Week 4 Capitol Report:
Week 4 Capitol Report: Lawmakers Roll Back Protections While Pushing Nuclear Expansion
The Utah legislative session continues as we move into week three.
As Utah’s legislative session moves deeper into its fourth week, lawmakers are advancing proposals that would significantly reshape environmental protections and local decision making. At the same time, state leaders are placing a major bet on nuclear energy as a central solution to Utah’s future, fast tracking advanced reactor proposals while long standing concerns like water scarcity, and community safety remain unresolved.
This misplaced focus comes as legislators consider bills that weaken public health safeguards and strip cities of their ability to protect residents through local action.
The New
Several new bills were introduced this week, setting the tone for key debates ahead.
TAKE ACTION!
Reach out to your lawmakers and urge them to support this legislation. You can also sign up to provide public comment when these bills are heard in committee. Action details below.
This bill creates a state council and facilitates faster permitting of critical mineral mining operations by the Department of Environmental Quality and the Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining. HEAL opposes this bill because while permitting reform is needed, having faster permitting usually means that public engagement or public and environmental health protections are cut.
TAKE ACTION: Contact your Senators and urge them to vote NO!
his bill requires the Utah Department of Transportation to transition its commuter rail systems (e.g. FrontRunner) to hybrid-electric by 2031. HEAL supports this bill because this effort would decrease emissions from diesel-powered commuter rail systems and improve our air quality.
TAKE ACTION: Contact the House Rules Committee and urge them to assign the bill to a committee.
This bill expands the Utah Energy Council, names its co-chairs, and authorizes the Council to issue project-specific bonds to finance electrical energy infrastructure in designated energy development zones. HEAL does not support issuing bonds to projects that come at a risk for taxpayers and rate payers such as untested at commercial scale nuclear reactors. HEAL would also like to see an amendment made to expand the Council even further. 7 members is not enough to make energy decisions for our growing state. We ask for a public health expert, an environmental health expert, and an impacted community member.
The original version of this bill gives the Utah Public Service Commission (PSC) authority to participate in regional energy groups. HEAL supported the original bill because PSC involvement in energy and transmission planning is critical to protecting Utah ratepayers. However, the original bill was substituted before it was heard in committee to include new provisions that would have jeopardized the Utah Renewable Communities (URC) program, a program consisting of 19 communities working to achieve net 100% renewable energy. After considerable public pushback, the bill sponsor introduced a third substitute that scrapped the proposed changes to URC and instead clarified how customers can opt-out of the URC program. We support the 3rd substitute of the bill (current version), but will continue to monitor for any changes that could negatively impact URC. The bill passed out of the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee and now heads to the full Senate for a vote.
Updates to Good Bills
Here are the latest updates to good legislation we are following.
TAKE ACTION!
Reach out to your lawmakers and urge them to support this legislation. You can also sign up to provide public comment when these bills are heard in committee. Action details below.
HB 76 S1 requires new large data centers (larger than 10,000 sq ft.) to submit a water use report prior to beginning construction. It also requires annual water use reporting from large data centers, which will be made publicly available–a critical provision in our water-scarce state. HEAL supports this bill because it promotes greater transparency around water use.
It passed the full House with a vote of 72-0-3, and is now in the Senate Rules Committee waiting to be assigned to a standing committee.
TAKE ACTION: CONTACT YOUR SENATORS AND URGE THEM TO VOTE YES!
Another positive development is SB 176, which would require electric powered landscaping equipment for certain state maintained properties along the Wasatch Front. Gas powered landscaping equipment is a significant source of air pollution, and this bill moves Utah toward cleaner air and healthier communities. This bill passed the Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Committee.
TAKE ACTION: Contact your Senators and urge them to vote YES!
This bill redirects brine shrimp tax revenue to support the Great Salt Lake. HEAL supports this bill for water conservation and infrastructure projects that stabilize lake levels and reduce dust-generating exposed lakebed, lowering harmful dust that worsens human health. HB 247 passed the House Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee and is on its way to the floor.
