Utah Senate advances wide slate of bills on education, public safety, higher-education bonds and tax crediting

The Utah State Senate passed a large batch of bills Feb. 18, advancing measures on taxation, education policy, public safety and higher-education capital projects.

Lawmakers approved first substitute Senate Bill 133, a severance-tax revenue amendment that creates a restricted account to help fund agencies such as the Department of Environmental Quality, the Division of Air Quality and the geological survey and to support reclamation of abandoned mines. Senator Hinkins, sponsor, said the change responds to recent declines in extraction-industry revenue and will stabilize funding for reclamation and related studies. The Senate sent the bill to the House after a recorded floor vote; the chair later recorded the final tally as 24 yea, 0 nay, 5 absent (unanimous among those voting present at the time of the final roll call). (Provenance: SEG 349–SEG 401.)

The Senate also approved first substitute Senate Bill 143, which authorizes the Utah Board of Higher Education and state building ownership entities to issue revenue bonds for several campus projects at the University of Utah, Utah State…