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Utah Republican policymakers are focused on voter confidence ahead of the 2025 legislative session following an election year that highlighted intraparty division over ballot access and mail-in ballots.

Among top legislators and lobbyists there is a general understanding that the state’s 10-year-old primary process, known as SB54, which permits primary qualification via state convention or signature-gathering, will remain in place.

But key players have opposite ideas of how to increase trust in this unique election system.

House Speaker Mike Schultz and House majority leadership told the Deseret News on Tuesday they support legislation that would require voters to return their ballots at an in-person polling location with ID.

They said that eliminating reliance on signature verification, ballot curing and the U.S. Postal Service will remove reasons of concern for voters and candidates in close races.

Election reform activists Stan Lockhart and Taylor Morgan, as well as the father of SB54, former Sen. Curt Bramble, suggested at a Sutherland Institute event on Wednesday that they support lowering the signature threshold for primary qualification.

This would reduce the role of out-of-state money and signature-gathering firms in Utah GOP primaries while keeping elections accessible to the greatest number of Utahns possible, they argued.

The disagreement between these two approaches is whether the state should prioritize restricting how people vote to maximize security, or prioritize increasing ballot access to maximize voter participation.

What Utah voters say would increase their trust

A new poll presented by the Sutherland Institute at Wednesday’s election policy event found strong trust in Utah elections and identified several ways lawmakers could strengthen trust more.

The poll, conducted by Y2 Analytics, surveyed nearly 1,000 registered Utah voters shortly before and after the 2024 general election. It found that 54% of respondents were “very confident” that their ballot would be, or had been, counted accurately in Utah and that 29% were “somewhat confident.”

Utahns’ overall trust in election results rose from 83% to 87% when asked to rate their confidence in ballot accuracy at the state level.

“To us, what this said is, there isn’t really a big crisis of confidence in elections, at least when you go out to talk to average voters themselves,” said Derek Monson, the chief growth officer at Sutherland Institute, a conservative think tank.

But a significant number of voters believe that policy choices being discussed this year could increase or decrease their confidence in elections, according to the poll.

The proposal that produced the greatest net gain in election confidence was requiring photo ID when submitting a mail-in ballot.

Over half, 51%, of voters surveyed said this change would make them either much more or somewhat more confident in Utah elections and 20% said it would make them less confident for a “net confidence” of 31 percentage points.

Other changes that produced a net gain in confidence were requiring mail-in ballots to be received by Election Day, with 21 points in net confidence; ensuring that election results are known on election night, at 18 points; and requiring election officials to send voters the results of election audits, at five points.

The policy change that produced the greatest net decrease in confidence in election results was requiring voters to cast ballots only on Election Day — 60% of respondents said this change would make them less confident, 19% said it would make them more confident for a total of negative 41 percentage points in net confidence.

Other confidence-decreasing measures include using artificial intelligence to help election officials verify voter signatures, requiring all voters to cast ballots at an in-person polling station on Election Day, and transferring election oversight away from the Lieutenant Governor’s Office.

Vote-by-mail … in-person?

Despite a constant drumbeat from GOP state delegates to repeal SB54, undoing Utah’s dual-path to primary qualification is not on the House Republicans’ “priority list,” according Schultz, R-Hooper.

But the caucus will still be pursuing reforms in response to complaints from losing candidates in the 2024 election cycle over the non-transparency of signature nomination packets, the unreliability of Postal Service postmarks and the subjectivity of ballot signature verification.

The state House Republican leadership team says they have a bill to eliminate these latter two complaints.

Under the proposal, Utah voters would continue to receive mail-in ballots a few weeks before Election Day. But, in order to submit them, voters would be required to travel to an in-person polling location during an early voting period and present a form of identification.

This would maintain the convenience for voters who like to research candidates with their ballot at home or who like the flexibility of voting before Election Day.

But it would also eliminate the opportunity for people to forge signatures on ballots, take the pressure off the Postal Service to meet election deadlines and remove the burden from county clerks of counting late breaking votes after Election Day and reaching out to voters to correct mismatched signatures.

“We’re not against the vote by mail overall, we just think there’s a better way to do it,” Schultz told the Deseret News and KSL editorial boards on Tuesday, pointing to a Pew poll from January 2024 that found 81% of U.S. adults supported requiring people to show government-issued photo identification to vote.

Schultz’ determination to reform vote-by-mail is the direct product of multiple legislative audits that have taken place since he passed a bill requiring them in 2022, he said.

