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Senate approves package of bills on education, elections, water and health; multiple items sent to House
Summary
On Day 23 the Utah Senate passed a batch of bills on third reading, including measures on education grants, election law tweaks, water-meter requirements and behavioral-health/Medicaid waivers; several bills passed unanimously or by large margins and were transmitted to the House.
The Utah State Senate cleared a large set of third-reading items on Day 23, approving measures spanning education, elections, water infrastructure, public health and transportation, and sending most to the House for consideration.
Notable outcomes reported by President Adams on the floor included:
- Senate Bill 28 (third substitute, election law revisions) — passed 27–0–2; removes a statement on the unaffiliated ballot and allows registration to run for state office at the Capitol.
- First substitute Senate Bill 60 (advice and consent amendments) — passed 26–0–3; extends time to review executive appointments and judicial candidates.
- First substitute Senate Bill 93 (math and science opportunities) — passed 25–0–4; sponsors said the bill refines program oversight and contains appropriation requests discussed in committee.
- Senate Bill 99 (school leadership development amendments) — passed 25–0–4; creates or clarifies grants for principal mentoring and coaching.
- Senate Bill 96 (Emerging Technology Talent Initiative) — passed 22–0–7; intended to build partnerships between industry and higher education to expand workforce capacity in AI, secure computing and biotech.
- Second substitute House Bill 50 (tax exemption for construction or unoccupied property) — after a floor substitute clarifying an attestation requirement, the bill passed (later reported as 27–0–2) and will be returned to the House for further consideration.
- First substitute Senate Bill 51 (secondary water requirements) — amended on the floor to add an exclusion if water quality voids meter warranties and to exempt certain county classes; passed 22–1–6 and will be sent to the House.
- First substitute House Bill 38 (substance use and health-care amendments) — floor amendment clarified county fiscal responsibility for preparing inmates for Medicaid enrollment; the bill was read a third time as amended and later action placed it on tabled third status for further fiscal consideration.
- House Bill 13 (children’s hearing aid program amendments) — extended the program’s repeal date; sponsors said funding is already in place and the Senate advanced it to third reading with a reported vote of 25–2–2 at the time.
Floor leaders also handled committee reports, rules assignments and the rules report approval earlier in the day. Multiple ceremonial recognitions and personal-privilege introductions of school groups and community leaders punctuated the session.
What happens next: Most passed Senate bills will be transmitted to the Utah House of Representatives for its consideration during this legislative session.
