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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Senate is seeking to reverse Park City's ban on plastic bags and advocates oppose a bill that would add significant registration fee increases for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
Here's the latest round-up of what's happening on the Hill:
Clean energy advocates decry proposed electric, hybrid vehicle fees
Utah Clean Energy and other entities that include Rocky Mountain Power are harnessing their opposition to a transportation funding bill that includes significant registration fee increases for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
"While this bill includes important provisions to increase funding for mass transit, we’re very concerned that the Senate is moving forward with the third-highest fee for electric vehicles in the United States," said Kevin Emerson with Utah Clean Energy. "This fee will deter electric vehicle adoption in Utah."
Sen. Wayne Harper's SB136, which includes a management overhaul of UTA and a mass transit tax, narrowly passed the Senate on a 15-12 vote Wednesday. It proposes a $122 fee for electric vehicles and $52 for plug-in hybrids, as well as registration fee increases for other vehicles. The bill now goes to the House for consideration.
Lawmakers advance bill promoting data collection on heart attack, stroke emergencies
The House Health and Human Services Committee on Wednesday passed a bill that would establish data registries with the Department of Health related to emergency visits for heart attacks or strokes.
Sen. Brian Zehnder, who is sponsoring SB150, said its purpose is to allow Utah health facilities to "collect demographic data for people who come to the emergency room (which) can then be shared with the Department of Health." Data detailing those patients' treatment would also be included.
The committee favorably recommended SB150 for the consideration of the full House of Representatives by a unanimous vote. The bill was approved unanimously last week by the Senate.
Utah Senate moves to nullify Park City's ban on plastic bags
A bill that would prohibit local governments from banning plastic bags was brought to back to life in the Senate on Wednesday afternoon after failing that morning. Sponsored by Sen. Gregg Buxton, R-Roy, SB218 has the effect of nullifying Park City's actions and pre-empting any other local governments from making similar ordinances in the future. The bill says "… a local government entity may not regulate, prohibit, or restrict the use, disposition, or sale of an auxiliary container (such as plastic bags); or impose a fee …"
The bill failed earlier in the morning by a vote of 13-10 but passed 16-12 in the afternoon. It now moves to the House for consideration.
Undergraduates show off their research at the Capitol
The Capitol saw 50 undergraduate researchers from Utah State and the University of Utah gather in the rotunda on Wednesday to show off their latest projects representing in science to sociology to literature.
At one booth, a pair of Utah State biochemistry students, Melena Garrett and Riannon Smith, said they successfully transplanted the gene-editing DNA known as CRISPR into common strains of E. coli. CRISPR is a naturally occurring defense mechanism against viral infection that is found in a range of bacteria. Scientists in recent years have been able to commandeer the CRISPR system and use it to snip out sequences of DNA anywhere in a genome and replace it with whatever genetic code they please.
Bill charging Utah cities for homeless shelters clears House
A bill backed by political heavyweights that would require Utah cities and counties not hosting homeless shelters and lacking affordable housing to contribute to other shelters has cleared its next hurdle.
After an hourlong debate and a failed attempt by a GOP legislator to cut out the requirement to bill cities and counties a collective total of $3.3 million a year, the full House voted 49-15 Wednesday to pass the bill. It now goes to the Senate.
Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, pitched a substitute to the bill to instead have the state pay the total $6.6 million a year rather than pulling funds from city and county budgets. She argued it unfairly "punishes" cities for a housing market issue and acts more as a "stick" than an incentive for affordable housing. Lisonbee's motion failed 47-18.
Contributing: Amy Joi O'Donoghue, Ben Lockhart, Katie McKellar, Preston Cathart