One audit, released in October, found that over 4% of signatures used for primary qualifications were incorrectly counted or rejected. Another one, released in December, identified inaccurate voter rolls and a lack of statutory compliance by some county clerks.

Another major impetus for reforming vote by mail, according to Schultz and Majority Whip Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, was the extremely close 2nd Congressional District GOP primary where several hundred ballots were rejected with a late postmark at least in part because of Postal Service delays.

If all it takes to avoid uncertainty surrounding which votes will be counted is changing how mail-in ballots are returned, then the changes will be well worth the Legislature’s time, according to Majority Assistant Whip Casey Snyder, R-Paradise.

“The strength of our institutions and the strength of our elections is contingent upon people having total confidence in that,” Snyder said. “If there’s any way that we can improve that confidence and show people that there’s no question here, the better off we’re all going to be as a system.”

Raise or remove ballot obstacles?

Davis County Clerk Brian McKenzie and Utah County Commissioner Amelia Powers Gardner, who formerly served as Utah County Clerk, said the Legislature should be careful about blending mail-in ballots with in-person requirements.

County clerks would need an enormous amount of resources to staff in-person polling locations for 10-14 days prior to Election Day if all Utah voters are instructed to submit their mail-in ballots in-person, McKenzie said.

“It is a significant change for the voters, it is a significant cost impact as well for the taxpayers, and before we make any of those significant changes like that, we really need to make sure that this policy is data-driven and not perception-driven,” McKenzie said.

Swapping signature verification for in-person voter identification could potentially introduce even more human error into the process, Powers Gardner said.

When she oversaw elections in Utah County, Powers Gardner implemented a fast-cast voting pilot project that allowed voters to quickly drop off their mail-in ballots in-person.

Powers Gardner said the experiment resulted in more individuals wrongfully casting multiple ballots because of a lack of safeguards in the check-in and scanning steps that exist for ballots submitted via the mail.

House Democratic Whip Jennifer Dailey-Provost told the Deseret News that one of the minority caucus’ greatest concerns is that their Republican colleagues will capitalize on imperfections in the vote-by-mail process to limit who can conveniently vote.

“We have to be committed to making sure that everybody has the very best opportunity to vote, and any moves to curtail that availability is just anti democratic,” Dailey-Provost, D-Salt Lake City, said.

On Wednesday, the key players who were involved in negotiating the state’s compromise on primary elections agreed that the best next step for the election system is to give voters more candidate choices, not fewer ways to vote.

Bramble said an unintended consequence of SB54 was to create “a cottage industry for paying for signatures” to get on the primary ballot, which has divided the GOP and benefitted candidates with lots of money.

Bramble agreed with Morgan, the executive director of Count My Vote, and Lockhart, a board member at Fair Vote, that the best way to improve the state’s election system and increase trust is to lower the signature threshold to qualify for primary elections.

One bill made public on Tuesday would reduce the signature threshold for statewide primary races from 28,000 signatures to just 1,000.

Measures like this would broaden the number of choices available to voters and increase their ability to select the candidate who best represents their values, Bramble said.

“We shouldn’t fear the voice of the people,” Bramble said.

Utah is a place of opportunity — a state where families thrive, businesses grow and communities flourish. To ensure this legacy continues, we must plan for the future, particularly by preparing Utahns for the workforce of tomorrow. As our economy evolves, so must our approach to higher education.

Our state is fortunate to be home to some of the best universities, and Utah is ranked fifth in the nation for higher education. These institutions — recognized for their innovation, research and ability to turn out highly skilled graduates — provide all Utahns the opportunity to contribute to our economy and create the life they want to live.

However, even the best systems must adapt. Currently, critical industries such as health care, education, social work and technology face a troubling challenge: not enough trained workers are available to fill high-demand jobs. This issue is continuing to grow. In Utah, jobs in computer science, aerospace and defense and engineering are expected to grow 42%, 27% and 40%, respectively, in the next 10 years.

These shortages have real consequences — not just for businesses, but for families and communities across Utah. Companies struggling to find talent may look elsewhere, and our children may feel compelled to leave the state to find opportunities. It’s time to realign our education programs with industry needs.

Bridging the gap between industry and education

One of the most effective ways to prepare our students for success is by fostering stronger collaboration between higher education institutions and industries. Employers consistently highlight skill gaps in potential hires in areas like automation, robotics and systems engineering. They also emphasize the need for “durable” skills such as communication and time management, which reflects the need to reexamine our general education requirements to ensure they are appropriately focused and meaningful.

