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House adopts conference report on bonding package; later votes to recall bill for reconsideration
Summary
After extended floor debate over a $165 million bonding package, the Utah House adopted the joint conference committee report on Senate Bill 213 (47–25) and later voted to request the Senate return the bill so the House may reconsider and permit earlier bond sales while interest rates remain low.
The Utah House of Representatives adopted the joint conference committee report on Senate Bill 213, the capital bonding package, by a roll-call vote that sent the measure back to the Senate for further consideration. The House vote on the conference report was 47 in favor and 25 opposed.
The conference report—presented as the best compromise the committees could reach—packages bonding authorizations for university and public facilities and related capital projects after extensive floor debate about the proper size of the bond and the state's long-term fiscal capacity. Representative Proxman, who moved adoption of the report, described it as the most constructive outcome attainable at the close of this session and urged fellow representatives to support the compromise.
Supporters, including Representative Glenn Brown, characterized the proposal as an opportunity to invest in public infrastructure at historically low interest rates and to create construction jobs. Opponents warned about the maintenance costs and future debt-service burdens that larger bond issues would impose and cautioned against relying on optimistic revenue growth in coming years.
Later in the day, several members argued the House should reconsider the bonding bill promptly so the state could market the bonds while interest rates are low. Representative Lewis and others said achieving a 50‑vote threshold would allow bond sales now and could save the state an estimated “about a million dollars” compared with delaying issue. The House voted to request the Senate return Senate Bill 213 and then voted to recall the bill; the motion to recall passed.
The House’s formal adoption of the conference report and the subsequent procedural move to recall the bill represent separate steps: the first was a vote approving the report as the body’s action on SB 213; the second was a procedural request to the Senate to return the bill for reconsideration by the House on the prospect of an immediate bond sale. The Senate will need to act on the House request before any reconsideration or resale can occur.
What happens next: SB 213 was forwarded to the Senate after the House adoption; following the House’s recall request, the Senate must return the bill before the House may vote again on reconsideration or on any amended conference report.
