Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the State Legislation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Utah Senate advances wide slate of bills; education, child-welfare and Olympics measures move forward
Summary
The Utah Senate on Feb. 27, 2001, processed a lengthy concurrence and third‑reading calendar, agreeing with many House amendments, refusing others and appointing conference committees on key appropriations disputes; notable actions included passage of child‑welfare revisions, workers' compensation coverage for Olympic volunteers and changes to local government telecommunications authority.
The Utah State Senate convened Feb. 27, 2001, conducted roll call and then moved through a packed concurrence and third‑reading calendar, taking final action on a broad set of bills ranging from education funding to child‑welfare amendments and Olympic public‑safety measures.
A series of communications from the governor and the House opened the floor, including a notice that the governor had signed multiple measures. Early on, the Senate concurred with House amendments to Senate Joint Resolution 11, directing the state Tax Review Commission to study enforcement — not new taxes — on Internet and remote sales, a concurrence Senator Valentine described as a clarification of intent.
Budget and appropriations disputes continued. The House refused to concur with Senate amendments to the Appropriations Act (House Bill 1); the Senate then refused to recede and appointed a conference committee (Senators Valentine, Hilliard and Hale) to resolve a disagreement over a higher‑education surcharge.
On substantive policy measures, the Senate:
- Passed a child‑welfare package (Fifth Substitute House Bill 83) as amended after debate and a targeted amendment from Senator Hilliard that narrowed language on pleas in abeyance following no‑contest pleas; sponsor Senator Wright said stakeholders, including the Division of Child and Family Services, had agreed to the changes. The bill passed, 25–2 with one absent.
- Approved workers‑compensation coverage and exclusive‑remedy language for law‑enforcement and public‑safety volunteers and paid officers serving during the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (First Substitute Senate Bill 276). A sponsor described the measure as ensuring coverage for volunteers and officers supporting public safety during the Games; the bill passed on final passage (recorded as passing with a strong affirmative tally).
- Passed amendments to construction‑contract law (First Substitute Senate Bill 252) addressing no‑damage‑for‑delay clauses after reconsideration and floor debate; the bill passed by roll call (the recorded vote was 17 ayes, 12 nays).
- Considered several tax‑and‑local‑government measures. The Senate refused to concur with House amendments to SB 70 (redevelopment agency tax‑increment disclosure requirements), then formally asked the House to recede. The Senate also advanced House Bill 149 to prohibit certain municipal competitive advantages in telecommunications services, amending the bill to replace references to “television” with “telecommunications” and debating whether local governments could use taxpayer funds to establish telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas.
- Approved multiple consent items and commemorative bills, including a measure that designates Dec. 15 as Bill of Rights Day and Sept. 17 as Constitution Day in state statute (Substitute House Bill 133) by unanimous consent.
Throughout the session senators pressed for technical corrections, returned bills for Goldenrod or Goldenrod‑copy fixes, and handled routine procedural motions to circle, uncircle and place items on the second‑reading calendar. The Senate accepted several House transmittals and returned others for correction; it also appointed conference committees where House and Senate versions diverged.
On the floor, senators highlighted fiscal notes and funding sources when debating bills. For example, discussion of a DUI sentencing bill referenced a fiscal note (one senator cited $311,000), and the mental‑health licensing bill (House Bill 73) was discussed with reference to an $8,500 fiscal note before sponsors said the House had funded it.
The session recessed ahead of afternoon proceedings, with calendar scheduling continuing and a time certain set for further debate on the Applied Technology College governance bill, among other items.
What happens next: bills that the Senate referred back to the House will await action there or placement in conference committees where differences remain; the Appropriations Act dispute is now in conference. The Senate scheduled additional second‑reading business after recess.