Addressing these gaps will require innovative approaches and more industry partnerships with universities. Involving professionals in curriculum design ensures students learn the skills employers need today — and tomorrow.

Another method for bridging the gap is by expanding internships, apprenticeships and other hands-on opportunities. Employers overwhelmingly view these experiences as essential, with 64% valuing internships for preparing students for the workforce. Programs like Stadler Rail’s apprenticeship model and Diesel’s Tech Pathway have already proven effective, with participants gaining direct experience and landing well-paying jobs.

Addressing program inefficiencies

While high-demand fields like nursing, accounting, software development and data science consistently produce strong outcomes for graduates and meet pressing workforce needs, other programs pose challenges. In 2022, four higher education institutions across Utah collectively graduated just 14 students in one program and 20 students in another.

One solution could be to consolidate low-enrollment programs into one or two institutions that specialize in them. This approach would reduce duplication that costs students and taxpayers while maintaining access to these niche fields for students who are passionate about them. By concentrating funding and faculty where they can make the greatest impact, we can enhance the quality of education of all programs while freeing up resources to address areas of critical workforce demand.

This initiative isn’t cutting education funding; it’s making every dollar count. By strategically prioritizing resources, we can ensure our students have access to programs that lead directly to rewarding careers.

Realigning higher education

This initiative isn’t cutting education funding; it’s making every dollar count. Our Utah universities must stay relevant and affordable for students, families, local industries, taxpayers and a continued prosperous future. By strategically prioritizing resources, we can ensure students have access to programs that lead directly to lifelong opportunities.

Nick Bjugstad believes he and his teammates have another level left to them.

They just have not been able to reach it.

Utah Hockey Club did not get enough from anybody in Tuesday’s 5-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens at Delta Center. It has left the team questioning how to emerge out of its slump — and specifically out of its second-period struggles.

“It’s not going the way we want right now,” Bjugstad said. “It’s time for everyone to look in the mirror.”

After carrying the play, earning a 2-1 lead and holding Montreal to three shots on goal in the first period, Utah — like it has often this season — looked like a different team in the second. And not in a good way.

“We’ve talked about it as a group — the second period as a whole hasn’t been great this season,” Bjugstad said. “We have to be better as players. We know what we have to do. It’s frustrating losing a game like that. Especially the way we came out in the first, I thought we lost our composure a bit.”

The Club spent six of the first 10 minutes on the penalty kill, could not sustain offensive zone time and allowed the Canadiens to walk right to the net without interference. That is what happened on Kirby Dach’s goal at 18:34 which gave Montreal a 3-2 lead after Patrik Laine tied the game earlier in the middle frame off the rush.

“It built up in the second period and instead of recovering, we got worse. That was the game,” head coach André Tourigny said. “Today we arrived in the second period — we were so good in the first — I don’t know for which reason we thought the second period would not be a fight or whatever.”

It is a curious pattern that Utah has not been able to shake through 43 games this season. Whether it’s a mental break, longer changes or losing gas in the defensive zone, The Club consistently finds ways to lose games in the second period.

“From myself and everyone, I think we’ve got way more. That’s about it,” Bjugstad said. “I don’t really have more of an explanation. It’s frustrating because we know we can be better. We know we could have a better record.”

Utah got reinforcements on the backend Tuesday with the return of John Marino but it did not change the outcome.

Marino — and a 2024 fifth-round pick — were traded to Utah in June from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a 2024 and 2025 second-round pick. The defenseman missed all of training camp ahead of undergoing lower-back surgery in October. Marino skated with the team for around three weeks leading up to his official game debut.

The Harvard University product logged 18:04 of total ice time and played the majority of the game on the third pair with Juuso Välimäki. All the d-partners rotated in the final stanza.

“It took a couple shifts to get your legs under you and just kind of the rhythm and flow of the game,” Marino said. “It’s tough, missing out on training camp and everything. But you’re able to come in and have a couple practices with everyone, be around the group as much as you can. Staff, organization everyone in the room has been great helping me.”

Before things unraveled, Josh Doan — in his third game with Utah since getting recalled from the AHL — gave his team a 1-0 lead while stationed in front of the net on the first power play unit. The 22-year-old forward jumped on the rebound of Clayton Keller’s initial shot and knocked it in at 2:11. Nick Schmaltz’s secondary assist on the play extended his point streak to three games.

