SALT LAKE CITY – For any legislative junkies who are still keeping score, Gov. Spencer Cox signed 73 bills from the 2023 general session of the Utah Legislature into law on Monday, Mar. 13.
That makes for a cumulative total of 102 bills enacted since the beginning of the Legislature on Jan. 17, without a single veto.
Four of those proposals were introduced by lawmakers from Cache Valley — two from Rep. Casey Snider (R-Paradise), one from Rep. Mike Petersen (R-North Logan) and one from Rep. Dan Johnson (R-Logan).
Snider’s new laws were House Bill 31 (Wildlife Resources Recodification Cross References) and House Bill 51 (Railroad Right of Way Amendments).
H.B. 31 builds on House Bill 30 (Wildlife Resources Code Recodification), also introduced by Snider, which clarifies and changes Title 23, the Wildlife Resources code of Utah.
H.B. 31 then changes relevant cross-references in Title 23 and makes technical changes to the law.
Pretty dry stuff, but still necessary.
Both H.B. 30 and H.B. 31 were co-sponsored in the Utah Senate by Sen. Scott Sandall (R-Tremonton).
On the other hand, Snider’s House Bill 51 was both newsworthy and very relevant to Cache Valley.
That bill authorized government entities to assess a railroad for any portion of the cost of public infrastructure improvements to the railroad’s right-of-way with their jurisdictions.
Even before H.B. 51 was enacted, just the threat of that legal change brought a previously intransigent Union Pacific Railroad to settle a longstanding dispute with Logan City over improvements to railroad’s right-of-way on 1400 North.
Cox also enacted H.B. 157 (County Office Consolidation Amendments), introduced by Petersen.
That proposal amends the requirements for a county legislative body to consolidate or separate county offices.
Specifically, the new law forbids a county council from consolidating the office of county commissioner, council member or treasurer with that of county auditor.
Further, consolidating the office of county executive with that of the auditor can only take place following a public referendum.
Counties are also forbidden to consolidate the office of county treasurer with that of a county commissioner, executive, assessor or auditor.
Finally, House Bill 400 (School Absenteeism Amendments), introduced by Johnson, was also signed into law.
Johnson introduced that proposal in response to what he called an “alarming” rate of chronic absenteeism by students in Utah public schools.
Aimed particularly at parents of younger students, H.B. 400 will encourage cooperation between parents, local education associations, the State Board of Education and juvenile social services to reduce absenteeism in public schools.
In the Senate chamber, H.B. 400 was championed by Sen. Ann Millner (R-Ogden), a former president of Weber State University and an equally strong proponent of public education.
Cox still has another 473 bills passed by the recent Utah Legislature to consider signing into law during the next couple of weeks.