Utah House advances package of Senate bills; measures on child-welfare, DNA testing, transit and Medicaid housing pass

The Utah House of Representatives advanced and in most cases passed a package of Senate bills on third reading during a busy floor session that included votes on child-welfare expungement, post-conviction DNA testing, transit governance and a Medicaid housing coordinator.

Representative Snow, the House sponsor for Senate Bill 266 addressing Division of Child and Family Services appeals, told the chamber the measure creates a process for expunging certain agency reports. "The bill provides that within 1 year, if the report is made and was made without merit, then it can be expunged," Snow said, and explained that DCFS would adopt rules to implement the timelines. The House approved SB 266 70-0; the bill will be returned to the Senate for the president’s signature.

On post-conviction testing, House sponsor Representative Eliason described Senate Bill 76 as a change in legal standard that would make DNA testing more accessible to people who claim wrongful conviction. "This bill, Senate Bill 76, is a very important step in helping an individual who's been wrongfully convicted prove that they have been wrongfully convicted," Eliason said. The chamber passed the bill 74-0.

Transit and governance reforms in third substitute Senate Bill 174 were the subject of an…