Montreal was quick to respond. Mike Matheson weaved through Utah players while on the breakaway and tucked it past Karel Vejmelka to make it 1-1 at 3:18.

The Club regained its edge at the end of the first, just as its fourth power play of the period expired. Bjugstad’s back-handed shot on the left doorstep gave Utah a 2-1 lift at 19:06 and marked his first goal since Nov. 23 — and his fifth of the season.

The Canadiens’ two-goal second period put them ahead 3-2 going into the third.

Utah lost all rhythm.

“There’s no reason to have an excuse,” Tourigny said. “We need to show up in the second and be even better. Because you know the other side is going to push.”

While Logan Cooley tied the game 3-3 just over three minutes into the third period with a wrist shot from the right side (and his 12th goal of the season), Cole Caufield swiftly struck back with a tip-in tally at 6:33 for the 4-3 scoreline. Dach’s second of the night — scored at 16:15 of the third — sealed the 5-3 win for Montreal.

Utah has now lost four of its last five games, three of which have been on home ice. Points were hard to come by at Delta Center in December and things have not changed in the new year.

“When it’s times like this you just work,” Bjugstad said. “You’ve got to find ways to work.”

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Kirby Dach scored twice and the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Utah Hockey Club 5-3 on Tuesday night.

Mike Matheson, Patrik Laine and Cole Caufield also scored for Montreal, which has won eight of its last 10.

Lane Hutson added three assists for Montreal, and Alexandre Carrier had two. Sam Montembeault finished with 22 saves.

Logan Cooley, Josh Doan and Nick Bjugstad scored for Utah. Clayton Keller had two assists. Karel Vejmelka made 21 stops.

John Marino, who had back surgery in October, made his Utah debut after missing 42 games. Utah acquired him from New Jersey in June.

Takeaways

Canadiens: After a shaky start, allowing a 5-on-3 power-play goal at 2:11, Montreal went 1 for 6 on the power play.

Utah: Bjugstad’s goal with 54 seconds left in the first period ricocheted off Montembault’s back, but luck wasn’t enough for the win.

Key moment

Caulfield scored his team-leading 24th goal 6:33 into the third period, tipping in a shot from Hutson.

Key stat

After just three shots on goal in the first period, the Canadiens finished with a 26-25 advantage.

Up next

Utah hosts the New York Rangers on Thursday, and the Canadiens play the Dallas Stars on the road Thursday.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

It’s one win, but last Saturday in an 83-62 victory over Oklahoma State, the Utah men’s basketball team best resembled the version that one could have expected when the Runnin’ Utes saw an overhaul of their roster this past offseason.

That was by necessity, as Utah added length and versatility when graduations and key transfer portal defections left coach Craig Smith needing to fill several holes.

In the dominant win over the Cowboys — a much-needed victory after Utah had lost four straight — the Utes were particularly effective on offense.

“I really liked how we played at that end of the floor. I thought it was our most complete game on the offensive end,” Smith said.

Utah’s coach had been critical of his team’s turnover issues and poor shot selection in its first three games in Big 12 play. Against Oklahoma State, the Utes shot 55.6%, including 66.7% in the second half, while turning the ball over 11 times — a notable reduction when compared to their first few league games.

The Cowboys only scored nine points off those takeaways, one game after collecting 31 points off turnovers in a win over Kansas State.

“We took care of the ball. That’s a team who most of their offense comes off turnovers,” Utah’s Jake Wahlin said. “I think we’ve been growing in that sense, and it translates to the half court and transition, where we can take care of the ball, trust each other. It’s beautiful.”

Could the win help set the identity for a Utah team that is still searching for some consistency midway through the season?

It might not always be easy to see the improvement, considering the Utes are competing in their first season in the ultra-competitive Big 12 — and their first three league opponents were all in the top 20 in the NCAA’s NET rankings.

Last Saturday, though, the Utes showed off a more balanced offense than they had all year.

“We were able to get to the rim, we had some pull up stuff, obviously made some 3s,” Smith said. “Our volume was good. Just thought we took a lot of really good shots, made simple basketball plays.”

Early in the season, when Utah was waiting for three post players who weren’t available — two due to injury — the team was more prone to shooting a heavy amount of 3-pointers.

“We were able to get to the rim, we had some pull up stuff, obviously made some 3s. Our volume was good. Just thought we took a lot of really good shots, made simple basketball plays.”

