Thursday, February 11, 2010

WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY

Today standing committees meet between 8 and 10 am, floor debate is from 10 to noon, and caucus lunch is from noon to 2 pm. Appropriations Subcommittees meet this afternoon from 2 to 5.

A press conference about proposed state and federal health reform is at 9:15 in Capitol room 240. Then at 11:00 time certain, Substitute HB37, which bars Utah implementation of federal reforms without approval from the Legislature, will be debated on the House floor.

IN MORNING COMMITTEES

HOUSE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS is considering HB116. It allows local governments to contract with qualified energy service providers for services that will reduce government energy consumption, water use, or sewage use. HB116 includes safeguards such as following the Utah Procurement Code, requiring investment grade energy audits, ability to secure necessary financing, and energy savings equal to the cost. Technical help would be available from state agencies like the Utah Geological Survey.

In HOUSE POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS, HB291 proposes that county and municipal land use ordinances apply to land owned by the federal government. The federal government would have to comply, to the extent allowed by federal law, with local ordinances when using or building on the land. Local governments lack jurisdiction over property owned by either the United States or the state under current law.

SENATE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES will look at medical malpractice bill SB145.
Beginning May 1st it decreases from $400,000 to $250,000 the total amount of non-economic (pain and suffering) damages allowed. Contingency attorney fees would be decreased for settlements over $100,000.

Also before Health and Human Services, SB44 would make legal immigrant children eligible for Medicaid or CHIP regardless of how long they have been in the country. Currently they must wait 5 years. HB200 spells out informed consent information women seeking abortions should be offered, including ultrasound images.

SENATE EDUCATION will hear SB59, calling for gang prevention policies in public schools, and SB150, requiring first, second and third graders to read at or above grade level before being promoted.

WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY

Kathy Van Dame Reporting:

Senator Stephen H. Urquhart's (R-St George) Renewable Energy bill SB104, which adds air compressed by renewable energy (for example by wind turbine power) to the recognized list of Renewable Energy sources, passed the Senate today unanimously with an amendment to ensure that renewable attributes are not double counted.

Utah Clean Energy supports this bill.

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Ann O’Connell Reporting:

HB102 Agriculture Sustainability Act, Rep. Jack Draxler, Cache County

This bill would create a mechanism for putting agricultural rollback taxes into a fund for agricultural conservation easements. I think of it as a Cache County bill because they have been trying to get the legislature to allow them to come up with some way to preserve farmland; however, any county could use the system.

Agricultural land already has green belt protection (Farmland Assessment Act) which means a lower tax rate. When this was instituted some years ago, a rollback was included which means that if a farmer sells or develops his land for a non-farm purpose (and profit) he must pay five years of the taxes he avoided. Actually quite a good deal for the farmer. In this bill those funds would go to a fund to buy conservation easements on other farmlands in the county. The money presently goes into the county's general fund.

HB102 was heard in the House NR/AG/ENV Committee yesterday morning. It ran up against several problems. First, it was 5th on the agenda, the bill is long and the room full of people who wanted to testify. It has been held by the committee and will be returned to. The next committee meeting is scheduled for Friday afternoon.

I talked to three gentlemen after the meeting and got the following information. (This is the value of being physically present at the legislature. Informal channels are more important than public statements.)

The state (and the legislature) would be reneging on the original deal for the Farmland Assessment Act (tax break for farmers and the 5 year rollback period). It had been a hard deal to finalize many years ago. Not only does the current bill abandon that historic bargain, the counties (and the taxpayers) are owed the money since everyone else who pays taxes has made up for the shortfall from farmers so the money should go to the general fund where it would have been in the first place. I am sure the committee will hear this argument next time they consider the bill.

But I was also told (by someone who would surely know) that the tax issue is not the real problem; it is that many NR/AG/ENV Committee members simply do not like conservation easements. The workings of the market place are often mentioned in this context.

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Anne Zeigler Reporting:

I sat in on House Action yesterday.

SB11 (Dayton) - Utah State-made Firearms Protection Act passed. This bill addresses not allowing federal gun laws to apply to firearms manufactured within the state for in-state use. Representatives Chavez-Houck, King, Johnson and Hansen voiced reasons against the bill: unconstitutional and will cost taxpayers for legal costs. Then the uprising started – from Representatives Powell, Sandstrom, Wimmer, Wilcox, Herrod, and Frank.

My analysis: This legislature is really hung up on federal government interfering with states rights and a we'll show them attitude! They say it's worth the money for a lawsuit, and Utah will join 10 other states in protest of federal control. Wow. Bill passed 55-16.

At noon I attended Senate Retirement and Independent Entities Committee to hear 3 bills:

SB43 - (Liljenquist) Post-retirement Employment Amendments. This bill modifies the Utah State Retirement and Insurance Benefit Act by amending provisions related to a retiree who returns to work for a participating employer and to maximum retirement allowance restrictions.

SB63 - (Liljenquist) - New Public Employees' Tier II contributory Retirement Act. This bill modifies the Utah State Retirement and Insurance Benefits for new public employees.

SB94- (Liljenquist) - Supplemental Benefit Amendments for Noncontributory Public Employees. This bill modifies the Public Employees' Noncontributory Retirement Act by amending provisions related to the supplemental defined contribution for certain employees.

Senator Liljenquist was at the microphone for over an hour explaining his bills. There was 20 minutes for comments from the public, which filled the room to standing room only with educators, firefighters, police, city employees, etc. Seventeen outfits wanted to talk with only time for 4 groups, so Senator Bramble said there would be another meeting Friday, Feb. 12 at 12 Noon in Senate Bldg room 210.

At 2 pm, I attended the Natural Resources Appropriations subcommittee for just a short time. The school trust fund people were really upset that they were not allowed access to their property in wilderness areas, i.e., Spring Creek Parcel and Red Spur Parcel.

Prior to this meeting I had discussed with Julie Mack, who is now the Wilderness Society director for Utah. She told me that although school trustlands are within wilderness areas, they still can be accessed. Will need to discuss with her further as the presenters were concerned that they were losing $1.5 million for development.

Sandy Peck