Well, it proved to be a fairly slow week in committee and on the floor during week 2, but big things were happening behind the scenes. Most notably, this week marked the final week to number and title all bills – that means we now know all the bills that are out there and will be actively looking at each piece of legislation to determine the impact on local government.
In addition, the week also included the unveiling of the much anticipated HB70 Immigration Reform Bill by Rep. Sandstrom. While the bill has changed significantly from the original concept, it still has a large enforcement component that will impact local governments. The ULCT was asked to assign a fiscal impact assessment to the bill, which we did. Conservatively, we anticipate the impact to be approximately $11.5 million on cities and towns in Utah. The number was analyzed by the fiscal analysts office and was determined to be prudent.
So, what do we expect for this week; there are a few things already taking shape. One, the committee process should start speeding up as time become more and more of a factor in the session. In addition, the simmering issue of townships/double taxation/and county services is also on tap for this week with a large meeting of all the cities in SL County and the County governing body getting together today to discuss all of the surrounding issues.
We will begin doing midweek reports this week as well since things will likely start speeding up.
As usual, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call or write.
