This afternoon, the Legislative audit subcommittee met to discuss the findings of two recently completed audit reports. The first focuses on the Park City School District and the second helps identify 12 key issues facing the state.

Across the state, hundreds of thousands of students are heading back to school. But for those students who may be experiencing homelessness or other economic disadvantages, this can be a particularly trying time. To help better address the needs of these students, the Legislature has allocated funding that can be used towards the creation of “Teen Centers” within schools. One of the leading organizations behind this movement is the Utah based advocacy group, the Policy Project. Joining us in this episode to discuss how these teen centers will help students is the Director of Policy for the Policy Project, Mary Catherine Perry.

Utah’s measured, all-of-the-above energy policy has powered decades of prosperity by providing some of the most reliable and affordable energy in the country. Recently, the Utah Legislature has been applying common sense solutions to push back on federal regulatory overreach that threatens our ability to provide power to our state, fuel our economy, and maintain a high quality of life for the people of our state. Joining us today to discuss some of the challenges we are facing in our energy sector, is the Chair of the Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology Interim Committee, Representative Carl Albrecht.

Each year during the general legislative session, college students from schools across the state are selected to intern for our Representatives. This is a unique experience that allows them to get an up close and personal look at the legislative process while working on-on-one with their assigned Representatives. Joining us today to talk more about this experience are two of our House interns from this previous session, Clara Eccles and Anna Van Noy.

Utah is fortunate to have one of the most beautiful Capitol buildings in the country. Though it serves many purposes, ultimately this building belongs to the people of our state — and there is a whole team of dedicated civil servants working behind the scenes to make sure our citizens can continue to enjoy this building for generations to come. Recently, our Capitol plaza has undergone some changes, including the ongoing construction of the newly reimagined North Building. Joining us in this episode to discuss the future of our Capitol Complex is the Director of the Capitol Preservation Board, Dana Jones and the Assistant Director over Special Projects, Michael Ambre.

Want to learn more about the future of Utah baseball? In this episode of our House podcast, Rep Ryan Wilcox and CEO of the Larry H Miller Company, Steve Starks, join us to discuss the possibility of a Major League Baseball team moving to Utah.

The recent announcement of Congressman Chris Stewart’s intention to resign his seat in Utah’s 2nd Congressional district will result in a vacancy in Utah’s federal delegation. To address this vacancy and ensure Utah remains fully represented in Washington, this month the Legislature convened in a special session, where they voted to pass a bill which establishes election processes and protocols for a Special Election this fall. Joining us in this episode to discuss what changes were made to this year’s election process is the bill’s sponsor, Representative Cal Mussleman.

Given the fast-paced nature of the Legislative Session, our lawmakers rely heavily on the help and support from Legislative Staff Offices to answer policy and legal questions in the bill drafting process. Today, we are taking another look into the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel. This office is responsible for drafting and processing all legislation, performing policy analysis, providing legal counsel, and staffing legislative committees on Capitol Hill.  Joining us in this episode to talk about the lifecycle of legislation, as well as his role in the office of Legislative Research, is our managing associate general counsel, Michael Curtis. 

Here in Utah, we have a part time citizen Legislature, with our general sessions lasting just 45 days. Although those 7 weeks are extremely productive, sometimes unique circumstances arise that require the Legislature to convene in special session to address pressing needs of the state. Last week, our legislators met for one such special session and passed a series of bills necessary to deal with challenges that have arisen since the end of the General Session in early March. Joining us in this episode to give a recap of that special session and shed some light on why the Legislature and the Governor believed it to be necessary is Representative Val Peterson. 

This past winter has defied all expectations and broken every known record of precipitation here in Utah. While we are grateful for this much needed moisture, it brings with it an increased chance of flooding. Many Utahns have already experienced firsthand the potential dangers this additional spring runoff brings. Joining us today to talk more about the risks we face and what this flooding means for the state is Director of the Utah Division of Water Resources, Candice Hasenyager and our Utah State Engineer, Teresa Wilhelmsen.