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Utah Senate passes convention-facility funding plan after substitute fights and intent language
Summary
After hours of debate and failed substitute proposals, the Utah Senate passed a revised funding package for Salt Lake convention facilities (First Substitute Senate Bill 211), adopting intent language that requires a $10–$15 million contribution from Salt Lake City and changing the transient room tax revenue split.
The Utah State Senate on Feb. 28 passed First Substitute Senate Bill 211, a funding package for convention facilities that clears the way for renovation and expansion of the Salt Palace and the Sandy Expo Center. Sponsors and opponents spent more than an hour debating competing substitutes that would have altered which taxes fund the project and how much counties outside Salt Lake would keep.
Senator Jenkins, who led floor efforts to protect revenue for other counties, proposed substitutes that removed the car-rental tax from the bill and adjusted the transient room tax (TRT) rate. "This would...remove the car rental and bump the amount they could charge to 2 percent," Jenkins said during floor debate, adding a fiscal estimate that the change would raise about $5.5 million in 2006 and $5.7 million in 2007.
Senator Thomas framed the debate as a fairness issue for neighboring counties, warning that taking the county's historical share of car-rental tax "will force those counties to make up that revenue by increasing their taxes." Thomas argued the substitute that preserved some county shares was a "pretty good compromise." Senator Allen and others objected to late substitute language introduced near the end of the session, saying they had not had time to study the fiscal ramifications.
A later amendment offered by Senator Kilpack adjusted the revenue split that had been under discussion, moving the counties' share from a 70/30 split to 85/15 while keeping the TRT at 1 percent, a change Kilpack said she supported despite reservations. After voting down several substitute attempts, the Senate approved the amendment and ultimately passed the first substitute as amended by roll-call vote (19 yes, 10 nay).
Senator Wadhams, sponsor of the bill on the floor, also successfully offered "intent language" the Senate adopted. The intent language requires Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County to execute a memorandum of understanding under which Salt Lake City would contribute at least $10,000,000 but not more than $15,000,000 toward the Salt Palace expansion on specified timetables (with payment options through 07/01/2011), and directs the parties to consider an interlocal agreement under state interlocal cooperation law.
The Senate order sets implementation conditions and timelines for the city contribution and directs the language be spread on the journal. The amended First Substitute Senate Bill 211 as adopted now advances to the House for further action under the agreement reached on the floor.
What happens next: With the Senate's passage and the adopted intent language, the measure moves to the House for concurrence and any further interbranch negotiation. The Senate recorded the final passage for the first substitute of SB211 and left adopted intent language in the journal as a procedural commitment.
