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House Advances Prison‑education Pilot and Multiple Bills, Circles Others for Later
Summary
Alongside the bond debate, the House passed a prison higher‑education appropriation (House Bill 3 21) 63-2, approved second-substitute SB 78 on special-district training (59-5), and cleared several transportation, health and administrative bills while circling or amending school-inspection legislation for further work.
The Utah House handled a broad set of measures Feb. 24, 1999, passing a prison higher‑education appropriation, approving training and special‑district reforms, and advancing several Senate measures to the next stage of legislative processing.
Representative Pace presented House Bill 3 21, which the sponsor described as funding to support higher education for state inmates and to pilot downlink hookups to county jails. Pace cited independent evaluations and recidivism statistics, telling the House that inmates who complete higher-education courses return to prison at substantially lower rates; she also provided cost estimates for county downlink hookups (approximately $10,000 per site and $25,000 for ongoing support). The House passed the measure 63-2.
The House also passed second substitute Senate Bill 78, which creates a voluntary training mechanism and per-diem for special-district board members and allows small districts to combine membership; that measure passed 59-5. The chamber approved Senate Bill 138 to allow certain cities and counties to use design-build contracting for transportation projects over $50 million (67-1) and passed Senate Bill 41 (disease testing for at-risk emergency-service providers) unanimously.
Other items included a passage of SB 46 (reporting vacant state positions) by a 43-20 vote and procedural actions to circle and later uncircle Senate Bill 67 (inspections of public school buildings), which was amended on the floor to add provisions about mitigating traffic hazards.
Several committee reports and routine House business items were adopted, and the House adjourned to reconvene the following morning.
Ending: The House concluded its calendar with committee-adoption motions and adjourned under suspension of the rules until the next scheduled meeting.
