Does Utah's court system need a transparency overhaul? State lawmakers think so

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz believes the Legislature's website makes it easy for the public to find bills, search voting histories, and access audio and video recordings from committee hearings and floor debates.

He now wants the state's court system to do the same thing.

Schultz, R-Hooper, is championing a bill that would require the courts to essentially replicate what the Utah Legislature has done online, including making legal records and audio recordings of hearings available to the public free of charge on a new database.

"The goal is to go back as far as possible," Schultz told KSL, "so everything's available to the public moving forward without having to pay the fees."

Currently, court records are available through the state's Xchange online court filing system, which charges a fee for searches and downloading documents. Those fees went up significantly on July 1, 2025. Audio recordings of hearings are available, but they cost between $10 and $15 per recording, and requests can take days to process.

This proposed new system under HB540 wouldn't be entirely free of charge, however. The bill does set a limit of 50 searches per month, after which a user would need to pay a fee. Schultz said he envisions this applying more to law firms and others that conduct searches for business purposes.

It's unclear what it would cost to create this new database. Tania Mashburn, a spokeswoman for the Utah State Courts, said the judiciary is "doing an analysis of the infrastructure and funding that would be required for the database and technology portion of this bill."

"We're not sure what that will be yet, but have been in close communication with legislators throughout the process," she said.

Schultz said lawmakers are still working with the courts on various parts of the proposal, including how to respect the privacy of victims of crime while still increasing transparency for public records.

The bill sponsor, Republican Rep. Logan Monson of Blanding, said it would also direct the Judicial Council to set rules for judges to file financial disclosures, similar to what lawmakers already do.

"The state deserves to have the best system in the country, I believe, and I think we have the ability to do that," Monson said. "This is a small piece in just showing that we're all going to be on the same level and transparent in what we're working on."

This is one of multiple bills dealing with the courts this session, including several that are opposed by the Utah State Bar. Tensions between the legislative and judicial branches have ratcheted up in recent years following rulings on abortion and redistricting.

Schultz has previously called the courts the "least transparent" branch of state government. He said he got the idea for this bill following a KSL report last year about a sentencing hearing that 7th District Judge Don Torgerson presided over.

During that hearing, Torgerson twice referred to the defendant's "privilege" as he decided not to require him to serve any additional jail time or pay a fine for possessing and distributing multiple images of children being raped and sexually abused.

Schultz blasted the judge and called on him to resign, but Torgerson is still on the bench. In defending Torgerson, the Utah State Courts said the judge was following the state's sentencing guidelines. Schultz said he tried to investigate the judge's past comments and decisions, but it took "several weeks" to get what he was asking for.

"A regular member of the public couldn't get that information," Schultz said.

In addition to the new online database, HB540 also includes a "cooling-off" period restricting former judges from working for law firms that are suing the state for at least two years after leaving the bench. Schultz criticized several former Utah Supreme Court justices who are now employed with firms that have been involved in litigation over issues like abortion policy, transgender athletes and age restrictions on app stores.

"Now they are private attorneys that have walked off the bench and (are) suing the state of Utah and asking their former colleagues to rule on cases where they're benefiting financially from it," the speaker said. "We think that's wrong, and we think that's part of the problem, to be honest with you."

The Utah State Courts did not comment on that specific provision of the bill.

HB540 was introduced and has not yet received a committee hearing. The legislative session ends on March 6.

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