Day 6 2010 Session

Today has been a learning experience. HB 029 made off the House Floor and into the Senate Education Committee. I presented the bill in the committee and it passed out now to be heard on the Senate Floor. The learning experience has been this...know more about how the amendment process works. You can make great friends and then enemies if you don't do it correctly. I'm working to rebuild relationships both internally and externally. I still believe the bill is a good one and it won't change anything that is currently in place. Thanks to Senator Stephenson for working with me on this one. (Politics makes strange bedfellows.)

Up Wednesday in the House Education Committee, I'll be presenting my bill which would require sports officials at high school activities to have a background check.

Day Four 2010 Session

It is the fourth day of the 2010 Session. Committees are already hearing as many as four bills in two hour meetings. Today's work includes my committee meeting of Political Subdivisions which is hearing a bill on Impact Fees which can be charged by cities or towns to developers and concerns of those fees with regards to the local school districts.

I have meetings scheduled with a lobbyist and Legislative Research to work out some details on a bill which would require school sports officials to have a background check. There are always so many little details and possible unintended consequences when legislation is drafted.

I'm also working on getting my bill which passed this week out of the House through the Senate committee.

Goodness, it is only Thursday!

Day 1 2010 Session

Day one started different than last year. Not as much pomp and circumstance, no swearing in ceremonies, but a nice rendition of the National Anthem by a group from BYU. Speaker Clark gave his remarks about the work we will be doing and Supreme Court Justice Christine Durham gave the report of the Judiciary to a joint committee of both the Senate and the House.

Good news for me, however, is my bill dealing with school district division amendments was moved to the Third Reading Calendar. This bill comes with a recommendation from the Education Interim Committee. It is my first bill to make it to the Board. Hopefully, it will have debate tomorrow or Wednesday and move out into the Senate. Even though it has taken a full year to get a bill this far, it is very exciting.

Committee hearings start tomorrow and most bills will require a committee hearing. We'll be busy. Stay tuned!

2010 Legislative Session

The 2010 Legislative starts tomorrow. While I don't feel like the deer with the headlights shining on me, it is still a new experience.

Key issues that we'll be following this session include tax and revenue, education, health care reform, and health and human service.

Revenue projections from December were below the estimates and the Joint Appropriations Committee have met twice to discuss and propose cuts to the current year budget. These cuts are an additional 4% from the cuts of last years' general session.

Capital Facilities and Government Operations is the Appropriations Sub-Committee that I'm assigned. The budget cuts were presented to us from the departments that are involved and we accepted most of their recommendations. Many departments will experience furlough days rather than additional cuts to personnel. (Many don't have people left to cut!)

I'll work hard this session to keep this blog updated but feel free to contact by email at lblack@utah.gov or give me a call at 801-231-6538.

2010 Legislative Session

I've been working hard to get bills ready for this session. It is nice not to feel or look like a "deer in the headlights."

Appropriations Committees held their first meetings this week and the outlook is still grim with the projected revenues lower than anticipated in December. State agencies are all looking at another 4% in cuts.

I have pre-filed six bills this session. I was fortunate to have one bill come out of the Education Interim committee and hopefully that will be smooth sailing once the session starts. HB029 will require a primary election in school board races when their is a district split like happened in 2007 with Jordan District. While it will be impossible to put Pandora back in the box, we can look at revisions to this bill before this election happens again.

Thanks to all the constituents who are taking my legislative survey at www.votelaurablack.com. If you haven't done so already,please take a few minutes to give me your input.

I'll keep you updated as the session progresses.