actually happening right now." The bill passed on a roll call, receiving 26 yay votes, 0 nay votes and 3 absent.

Newborn screening (First Substitute, Senate Bill 60) The Senate approved a bill that directs the Utah Department of Health and Human Services to add a screening for a rare condition called by its acronym in debate, PDCD, and to refer that possible addition to the state's newborn screening board. Senator Hinkins, sponsor, said the bill "requires the department of health and human services to screen newborns for a disease, which the acronym is PDCD." During debate Senator Balder (Baldery) questioned where the state draws funding lines for rare conditions, noting estimates that…