Annual Report Card on Utah Legislature

April 2025

PDF version (Contains ratings charts and rankings)

How Did Your Representatives Represent You in 2025?

Contents

• We Must Do Better
• Kyle Receives Top Score in Utah Legislature
• What is GrassRoots?
• Analysis of Bills for 2025

We Must Do Better

582 bills were passed this last legislative session, down from last year’s 591, but still too high as that is an average of almost 13 bills per day.

A legislature dedicated to limited government would not pass so many bills.

But one good bill that passed was HB 81, which removes fluoride from Utah’s drinking water. Almost 25 years ago, forced medication of the population violated God-given rights. If a government can force medicate its citizens, what else can the government do? Yet, as it has in past years, the State Senate killed several good bills, including HB 133, which would have strengthened second-amendment rights by removing provisions that made it criminal to carry a loaded gun in a vehicle or on the street. The bill was killed in a Senate Committee. This year, the GrassRoots board chose to include certain committee votes (which we have not done in the past) highlighting votes that killed bills which would would have protected liberties.

Another concern with the State Senate is the group-think mentality. This year the top score in the Senate was just 56%. This is the lowest score we have seen in the Senate in over 20 years. Bills that passed with no opposing votes while increasing government spending include HB 100, HB 310, SB 31, SB 38, and SB 284.

We would encourage Senate leadership to allow its members to vote their conscience and Senate members to have the courage to be the lone vote against bad bills. This year the Senate averaged 29%; 14 points below their lifetime average.

Kyle Receives Top Score in Utah Legislature

House Summary: Jason Kyle (R-WB) received the top score in the Utah House. Rounding out the top 10 were Kristen Chevrier (R-UT), Mike Petersen (R-CA), Jake Sawyer (R-WB), Trevor Lee (R-DA), Matt MacPherson (R-SL), Tiara Auxier (R-MO), Jill Koford (R-WB), Nicholeen Peck (R-TO), Mark Strong (R-SL).

Senate Summary: Heidi Balderree (R-UT) received the top score in the Senate. Also finishing in the top 10% in the Senate were John Johnson (R-WB) and Dan McCay- (R-SL) It should be noted that 35 House members received a 57% or higher, which was the top score in the Senate.

Governor: Governor Cox received a 50%. It was above his lifetime score of 40%

Averages: The House received an average score of 50.6%, which was below their lifetime average of 53%. It was also below the last two years' averages of 56% and 60%. In the Senate, the average was 29%, which was below the lifetime average of 43%. The last two years, the Senate had averaged 42% and 48%.

What is GrassRoots?

GrassRoots has been issuing an annual legislative report card since 1992. The Constitutions of the nation and state are the guides that GrassRoots uses in picking issues for its legislative report card. Bills are picked without regard to any individual. GrassRoots has no paid staff.

Analysis of Bills for 2025

Yeas, Nays list the tally on bills from each House and those Absent or Not Voting. Bills are listed by number, with house bills listed first. The sponsor(s) of the bill is in parentheses, with the primary sponsor listed first. Text of all bills can be found at http://le.utah.gov.

A) HB 37 (J. Dunnigan, L.Fillmore) Requires municipalities to implement the moderate-income housing strategy, defines affordable housing, and requires the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget to develop a state housing plan. When the government interferes in the housing market, it interferes with the free market which is not the proper role of government GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (39-30- 6), Senate (22-6-1), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

B) HB 69 (S. Gricius, C. Musselman) Makes private a record or information regarding whether a voter returned a ballot with postage attached. Makes it a class B misdemeanor for a government officer to disclose information about when or where a voter voted, a voter’s method of voting, and whether a ballot was mailed to the voter. We are concerned that this bill reduces transparency in what should be public information in our election process, and potentially punishes “whistle-blowers” discovering irregularities in the voting. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (54-18-3), Senate (27-0-2), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

C) HB 75 (S. Gricius, D. McCay) Reauthorizes all administrative rules in one bill. This would encompass thousands of pages of rules that, we would guess, most legislators have never read and understood. Also, to the extent that any of these administrative rules are legislative in their nature, this would appear to violate Utah Constitution, Article V, Section 1, which prohibits the exercise of legislative powers by an executive entity. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (72-0-3), Senate (27-0-2) and was Signed into law by the Governor.

