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Were unreported bonuses and raises given to state employees?Rumors have been flying around the Senate floor that bonuses and raises were given out from surplus funds that the Legislature was not aware of. Michael Waddoups, the Senate president, and Sen. Lyle Hillyard, Executive Appropriations Committee co-chairman, both said that the senate would check out the situation and see if the rumors are true. Hillyard said that there may be situations in which a raise might be warranted, such as if employees took on more work after a round of layoffs.
Sandstrom immigration bill rises like Lazarus
A bill that would have imposed sanctions on employers who don't use E-Verify to determine immigration statuses was not allowed to run by the House early Wednesday, but then came back from the dead. Rep. Stephen Sandstrom failed to file the bill by the Friday deadline, and as a result he brought it to the House to vote on whether it would run at all. The house voted 37-36 against. Several members of the house who voted against said that the House had already dealt with E-Verify and illegal immigration.
However, by the afternoon, Sandstrom found an alternate route to get the bill before the House - by attaching it to a file which was opened by Rep. Don Ipson, R-St. George. The bill would be called Employer Verification Amendments, and would require employers to verify the immigration status of workers with E-Verify, excluding agricultural industries.
Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, has sponsored a bill that would specifically outlaw online gambling. Gambling is already banned in any form by the Utah Constitution, but Sandstrom said that he feared not banning online gaming would open the door for Indian casinos in the state. A vote on HB108 was delayed for a financial impact analysis.
Collision between autism coverage and government mandates
Two proposed health care laws have competing interests, though they don't conflict directly. HB69 would require autism, Asperger's and similar disorders first diagnosed in childhood to be covered by health insurance like as most other medical conditions. SB138 would require the state to pay for increased costs for public education employees that might result from insurance mandates. That could mean increased costs for HB69 and jeopardize its ability to pass.
How is UTA responding to financial troubles?
The Utah Transit Authority's response to a financial audit that said it was "uncertain" whether they could afford to run the lines they are currently building. UTA officials told the General Government Appropriations Committee Tuesday that they are not looking for additional resources, and that they are "not projecting a future that will not happen." But the committee nevertheless wondered what the future will hold, and asked the agency to provide a five- to 10-year business plan.
Parent-provided school supplies
The Utah Constitution has been interpreted in the past to prohibit any form of school fees for elementary students, including providing school supplies. But in an effort to let parents to voluntarily provide those supplies if they wish, Rep. Kraig Powell, R-Heber City has written a bill that would allow teachers to provide lists of needed supplies, so long as the parents could opt out of providing them for any reason. The bill passed unanimously in the House and is on it's way to the Senate.
Contributing: Ladd Brubaker, Dennis Romboy, Molly Farmer, Marjorie Cortez
