Utah House advances major base budgets, including $2.1 billion higher education package

The Utah House of Representatives on Jan. 27 advanced a slate of base budget bills, approving a $2.1 billion higher education package and multiple agency budgets before adjourning.

Representative Mike Miles moved to uncircle House Bill 1, the higher education base budget, and offered Amendment 3 to reallocate funds from the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget to the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Institute for economic forecasting. "This HB1 higher education based budget bill appropriates and listen to this number $2,100,000,000 in fiscal year 2022 to Utah's public colleges and universities," Miles said in his presentation. The House adopted Amendment 3 and later passed HB1 (recorded as 72 yes, 0 no in the transcript); the bill was transmitted to the Senate for further consideration.

The chamber also uncircled and passed House Bill 4, the business, economic development and labor base budget. Representative Watkins introduced Amendment 2, described as technical cleanups with small funding items approved by the Executive Appropriations Committee; the amendment was adopted and HB4 passed and will be sent to the Senate.

Representative Sagers moved and the House adopted a first substitute for House Bill 6, the infrastructure and general government base budget, which the sponsor described as a holding bill with appropriations across administrative services, technology services, transportation, capital projects and debt service. Representative Seggers outlined fiscal totals and line items, and answered a member’s question about roughly $60 million in capital project funds by offering to provide project details after session. The substitute was adopted and HB6 passed (72 yes, 1 no as recorded).

Representative Last summarized base budgets for the Capitol Preservation Board, National Guard, Veterans Affairs and the Legislature, describing roughly $111 million in operating and capital appropriations; the House approved that measure and will transmit it to the Senate.

Other Senate third-reading bills were also read and moved on the floor. Senate Bill 24 (property tax revisions), SB35 (income tax domicile amendments) and SB36 (Tax Commission bond requirement amendments) were reported and passed by the House and returned to the Senate for signatures.

The House proceeded by voice votes or recorded tallies where noted and placed the passed bills on their way to the Senate for further action. Several members discussed funding sources and line-item adjustments; sponsors committed to share additional capital-project detail outside the floor session. The House adjourned to reconvene the next day.