D) HB 81 (S. Gricius, K. Cullimore) Protects individual rights by prohibiting adding fluoride to public water systems in the state of Utah. Forced medication violates God-given rights. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (51-19- 5), Senate (18-8-3), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

E) HB 100 (T. Clancy, K. Cullimore) Increases government spending by over $5.3 million to expand the free lunch program. If individuals want to assist children purchase lunch, they have an individual right to do so. Increasing spending for all citizens to provide charity is not the proper role of the government. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (47-24- 4), Senate (26-0-3), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

F) HB 133 (K. Lisonbee, S. Sandall) Protects second- amendment rights by making changes to current law, including removing the provisions that made it criminal to carry loaded guns in a vehicle or on a public street. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (56-13-6) but was defeated by a Senate Committee (2-4-1).

G) HB 140 (J. Hawkins, M. McKell) Creates inequality under the law by making an assault or threat against a referee an aggravating factor. Acts of violence should be treated equally under the law without regard to the class or occupation of the victim. Creating a special class creates inequality under the law. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (54-17- 4), Passed in Senate Committee (5-3-1) but did not come for a vote before the whole Senate.

H) HB 209 (N. Peck, D. McCay) Removes the requirement that a parent submit an affidavit for students who begin homeschooling. Also removes the requirement for parents to attest to criminal background history. This is a welcome step in respecting parental rights and reducing bureaucratic red tape. Grassroots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (62-13- 0), Senate (20-5-4) and was Signed into law by the Governor.

I) HB 233 (N. Peck, S. Sandall) Protects and respects life by prohibiting a local education agency from allowing entities that provide elective abortions to provide health-related instruction or materials in public schools. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (52-13-10), Senate (18-8-3), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

J) HB 252 (K. Lisonbee, D. Owens) Prohibits jails and youth detention centers from providing transgender treatments and surgeries. Also requires separate rooms or cells for male individuals and female individuals in detention facilities. We believe these are sound steps for the protection of female inmates, and for avoiding the state becoming a tool for the advancement of sex changes. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (60-14-1), Senate (19-6-4), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

K) HB 256 (N. Walter, E. Vickers) Enlarges government by making it easier for a municipality to regulate and tax short-term rentals. Individuals should be able to use their property as they legally choose to. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (47-22-6), Senate (27-1-1), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

L) HB 262 (C. Acton) Increases government bureaucracy by requiring homeowners’ association board members to complete education requirements. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Failed in the House (30-42-3).

M) HB 263 (N. Thurston, B. Brammer) Increases transparency by making the recorded video of ballot processing a public record for purposes of the Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA). The bill also sets rules to protect the custody of ballots. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (47-23-5), Senate (19-6-4), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

N) HB 267 (J. Teuscher, K. Cullimore) Prohibits using public money or public property to promote or deter union organizing. Excludes new labor organization employees from participating in Utah Retirement Systems. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (42-32-1), Senate (16-13-0), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

O) HB 310 (J. Dailey-Provost, L. Escamilla) Increases government spending by over $621,000 in 2026 by requiring the Department of Health and Human Services to apply for a Medicaid waiver or state plan amendment to provide wraparound services for individuals with a disability. While the money would come from the federal government, this is still taxpayer dollars and outside of the purview of the government. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (66-5-4), Senate (24- 0-5), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