—  Utah coach Craig Smith, on his team’s offense against Oklahoma State

As a byproduct of that, when the Utes faced more challenging opponents (i.e. Quad 1 or Quad 2 teams), they were often playing quick and not in rhythm on offense, leading to poor shot selection, as Smith explained.

Against Oklahoma State, that improved dramatically.

The Utes scored 55% of their points in the paint, including 44 of them on either dunks or layups. Utah’s 55.6% shooting percentage was its third-highest of the season, trailing only slightly its shooting percentages in wins over Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley State.

The Utes made 6 of 15 3-pointers, their fewest number of 3-point attempts this season.

Utah also made 17 of 24 free throws, including a perfect 7 of 7 in the first half, when it got off to a 12-0 start to the game and led 37-26 at halftime.

Smith was pleased with the balance his team showed offensively in the win over Oklahoma State.

“Having balance, I always say, is huge,” Smith said. “You’ve got to have some go-to guys, but you’ve got to make teams guard everything.”

This has been one of the top share-friendly offenses this season — the Utes are No. 2 nationally with an average of 20.5 assists per game.

Against Oklahoma State, though, it stood out how much Utah’s bigs sharing the ball in their free-flowing offense led to buckets. The Utes’ post players accounted for 14 of the team’s 23 assists (60.8%) in the win, including six from Lawson Lovering, three from Wahlin, two each for Keanu Dawes and Caleb Lohner, and one for Zach Keller.

Smith said Utah was able to use the Cowboys’ aggression against them, which led to Utah owning a 46-24 edge in points in the paint while consistently burning Oklahoma State with backdoor cuts.

“We felt like there’d be seams or openings in the defense as long as we didn’t turn it over,” Smith said. “A lot of these teams do load up, they come after you, and you’ve got to be able to make the right decision and the right play and then make them pay.”

It led to a big scoring night from several Utah frontcourt players.

Ezra Ausar led the Utes with a season-high 21 points, shooting 7 of 12 from the field and 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. Wahlin scored a career-high 16 points on 5 of 5 shooting, including three second-half 3-pointers as he found success working the perimeter.

Dawes, meanwhile, took advantage of a worn down Oklahoma State defense and scored a season-high 16 points, including 10 in the second half.

He also had nine rebounds, two assists and a block.

“I think we took a big step. I’m not gonna say that we’re 100% there, but we took a big step, taking it game by game, executing every week’s game plan,” Ausar said.

“It’s just about taking it a game at a time and not looking ahead, so we just executed this week’s plan. We won, so now, it’s really going on to the next.”

Utah has turned the page since the Texas Tech game

Both Smith and his players noted a difference in the team after Utah’s humbling 28-point home loss to Texas Tech on Jan. 4.

While the Utes still lost by 23 at No. 3 Iowa State three days later, Utah was within six against the Cyclones with 13 minutes to play and showed a physicality that wasn’t evident in its two Big 12 losses the week before.

“After Texas Tech, we came back that next day and we moved on,” Wahlin said. “We moved on to Iowa State and obviously, like (Dawes) said, the box score — they beat us by quite a bit, but we felt like we played a really good game most of that game and they’re a really talented team.

“But all throughout this week, I’d say Thursday and yesterday were some of our two most physical, toughest practices we’ve had, and we saw that carry over, and we have to keep that rolling.”

Smith went as far as saying last Thursday’s practice may have been the best since he’s been at Utah.

“We really built off of Iowa State, even though we lost box score-wise, but we really did a lot of good things, and just took what we did from then and the two practices leading up to this, just in the game, you can see how it came out and kind of dominated right away,” Dawes said.

So, can Utah can that momentum going when it picks things back up over the next few days?

Scouting the TCU Horned Frogs

Week 3 of Big 12 play for Utah includes a road matchup at TCU on Wednesday night (6 p.m. MST, ESPN+) before hosting rival BYU at the Huntsman Center on Saturday (7 p.m. MST, ESPN+) in the first of two regular-season meetings.

The Horned Frogs (9-6) are off to a 2-2 start in league play, including a 71-67 win over BYU last week at Schollmaier Arena. TCU is also 9-0 at home this season.

The Horned Frogs are fifth in the Big 12 in scoring defense, giving up 69.5 points per game. On the year, TCU is only allowing opponents to shoot 29.1% from 3-point range.

