Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — State lawmakers tackled several high-profile issues in the final hours of the 2023 general session, but also passed a slew of other bills that flew under the radar during the chaos of the last night.
Here are some of them:
Dissolving the Unified Police Department
Legislators voted to repeal language in state code that created the Unified Police Department in 2010. The department — an interlocal agency that serves several communities in Salt Lake County — will be dissolved on July 1, 2025.
Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera, who is also the CEO of Unified police, reluctantly agreed to support the bill after realizing that opposition to the department would continue to surface in future sessions.
HB374 gives the communities currently served by Unified time to create their own police forces, interlocal agreements or contracts with the sheriff's office for services.
Ticket fraud
SB138 will force ticket resellers to tell consumers whether or not the tickets they're offering have been purchased from the original seller and require secondary ticketing companies to follow specific website guidelines to be distinguishable from primary vendors.
The bill passed unanimously in the House Thursday after passing in the Senate earlier this month. The governor will receive the bill next for further consideration.
Suicide barriers in Utah jails
A bill that would provide grant funding for county jails to install suicide barriers, which are described as a kind of net blockade to prevent people from jumping off of tiers, passed for the second time unanimously in the House on Thursday after passing in the Senate earlier this month.
HB259 takes the "first step" in addressing Utah's high jail suicide rates, said sponsor Rep. Carol Spackman Moss, D-Salt Lake City.
Minor homicide victim identification
After two teenage boys were killed in a shooting at Hunter High School and family members say they learned about the deaths through news reports, lawmakers passed a bill that would prevent police from identifying minor homicide victims without their parents' consent.
The bill was opposed by the Utah Media Coalition — which includes KSL.com and Deseret News — which said it will decrease transparency.
Child sex abuse
Rep. Paul Cutler, R-Centerville sponsored a bill to change the term "child pornography" in Utah state code to "child sex abuse."
SB57 would also ensure child sex abuse material is treated and controlled similarly to other contraband items. It prevents further exploitation of child sex abuse material and determines guidelines that permit the viewing of child sex abuse material in a legal setting.
The bill adds "computer-generated" child sex abuse material to the list of illegal material.