P) HB 332 (K. Lisonbee, B. Brammer) Protects election integrity in the state of Utah by removing Utah from ERIC, whichis a national database that inflates voter rolls. Requires proof of United States citizenship to vote in a state election. Provides for removing an individual from the voter registration roll if evidenceis discovered, and not refuted, that the individual is not a citizen of the United States. This bill is a welcome enhancement of election integrity in our state. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (59-13-3), but it failed in a Senate Committee (3-4-1) and never came up for a House vote. Q) HB 374 (M. Kohler, K. Stratton) Establishes a process to allow a voter to have their signature removed from a petition to nominate a candidate of a registered political party that is not a qualified political party to elective office. Requires an election official to notify the county or district attorney if a person whose signature appears on a nomination petition notifies the election official that the person did not sign the nomination petition. Alsorequires the lieutenant governor‘s website to list the name and date of signature of each voter who signs a nomination petition. This bill is a welcome enhancement of election integrity in our state. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (43-27-5), but it did not come up for a vote on the Senate floor.

R) HB 403 (K. Chevrier, B. Brammer) Requires the Department of Workforce Services to request a waiver from the federal government to prohibit the use of “SNAP” (SupplementalNutrition Assistance Program) benefits for the purchase of soft drinks While SNAP is not a proper use of government force, a special effort to avoid SNAP subsidies for harmful products is inorder. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (54-14-7), Senate (15-13-1), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

S) HB 477 (M. MacPherson, H. Balderee) protects First Amendment rights by stating that public comment at a local school board meeting that complies with certain restrictions maynot be the basis for criminal trespass. Citizens had been arrested in this state because local school boards did not agree with their statements. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. The bill passed the House (49-19-7), Senate (17-7-5), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

T) S.B. 31 (R. Winterton, J. Dunnigan). Enlarges the government by creating the Refugee Services Office within the Department of Workforce Services. The estimated cost to taxpayers is over $18 million in state and federal funds. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (67-7-1), Senate (28-0-1), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

U) SB 38 (A. Millner, C. Jack) Extends the sunset for the Manufacturing Modernization Grant Program which will cost taxpayers $2 million in FY 2026. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (51-21-3), Senate (25-0-4), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

V) SB 106 (W. Harper, T. Clancy) Creates the Utah-Ireland Trade Commission within the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity. While the amount allocated to the commission is only $10,000; one must ask why we need a trade commission to Ireland. Is this the proper role of government? GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (63-11-1), and Senate (27-0-2), but was Vetoed by the Governor.

W) SB 189 (L. Escamilla, K. Lisonbee) Enacts the Child Care Capacity Expansion Act. Bill would create an employer-based, state-assisted childcare capacity expansion program which would have turned some obsolete state-owned buildings into daycare centers. Obsolete state buildings should be sold and the funds used to relieve the burden on Utah taxpayers. Expanding the government’s role in childcare is not the government’s proper role. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the Senate (17-7-5) but failed in the House (22-48-5).

X) SB 221 (L. Escamilla, C. Watkins) Reduces freedom by requiring licensure, certification, and or registration for a residential childcare provider when providing childcare for a certain number of qualifying children. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the Senate (24-3-2) but failed in the House (28-43-4).

Y) SB 272 (L. Fillmore, T. Peterson) Increases educational freedom by expanding the types of facilities in which a micro- education entity or home-based micro-school may operate by expanding the sets of occupancy requirements the facility may satisfy. More options for educational choices empower students and parents. GrassRoots approves of a YES vote. Passed the House (58-11-6), Senate (21-6-2), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

Z) SB 284 (L. Escamilla, T. Clancy) Requires the Department of Health and Human Services to apply for a Medicaid state plan amendment authorizing coverage of doula services. We neither need nor want another Medicaid expansion health care is not the proper role of government. GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (55-16-4), Senate (25-0-4), and was Signed into law by the Governor.

AA) SB 333 (J. Stevenson, J. Hawkins) Enacts the Major Sporting Event Venue Zone Act which would allow a municipality or county to create a major sporting event venue zone to capture property and sales tax. These types of zones increase taxes while passing along taxpayer money to private entities. Watch out for crony capititalism! GrassRoots approves of a NO vote. Passed the House (45-27-3), Senate (17-7-5) and was signed into law by the Governor.

Addenda