“Points are hard to come by. A lot of long possessions. They don’t make many mistakes defensively,” Smith said. “They make a mess out of the paint. They have great size. They have great physicality. You’ve got to earn everything with these guys.”

While Arizona State transfer guard Frankie Collins was lost for the season with a broken left foot, senior guard Noah Reynolds leads the Horned Frogs by averaging 12.5 points, 3.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game.

In the Horned Frogs’ win over the Cougars last week, Reynolds scored 21 points, including a go-ahead layup with 25.3 seconds to play.

“He plays at his pace. He just keeps you off balance,” Smith said of Reynolds. “He’s got every shot in the book. He’s just a really crafty guy, and he makes you pay when you make a mistake.”

In TCU’s victory over BYU, fellow guard Vasean Allette had 11 points and a season-high five assists. Reynolds and Allette had zero turnovers between them.

Center Ernest Udeh Jr. anchors the post for TCU by averaging 7.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.

Smith has some familiarity with TCU and coach Jamie Dixon, as the Utes played the Horned Frogs in nonconference play each of Smith’s first two seasons at Utah.

Utah lost both of those matchups.

“Jamie Dixon’s teams are always really good on the glass, so you’ve got to neutralize them and hopefully win the rebounding battle,” Smith said. “They’re bringing three to four guys, and you’re gonna have to play with a lot of force.”

When Sandy Hunter retired from her job in the Social Security Administration, she knew she would receive none of the benefits on which she built her career.

As a federal employee, Hunter did not pay into Social Security — but her husband did. At 73 years old, Hunter says those Social Security benefits are an essential part of her family’s joint income.

And if Gov. Spencer Cox gets his way, that essential income for thousands of Utah’s seniors could mean a little bit more this year. But first, the Legislature will need to agree to the governor’s wish.

Eliminating income tax on Social Security benefits is a key pillar of the governor’s $30.6 billion fiscal 2026 budget proposal, and “easily the most popular proposal” he’s made in four years, Cox told the Utah Taxpayers Association Tuesday morning at its legislative outlook conference. It’s what Utah needs to do to prepare for the “silver tsunami,” he said.

Eliminating the state social security tax would save Hunter’s family, and roughly 150,000 other Utah households, close to $1,000 per year.

“It can really make a difference,” Hunter said. “We would be really happy about it.”

Close to 450,000 Utahns receive some Social Security benefits, according to U.S. Census Bureau data and the AARP, but senior citizens in lower-income households — those who earn $75,000 or less as a couple, or $37,000 or less as an individual — qualify for full tax credits.

Cox’s proposal would impact around 152,000 taxpayers, according to the tax commission.

Cox, in his pitch to the Utah Taxpayers Association Tuesday, said the proposal is “one of those rare” ones “where people who don’t get any benefits are also excited” about it. The Legislature, which creates and passes Utah’s annual budget, will decide this session whether or not to grant Cox’s wish in the fiscal 2026 budget.

But while the idea may be “politically popular,” some lawmakers, like Riverton Republican Sen. Dan McCay, said they are skeptical of the proposal. McCay told the tax association that he’s wary of proposals that “carve aside” savings for “special groups” and those that potentially increase the tax burden for other Utahns.

“I’ve always believed in a broader base and a lower rate,” McCay said during Tuesday’s conference. “It’s better for the economy and better for taxpayers, and it’s more transparent … that’s why I’m a little bit concerned about the push to completely withdraw the tax on Social Security.”

Instead, some lawmakers have proposed tax rate reductions and income threshold expansions for tax credits.

One proposal for the upcoming 2025 general legislative session, HB130, looks to change the income threshold to qualify for a full income tax credit on Social Security from $45,000 to $54,000 for single people, and from $75,000 to $90,000 for couples. Another bill, HB106, wants to cut the state income tax rate from 4.55% to 4.45%, which would cost roughly $160 million, said Utah State Tax Commission Chair John Valentine.

Cox told the crowd Tuesday he supports additional tax cuts “if we can fit it in the budget,” and reminded attendees that his administration approved the largest tax cuts in the state’s history — a total of around $1.2 billion in four years.

“We got to do that because of the decisions that were made by previous administrations and previous legislatures,” Cox, a former lieutenant governor, said, “and, more importantly, by the private sector who have invested in our state and by the people who work here and work so hard.”

The 2025 legislative session begins Tuesday, Jan. 21.

Shannon Sollitt is a Report for America corps member covering business accountability and sustainability for The Salt Lake Tribune. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by clicking here.

