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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Democratic Party used Monday's defeat of a clean air measure as an opportunity to soundly denounce the GOP-dominated state Legislature for its lip service on addressing pollution.
"With all the crying about how Utah needs to create 'Utah solutions' to our issues rather than letting the feds dictate policy to us, our Republican Legislature failed to vote in favor of a bill that would allow Utah to do just that," Peter Corroon said in a prepared statement.
Corroon, chairman of the Utah Democratic Party, said SB87 would have allowed the state to create standards that are uniquely shaped to the Wasatch Front. Instead, it died Monday afternoon by a 12-16 vote.
The measure was sponsored by Sen. Gene Davis, D-Salt Lake City, and was identical to a bill he ran in 2014 that repeals a law on the books since 1989 that prohibits Utah from passing rules "more stringent" than what the federal government has done.
Repeal of the measure has been a recommendation by Gov. Gary Herbert's Clean Air Action Team and a push by other groups that say it would give the state more flexibility to deal with Utah's air pollution problems.
The Utah Division of Air Quality says air pollution modeling studies that look at how fine particulate is formed and what reduction strategies work are largely based on East Coast scenarios and more flexibility would be ideal.
"The decision today was that we don't need to do anything about our air. It is a real tragedy when we hate anything to do with the federal government and yet at the same time will accept their minimum standards for our Utah air. In the meantime, I don't see our air getting any cleaner," Davis said.
Rep. Becky Edwards, R-North Salt Lake, has a measure on "different" or more stringent rules being adopted by the state — HB226 — but only if science and findings support them.
It passed out a committee unanimously but awaits action in the House. Email: amyjoi@deseretnews.com Twitter: amyjoi16
