Legislation

HB48 removes protections for youth who interact with our criminal legal system and would allow minors to be placed in adult correctional facilities. This would change the current system that requires minors to be housed in a separate facility, respecting the known safety concerns that come with housing children in adult facilities.

HB295 helps protect individuals who want to report an overdose event, either for themselves or someone else, but may be afraid to face criminal penalties for substance abuse if they do so. This bill empowers prosecutors and courts to dismiss charges against individuals who help overdose victims if it's the individual's first time being charged with the offense and they plan to seek substance abuse treatment. This bill is a common-sense measure that could save lives.

HB331 makes blocking traffic or sidewalks with two or more people a third degree felony, which is punishable by up to five years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine. This bill also provides criminal enhancements for wearing masks during the commission of a crime, and creates a civil cause of action to sue people who block roadways or sidewalks. These penalties erode the public's ability to exercise their First Amendment right to protest and chill constitutionally protected speech. HB331 would make felons out of protestors.

HB392 proposes a new three-judge panel to hear selected cases against state actors. It would allow the Attorney General, Legislature, and the Governor to reassign cases against them to a three-judge panel, effectively giving the state actor party two bites at the apple when it comes to the forum that will hear their legal case. The other parties to the case do not have the ability to reassign their case to this panel. Additionally, the Legislature, Attorney General or Governor will be able to reassign pending cases, no matter the stage of litigation, to the three-judge panel, including high-profile cases currently against the Legislature including the abortion trigger ban and redistricting case involving Prop. 4. Given the Legislature's recent losses in the courts, changing the structure of our court system risks the appearance of the Legislature creating new rules that will favor them when courts weigh whether the laws it passes are constitutional.

This bill builds on HB300, which made significant changes to election adminsitration to roll back vote-by-mail and was passed during the 2025 legislative session. HB311 would allow poll workers to do signature verification even if the voter supplied the last 4 digits of their valid ID or SSN, if the poll worker has any reason to believe that the signature on the ballot return envelope is not the voter's signature. The bill also further limits the forms of ID that Utahns can use to register to vote, eliminating utility bills and bank statements as an option to prove residency.

HB294 will change current law regarding which private employers are required to use the E-Verify system to check the immigration status of its employees. Current law requires all private employers who employ over 150 people to do so, but HB294 will lower that number to 50 employees. The bill also cites criminal penalties for the use of fraudulent identification to obtain employment.

HB174 builds on SB16, the bill passed during the 2023 legislative session that largely banned gender affirming care for minors. HB174 would eliminate exceptions created in SB16 allowing individuals to continue care they were already receiving, and instead forces them to end their ongoing care y January 28, 2027. The bill also removes the requirement set forth in SB16 that the state must continue to review medical evidence regarding gender affirming care, essentially closing the door on the topic.

This bill would further erode the Judiciary's power, undermining the essential checks and balances in our government. The bill proposes a constitutional amendment that would allow the governor to nominate judges whether or not they were recommended by the judicial nominating committee. It also removes deadlines for appointments and the ability of the Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court to fill vacancies that the governor does not fill in a timely manner. If the bill is passed, the proposed amendment will be on the ballot in 2026.

HB197 expands on the prior sensitive materials law passed in 2024, Rep. Ivory's HB29. This bill would require schools to use automated filters in screening database and other online content and to immediately ban access to materials upon a "plausible" complaint. Like HB29, the bill would require the material to be pulled statewide once enough districts flag the same material, undermining local control over our schools. Additionally, under this bill, parents could sue schools and educational vendors, exposing local education agencies to legal liability that will in turn be covered by taxpayer dollars.