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The Baylor Bears (14-3) will try to build on a three-game win streak when they host the No. 23 Utah Utes (13-3) at 8:00 PM ET on Tuesday, January 14, 2025 at Foster Pavilion. The matchup airs on ESPN+.

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In its previous game, Baylor beat Arizona State, 78-59, away. Its leading performers were Sarah Andrews (16 PTS, 45.45 FG%, 4-6 from 3PT) and Aliyah Matharu (14 PTS, 60 FG%, 2-3 from 3PT). In its previous game, Utah defeated Houston 69-42 at home, with Maye Toure (22 PTS, 12 REB, 66.67 FG%) and Gianna Kneepkens (15 PTS, 9 REB, 7 AST, 46.15 FG%, 3-6 from 3PT) leading the way.

How to Watch Baylor vs. Utah

Watch live women’s college basketball games from all over the country, plus ESPN originals and more NCAA hoops content on ESPN+.

Baylor vs. Utah Statistics and Rankings

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Baylor Leaders

• Darianna Littlepage-Buggs: 14.3 PTS, 10.3 REB, 1.2 STL, 52.2 FG%, 23.8 3PT% (5-for-21)
• Andrews: 12.2 PTS, 5.3 AST, 1.4 STL, 37.5 FG%, 37.3 3PT% (44-for-118)
• Jada Walker: 12.1 PTS, 5.5 AST, 1.4 STL, 45.6 FG%, 45.2 3PT% (14-for-31)
• Aaronette Vonleh: 13.7 PTS, 59.6 FG%, 33.3 3PT% (2-for-6)
• Yaya Felder: 11.7 PTS, 1.2 STL, 49.6 FG%, 42.2 3PT% (27-for-64)

Utah Leaders

• Kneepkens: 16.9 PTS, 1.1 STL, 49.4 FG%, 44.0 3PT% (44-for-100)
• Toure: 13.8 PTS, 1.2 BLK, 47.8 FG%, 36.1 3PT% (13-for-36)
• Ines Vieira: 6.3 PTS, 5.6 AST, 1.8 STL, 41.9 FG%, 27.8 3PT% (10-for-36)
• Reese Ross: 8.9 PTS, 1.2 STL, 56.2 FG%, 39.1 3PT% (9-for-23)
• Kennady McQueen: 11.2 PTS, 50.4 FG%, 42.9 3PT% (33-for-77)

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Local officials in Utah have issued permits for hundreds of thousands of new, non-apartment units in the past 30 years.

The Salt Lake Tribune analyzed a database maintained by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute and the Ivory-Boyer Real Estate Center containing permits issued by location, date, construction type and building type going back to 1994.

Here’s a summary of three major trends:

1. Salt Lake and Utah counties top the list

About 46% of all the new permits have been issued in the two largest Wasatch Front counties, with 23.84% in Salt Lake County and 23.74% in Utah County.

Washington County was third with 12.98% of permits, followed by Davis and Weber Counties with 11.91% and 6.08% respectively.

The state’s 24 other counties — mostly Cache and Tooele — accounted for a combined 21.44%, though there’s no data for Daggett County since 2011.

2. A big boom in a smaller city

Though Washington County doesn’t have the most permits when compared to other counties, its largest municipality, St. George, was the single town to receive the most permits in Utah.

Between 1994 and September 2024, officials issued 25,280 permits for 28,152 units in duplexes, single-family detached homes, condos and townhomes, according to the Ivory-Boyer Construction Database.

That’s about 8,000 more than the next-highest city, South Jordan.

A builder in the area credited that to southern Utah’s weather.

3. The suburbs are growing

Most of the construction in the state has been in the suburbs of the major metropolitan areas of Salt Lake City and Provo-Orem. Besides the state’s biggest southern city, the most permits in the past three decades have been near those population hubs.

Leading cities include South Jordan, Lehi, Washington, Herriman, Saratoga Springs and West Valley City.

Daryl Fairweather, chief economist for Redfin, said that’s common because the suburbs are where there’s land available.

It’s harder to get infill buildings approved in places like Salt Lake City that are mostly developed, she said, and “easier to come in and build cookie cutter on a big plot of land.”

Use the searchable database below to see the total number of permits from 1994 to last September and by year for the past decade.

Megan Banta is The Salt Lake Tribune’s data enterprise reporter, a philanthropically supported position. The Tribune retains control over all editorial decisions.