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Utah House advances array of bills on juvenile protections, tobacco reporting, vehicle titles and more
Summary
On Jan. 30, 2002, the Utah House passed a bundle of Senate and House measures, including criminal-law changes for staff‑juvenile sexual contacts, tobacco reporting and contraband enforcement, streamlined vehicle-title applications, and education- and health-related items; S.B. 4 to reduce committee report requirements failed.
The Utah House of Representatives completed a busy floor day on Jan. 30, 2002, approving a series of Senate and House measures on topics ranging from juvenile protections and tobacco enforcement to vehicle-title procedures.
Lawmakers unanimously passed Senate Bill 11, which the sponsor described as a companion to a 2001 measure in the adult system that removes the consent defense for corrections staff who have sexual contact with people under state supervision. The roll call recorded 70 yes votes and 0 no votes; the measure will be returned to the Senate for its signature.
The House also approved Senate Bill 6 (vehicle-title application simplification), 66–0, changing title-application rules so a single named applicant may apply on behalf of multiple titleholders. Senate Bill 21 (motor-vehicle registration sentencing language) passed 68–0, and several other measures — including SB 18 (uniform withdrawal procedures for special districts) and SB 26 (serious youth-offender amendments) — received unanimous support and were forwarded to the Senate.
On tax enforcement, the House passed Senate Bill 7, a package of cigarette-tax-stamp and contraband provisions backed by the attorney general’s office. The sponsor told members that Utah receives about $30,000,000 a year from the tobacco master settlement and warned that insufficient enforcement nationally could reduce states’ payments through NPM adjustments; the bill, which tightens reporting and seizure authorities and adds penalties for nonreporting, passed 67–0.
The House adopted a clean-up measure affecting Workforce Services (SB 23) after adding a friendly amendment to include 'county executive' alongside county council members and county mayors in a membership list; the bill passed 68–0 and will return to the Senate for concurrence.
Not all measures advanced. Senate Bill 4, which would have removed the statutory requirement that certain reports be delivered annually to the Health and Human Services Interim Committee, was defeated on the floor by a 26–41 vote after sustained objections about weakening legislative oversight of programs with funding or policy implications.
Several other bills were handled on the calendar, including SJR 7 (in-session employee compensation, 69–0), SB 45 (allowing a birth certificate for stillborn children, 67–0) and SB 105 (repealers related to education mandates; school-nursing language was restored in the Senate amendment; SB 105 passed 68–0). A number of measures were read, circled or referred to committees for prioritization.
Most measures passed by unanimous or near‑unanimous margins, and those with recorded roll-call totals were publicly read and entered on the journal. Several bills will return to the Senate for signature or concurrence as required by legislative procedure.
