Utah Senate passes Second Substitute Senate Bill 141 to change Task Force on Food Security meeting requirements

The Utah State Senate on its final day concurred with the House and passed Second Substitute Senate Bill 141, relating to a Task Force on Food Security, by a 22-7 roll call vote. Senator Escamilla moved to concur with the House substitute and described the change as removing a requirement that legislators attend three task-force meetings, saying it "makes it better" and allows legislators to participate voluntarily if they "deeply care about the food insecurity" in their districts.

Senator Escamilla, speaking in favor of concurrence, said the substitute removes the legislative attendance requirement for the three required meetings tied to the task force and emphasized that the bill still encourages engagement from legislators across districts. After a brief call for discussion and no floor debate, the Senate proceeded to a roll call vote. The clerk reported the bill had been read three times before the vote.

The roll call produced a final tally of 22 yea votes and 7 nay votes; the Senate confirmed the bill passed the body and directed that it be returned to the House for the Speaker's signature. The record as read on the floor included several named responses during the roll call; the final certified tally is 22-7 in favor.

The motion to concur was recorded on the Senate's concurrence calendar as "Second substitute, Senate Bill 141, Task Force on Food Security." The Senate's action was procedural concurrence with the House substitute; no amendments on the floor were recorded in the transcript of this session.

Next steps: The bill will be returned to the House for the Speaker's signature and any further processing required under the Legislature's rules.