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House passes package of bills on consumer protection, identity fraud, health and education
Summary
The Utah House cleared a suite of consent and floor items including a consumer protection cleanup, an anti-bullying resolution, strengthened identity-theft provisions, traffic code scheduling and multiple education and health measures; key votes included passage of a small-business health plan advisory bill after extended debate.
The Utah House of Representatives convened on Feb. 23, 2006, and approved a series of bills and resolutions covering consumer protections, education, identity-crime provisions and health-policy workgroups.
On the consent calendar, the House passed Senate Bill 147, a technical cleanup for the Division of Consumer Protection that clarified bond requirements and raised a disclosure fine from $1,000 to $2,500. The chamber also approved Senate Concurrent Resolution 1 encouraging school boards to adopt anti-bullying policies and Senate Bill 52 tightening criminal definitions for communications fraud and identity-related schemes; those measures were unanimous on final passage.
Other measures advanced included the House’s concurrence to Senate amendments to House Concurrent Resolution 4 supporting the Utah Highway Patrol’s use of white crosses as roadside memorials, and adoption of conference committee language on Senate Bill 148 concerning punitive-damage discovery rules.
On the House calendar, lawmakers removed House Bill 366 (traffic-code amendments) from the consent calendar so its printed fiscal note could be added, then later scheduled it for a 2:15 p.m. time-certain hearing. House bills on family law and ATM fee fairness also passed: HB 398 (joint-custody amendments) passed 66-0, and HB 365 (ATM fees) passed 69-3.
A longer debate produced a narrow 38-35 vote to pass the second-substitute version of HB 122, which creates a Small Business Health Plan advisory council charged with delivering an actuarially sound business plan for review in the 2007 session. Sponsors said the council will include industry and executive-branch appointees and two legislative liaisons; critics warned it risked creating an executive-dominated advisory body without sufficient legislative control.
The session ended with a failed motion to reconsider House Bill 360 and a recess for lunch. Several bills were referred to the Senate for further action.
