Utah House approves package of Senate base budgets, schedules opioid resolution and backs Olympic exploratory committee

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah House on Feb. 6 moved forward a set of Senate base budget bills and other measures, voting to approve higher-education, economic-development, infrastructure and veterans budgets while scheduling further floor consideration of an opioid-related resolution.

Lawmakers acted under suspension of the rules to advance and approve multiple first‑substitute Senate budget bills. Representative Grover, the House sponsor for the higher-education base budget, described first substitute Senate Bill 1 as the annual higher education allocation: "For information purposes, this bill will appropriate $1,800,000,000 and change," he said, and noted the funding would come from a mix of the general fund, the education fund and dedicated credits (generally tuition). The clerk reported Senate Bill 1 received 68 yes votes when voting closed under suspension of the rules.

Representative Webb outlined first substitute Senate Bill 4, the Business, Economic Development and Labor base budget. Webb said…