Frequently Asked Questions
1. Where do I find information about committees?
Search for a specific committee or view all legislative committees.
2. Where do I find a committee's upcoming agendas?
Search by Upcoming Agendas, Calendar, or Committees.
3. How do I find my legislators? Which legislative district do I live in?
View Who Represents Me courtesy maps or for official information call your county clerk.
4. When should I contact my legislator about something I'd like changed in law?
Start communicating now. Contact your legislator months in advance of the General Session that convenes every year on the 4th Monday in January.
5. How can I communicate my ideas or concerns that need to be resolved?
A positive approach leads to mutual respect and consideration for any issue at hand. Provide your legislator with credible information, research, statistical data if available, and realistic solutions to help resolve an issue.
6. How do I track a bill during session?
Use our Bill Tracking Service and Reading Calendar that provide the information as it is happening. You may also subscribe to WebWatch, located at the bottom of each bill document page, to receive e-mail updates regarding status, text, and fiscal notes.
7. Can you help me with these audio/video issues?
Where are links to meetings currently in session?
Committee links for live audio appear on our home page www.le.utah.gov when a meeting starts. Meetings may not begin on time. You may need to press the refresh button on your browser to make links appear sooner while you are waiting and watching for a meeting to begin or use a different browser if information is not displaying as intended.Where are links to floor debates currently in session?
Live floor debate video/audio links appear when the legislators begin scheduled floor time. Floor time may begin sooner or later than originally scheduled. Press the refresh button on your browser to make links appear sooner while you are waiting and watching for floor time to begin or use a different browser if information is not displaying as intended.
Where are audio links to bills previously discussed in meetings and on the floor?
Links to archived audio can appear anytime. The House and Senate staff publish links as soon as they finish preparing them. Links to specific discussion items appear as soon as staff can add them. Archived audio is available on committee pages from July 1, 2005 - current. Archived floor debates can be accessed from our home page under the "Audio/Video" tab and on the "Legislative Histories" page. Digitized formats of floor debates will eventually be available from 1990 - current from the Senate. Senate floor debates are available from the Senate back to 1965. House floor debates are already digitized and debates from 1957 - 1990 can be listened to at the Utah History Research Center.Can I download the audio?
You may subscribe to a podcast available on all committee pages on our Web site, 2008-ongoing. For prior years, please contact the House or Senate offices for copies of the audio of standing committee meetings.Why do I get an error message when I click on an audio/video link?
A program that can play real audio files may not be installed and configured properly on your computer if accessing audio/video prior to 2012. Streaming audio/video, .smil files and .rm files need to be associated with a player that can play these files. In RealPlayer you can set these from the Tools menu - preferences-content-media types. This program also must work properly with the browser you use. With RealPlayer, the newest version sometimes will not work until it is uninstalled then reinstalled. Some companies block streaming audio/video at their firewalls, and you need to work with their IT staff or your ISP provider to resolve the issue. We do not provide technical support.
Where can I find a player that will allow me to listen to the audio/video from 1990-2011?
A free media player can be downloaded from the RealPlayer website. Other players are available at player.helixcommunity.org.
8. How do I find voting records for legislators?
Links to official voting records are on the Bill Status page for each bill.
The Bill Status page provides dates, actions taken, locations, and votes. Committee votes are linked to committee reports showing how each committee member present voted. Floor votes are linked to the House and Senate Journal pages showing how each House and Senate member present voted.
You may also search the Journals by keyword for official votes.
9. How do I know if a section of the Utah Code has been affected by legislation?
Click on Passed Bills or Sections Affected under Bills on our home page, select the applicable year, then click on 'Sections Affected by Passed Bills'. You can also use the link to see Sections Affected in .pdf on each session page, or link to a bill from the chapter number at the bottom of each .html Utah Code section.
11. How does a bill become law?
12. How can I find out more about the Utah State Legislature?