The Week
Ahead
The holidays are over and it’s back to work for most
people. The beginning of the Legislature looms less than two
weeks away and legislative offices are getting busy in preparation.
Two legislative committees are scheduled this week, an important
meeting of the Medicaid Interim Committee on Friday (see
agenda), and the Senate Rules Committee, also on Friday
(see
notice). The Medicaid Committee will discuss recommendations
to be presented to the full Legislature. For all the week’s
political events, see the Utah
Policy Daily calendar.
Hughes Will Seek Mayorship
J.P. Hughes, MD, will announce his candidacy for Salt
Lake City mayor at noon, Jan. 4, at an open house at his home,
137 N. West Temple. The open house begins at 11 a.m. Hughes
has a web site at www.jphughesformayor.com.
TNC Working With
Farmers
Nice article
in the New York Times about The Nature Conservancy
collaborating with farmers in the Northwest to protect land
critical to wildlife. Similar efforts are going forward in
Utah.
The Nature Conservancy is also working with the Utah Department
of Natural Resources, the Utah Department of Agriculture &
Food, and the Utah Department of Environmental Quality on
a 2007 legislative initiative called the Land & Water
Reinvestment Act. If passed, it will fund watershed and rangeland
restoration, plus other land and water projects crucial for
wildlife habitat, cattle grazing, and preservation of working
farms.
Groups like Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, the Utah Farm
Bureau, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Utah Association
of Counties, and many other organizations are supporting the
legislation, which will be sponsored by Rep. David Clark
of Santa Clara.
ULCT/KCPW Radio Discussions
The Utah
League of Cities and Towns and public radio station
KCPW are
teaming up to host a monthly discussion on issues related
to local government in Utah. For a list of program dates and
topics for the early part of 2007, click
here.
Washington Watch
Bennett Reacts to Ford, Hussein Deaths
On his Senate
web page, Sen. Bob Bennett says of the death
of former Pres. Gerald Ford: "I am saddened
by the passing of President Ford, whom I knew best in his
position as Republican Leader in the House of Representatives.
He was throughly decent, dedicated to doing whatever was the
right thing regardless of Party, and always approachable.
He represented what is best in a public servant"; Bennett
says of the execution of Saddam Hussein:
"This sentence is appropriate justice for a vicious killer
of hundreds of thousands of his own people as well as many
others killed in wars started under his regime. The trial,
verdict and sentence were all carried out by the Iraqi government,
which I consider to have been the right venue for such events"
(see press
release).
Blog Watch
At Under
the Dome, Rep Craig Frank comments about government-imposed
fees as hidden taxes, and cites this Daily
Herald opinion piece by Mike Jerman, who is vice
president of the Utah Taxpayers Association. Educating
Utah says 2007 will be a pivotal year for education, with
unprecedented resources available. "I sense that 2007
will be a year when many Utah educators carefully examine
their lot in life and make decisions that, collectively, will
have tremendous impact on ALL of us. They will be asking themselves
"Should I stay or should I go..." Paul
Rolly blogs about blogs: "An anonymous blogger,
with the site, utahconservative.blogspot.com,
is becoming increasingly aggressive against Senate President
John Valentine, R-Orem, and Senate Majority Leader
Curtis Bramble, R-Provo, even suggesting that Valentine
should not be allowed to run next election as a Republican
because he broke the party's by-laws." Meanwhile, whoever
writes utahconservative says: "I will be leaving town
for some time, and will not be able to respond to anything
until I return." Plato’s
Cave lists dream headlines, "Supreme Court: Constitution
declared unconstitutional," among many others. Weber
County Forum discusses reasonable local ethics legislation.
Democratic
Caucus has a post by Jay Richards about party building.
Utah’s Top Issues
Here is our weekly issues list, generated by observing
what’s hot in the news media, what’s on the agenda
of various policymaking groups, and what’s being discussed
among opinion leaders and policymakers. We welcome suggestions
and input from UPD readers. E-mail daily@utahpolicy.com.
Hottest of the Hot
- Utah’s 2008 budget and big surplus; House/Senate/Governor
differences on tax cut/tax reform
- Real soccer stadium funding
- Tolling on highways
- Cyber-safety issues (cyber predators,
child pornography, identity theft, Internet scams, etc.)
Emerging
- School nurse shortage
- Education achievement gap of disadvantaged students
- Western states primary
- Snake Valley water pumping for Las Vegas
- SITLA land sale on Green River
- Minimum wage increase
Mature
- Downtown SLC massive construction
- Immigration
- Washington County land sales
- Open space funding
- Affordable heath insurance
Oldies But Goodies
- Banks/Credit Unions
- Highway funding
- Vouchers/School Choice
- Tax cuts vs. education funding/class size
- No Child Left Behind
- Healthcare reform/Medicai
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