End of Committee Hearings This Session

Wednesday at the Capitol was the last day of committee hearings. This means there will no longer be public testimony on any bills. Some of the bills that were voted out of committee on Tuesday are the three anti-choice bills.  H.B. 171, Abortion Clinic Licensing, H.B. 353, Abortion Freedom of Conscience, and H.B. 354, Insurance Amendment Related to Abortions, all passed out of committee with a favorable recommendation. These bills are now set for debate on the house floor and will likely be heard on Thursday. 

On the immigration front, new bills continue to appear, including H.B. 466, Migrant Workers and Related Commission Amendments and a new version of H.B. 70, set to be revealed later this week.

There are only 6 days left in this session, we are counting down the days!

Instate tuition: The debate goes on.

Instate tuition for undocumented residents of Utah, has been a subject of great debate since Utah implemented the policy in 2002.  H.B. 191, Nonresident Tuition Waiver Amendments, will repeal the ability for undocumented college students who live in Utah to pay instate tuition. Thursday, H.B. 191 came to the House floor for a debate. During the debate, it became clear that many legislators, including several republicans, have issues with the bill.  Rep. Wright proposed an amendment to the bill that would require students to provide proof of payment of taxes for the previous year, by either the student, or the parent or legal guardian of the student. The amendment passed in dramatic fashion.  Because the vote on the amendment was so narrow, all Representatives were called back to the House floor for the vote. Rep. Kiser proposed another amendment that would extend the requirement of proof of payment of taxes to three years. In an attempt to stop this amendment and end the debate on H.B. 191, Rep. Wimmer, the bill sponsor, circled the bill. Nonetheless, Rep. Wimmer can uncircle the bill at any time, bringing H.B. 191 back to the floor for debate and a vote. Keep an eye on this bill as it could move at any moment. 

Senate Version of a Guest Worker Permit Would Violate Constitution

A Senate Committee passed out S.B. 60 S, "Pilot Accountability Permit Program and Identity Related Amendments," that would allow undocumented individuals in Utah to work. Despite its many constitutional flaws, this bill now heads to the Senate floor for debate. Marina Lowe, Legislative and Policy Council with the ACLU of Utah, testified in opposition to the bill before the Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Committee on Wednesday, February 23. 

Read the ACLU of Utah testimony >>
Read a Deseret News article >>
Read a KSL article >>
Read a SL Tribune article >>

Bill Threatens In-State Tuition for Some Utah Residents

Despite testimony by Marina Lowe, Legislative and Policy Counsel for the ACLU of Utah, urging members to vote against it, H.B. 191 “Nonresident Tuition Waiver Amendments” passed out of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee, on Friday, February 18, with a 10 - 5 vote. It will next be debated on the floor of the Utah House of Representatives before a full vote. Please contact your Representative and encourage them to oppose this bill. 

Read the ACLU of Utah testimony (PDF) >>
Read ACLU of Utah talking points and take action >>
Read a Deseret News Article >>
Read a Tribune Article >>

Immigration Legislation

Friday was a disappointing day at the Capitol on the immigration front.  H.B. 70, the Arizona copycat bill, passed out of the House of Representatives, with a vote of 58-15. H.B. 70, the enforcement-only, racial profiling bill, will now move to the Senate. Hopefully Utah Senators will be more aware of the dangers of this legislation and will move to block its progress in the Senate. We encourage all Utahns who oppose this bill to contact your Senators and tell them why they should vote no on H.B. 70.  Our talking points and testimony on H.B. 70 can be found at www.acluutah.org.

The ACLU of Utah also testified in a committee hearing on Friday morning to urge members of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee to vote against a repeal on instate tuition for undocumented students, H.B. 191.  Unfortunately, the committee voted to pass the measure out for debate on the House floor.  Stay tuned for more information on this bill.

Keep In-State Tuition For All Utah Residents

Stop H.B. 191, "Nonresident Tuition Waiver Amendments" 

H.B. 191, "Nonresident Tuition Waiver Amendments" will be heard in the House Revenue and Taxation Committee tomorrow morning. This bill seeks to repeal the current Utah law allowing non-citizens to be eligible for in-state tuition if they attended a Utah high school for three years or more, and graduated from a Utah high school. Please contact committee members and tell them to VOTE NO on H.B. 191.

Talking Points:

Utah's current law is critical to promoting fundamental fairness in access to public higher education for talented, high achieving young people who are able to gain admission to our public colleges and universities, regardless of their immigration status.

• Denying these students access to affordable college education is short-sighted because they are likely to remain in the United States and may well regularize their immigration status under current or future federal laws.
  
• Providing in-state tuition to Utah high school graduates at public colleges and universities promotes economic growth and increases opportunities. College graduates who are likely to remain in Utah earn higher wages, and therefore generate significantly more in income, sales, and property taxes. Their increased earning power and disposable income stimulate growth in our state's economy. A better educated population also increases competitiveness in the global economy.
  
• Denying higher education access to undocumented students means failing to capitalize on Utah's investment in their K-12 education. Many of the undocumented students already educated in the K-12 public school system come from impoverished backgrounds and would not otherwise be able to attend college or university without in-state tuition.

House Revenue and Taxation Committee
Committee Chairman Rep. Patrick Painter (R), Email: ppainter@utah.gov
Rep. Joel K. Briscoe (D), Email: jbriscoe@utah.gov
Rep. Mel Brown (R), Email: melbrown@utah.gov
Rep. David G. Butterfield (R), Email: dbutterfield@utah.gov
Rep. David Clark (R), Email: dclark@utah.gov
Rep. Tim M. Cosgrove (D), Email: tcosgrove@utah.gov
Rep. John Dougall (R), Email: jdougall@utah.gov
Rep. Susan Duckworth (D), Email: sduckworth@utah.gov
Rep. Julie Fisher (R), Email: jfisher@utah.gov
Rep. Gage Froerer (R), Email: gfroerer@utah.gov
Rep. Wayne A. Harper (R), Email: wharper@utah.gov
Rep. Eric Hutchings (R), Email: ehutchings@utah.gov
Rep. Brian King (D), Email: briansking@utah.gov
Rep. Merlynn T. Newbold (R), Email: merlynnnewbold@utah.gov
Rep. Jim Nielson (R), Email: jimnielson@utah.gov

Unconstitutional Guest Worker Bill Passes House Committee

Posted 2/16/11 - H.B. 116, "Guest Worker Program Act," passed out of  the House Workforce Services and Community and Economic  Development Committee yesterday after a vote of 6 to 1. Esperanza  Granados, Public Policy Advocate for the ACLU of Utah, testified  before the committee warning that the bill violates the 4th, 5th and  14th amendments to the U.S. Constitution.  Read the full ACLU of Utah testimony (PDF) >> Read a Deseret News article on the bill >> Listen to a KUER radio story about the bill >>