TAKE ACTION: CONTACT HOUSE REPRESENTATIVES AND URGE THEM TO VOTE YES!
This resolution urged the U.S. government not to resume explosive nuclear weapons testing. HEAL was in favor of the resolution because it recognizes the lasting harm caused by nuclear weapons testing to Utah’s communities and that resumption of testing is unnecessary. We are deeply disheartened to report that the resolution failed this past week despite the real threat of restarting nuclear weapons testing.
Take Action: Email your legislator and tell them that you want to see this resolution pass in the future.
This bill makes it easier to investigate whether an individual evades a required vehicle emissions test.
This bill passed the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee and is being heard on the Senate Floor.
TAKE ACTION: Contact your Senators and urge them to vote YES!
Updates how state water infrastructure funds can be used, including funding water development projects and acquiring or leasing water to help support the Great Salt Lake. This bill has been held in the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee.
TAKE ACTION! Contact your Senators and hold them accountable. Question why the bill has been held.
This bill requires fugitive dust facilities (e.g. gravel pits) larger than a quarter acre to post signage outside of the facility that includes permit and contact information, and it also allows the Division of Air Quality to impose annual compliance fees on aggregate operations based on total emissions. HEAL supports the bill because it promotes greater transparency around aggregate operations.
This bill passed out of the House with a near unanimous vote, and now heads to the Senate
TAKE ACTION! Contact your Senators and urge them to vote YES!
Update to bad bills
Here is an update to the bad legislation we are tracking.
TAKE ACTION!
Reach out to your lawmakers and urge them to vote against this legislation. You can also sign up to provide public comment when these bills are heard in committee. Action details below.
This bill expands protections against civil and criminal lawsuits alleging damage from greenhouse gas emissions, effectively creating a shield against lawsuits aimed at holding companies responsible for emissions. This bill passed Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Committee
It now goes to the full Senate floor for a vote.
Take Action: Contact your Senators and urge them to vote NO!
This resolution declares Utah’s support for the advanced nuclear manufacturing industry. HEAL Utah testified against this resolution because nuclear manufacturing poses significant economic risks to communities, are unproven at commercial scale, and rely on long-term public subsidies.
This resolution has passed the House and Senate and has been signed by the Lieutenant Governor’s office for filing.
S.C.R. 1 This resolution expresses support for Utah to pursue expanded Agreement State status with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for additional elements of permitting and oversight within the nuclear fuel cycle. HEAL Utah opposes this resolution because it poses significant economic, health, and environmental risks given the unresolved waste disposal challenges that accompany nuclear development. This bill passed the Senate floor and is now in House Rules Committee.
TAKE ACTION: CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES AND URGE THEM TO VOTE NO!
This bill authorizes the Office of Energy Development to facilitate the development of nuclear fuel reprocessing in the state. HEAL Utah opposes SB 135 because nuclear fuel reprocessing is extremely costly, requires decades of government support, and creates high risks of radioactive exposure and nuclear weapons proliferation.
This bill has returned to House Rules due to fiscal impact.
The bill removes Utah’s authority to adopt stronger or more protective environmental and health standards than federal law, even when local conditions or public health concerns warrant stricter protections. HEAL opposes this bill because it limits Utah’s ability to protect communities from environmental public health threats at a time when federal regulations are being cut left and right. This bill is still on the Senate floor.
TAKE ACTION!: Contact your Senators and urge them to vote NO!
This bill is the legislature’s annual transportation omnibus bill, meaning it makes a number of changes to Utah’s transportation code. Most notably, it gives the Utah Department of Transportation final authority over certain Salt Lake City street design projects, in some cases preventing the city from adopting traffic calming measures. This could greatly impact the city’s ability to improve active transit infrastructure, including bike lanes and bus lanes.
This bill passed out of the Senate Transportation, Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology Committee.
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