MINUTES OF THE
SENATE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS AND POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS STANDING COMMITTEE
Wednesday, February 23, 2022 • 9:00 a.m. • 220 Senate Building


Members Present:
Sen. Daniel W. Thatcher, Chair
Sen. David G. Buxton
Sen. David P. Hinkins
Sen. John D. Johnson
Sen. Evan J. Vickers

Members Absent:
President J. Stuart Adams
Sen. Jani Iwamoto

Staff Present:
Sarah Flanigan, Policy Analyst
Nancy Skidmore, Committee Secretary

Note: A copy of related materials and an audio recording of the meeting can be found at www.le.utah.gov.

Chair Thatcher called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m.
1.S.B. 219 Election Funding Amendments (Grover, K.)
Sen. Grover presented the bill with the assistance of Arturo Morales, Chair, Utah Republican Latino Coalition and Maryann Christensen, Vice President of Operations, Utah Eagle Forum.
Jean Leonard, teacher, spoke in favor of the bill.
Rebecca Colley, citizen, spoke in favor of the bill.
MOTION:Sen. Johnson moved to pass S.B. 219 out favorably.The motion passed with a vote of 3-0-4.
Yeas - 3Nays- 0Abs- 4
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. E. Vickers
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Iwamoto
2.H.B. 258 Political Action Committee Amendments (Bennion, G.)
Rep. Bennion presented the bill.
MOTION:Sen. Vickers moved to pass H.B. 258 out favorably.The motion passed with a vote of 3-0-4.
Yeas - 3Nays- 0Abs- 4
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. E. Vickers
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Iwamoto
3.2nd Sub. H.B. 260 Law Enforcement Recording Release Amendments (Wheatley, M.)
Rep. Wheatley presented the bill.
Nate Mutter, Co-Chair, Law Enforcement Legislative Committee, spoke in favor of the bill.
Will Carlson, Chief Policy Analyst, Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office, commented on the bill.
MOTION:Sen. Buxton moved to pass 2nd Substitute H.B. 260 out favorably.The motion passed with a vote of 5-0-2.
Yeas - 5Nays- 0Abs- 2
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. E. Vickers
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. J. Iwamoto
4.1st Sub. H.B. 188 Voter Signature Verification Amendments (Eliason, S.)
MOTION:Sen. Buxton moved to replace 1st Substitute H.B. 188 with 2nd Substitute H.B. 188.The motion passed with a vote of 5-0-2.
Yeas - 5Nays- 0Abs- 2
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. E. Vickers
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Rep. Eliason presented the bill with the assistance of Ryan Cowley, Director of Elections, Office of the Lieutenant Governor, and Ricky Hatch, Clerk/Auditor, Weber County, Chair, Clerks Association of Utah.
Nate Crippes, Public Affairs Supervising Attorney, Disability Law Center, spoke in favor of the bill.
Nikila Venugopal, Director of Campaigns, ACLU of Utah, spoke in favor of the bill.
MOTION:Sen. Hinkins moved to pass 2nd Substitute H.B. 188 out favorably.The motion passed with a vote of 4-0-3.
Yeas - 4Nays- 0Abs- 3
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Sen. E. Vickers
5.H.B. 282 Water Wise Landscaping Amendments (Wilcox, R.)
Rep. Wilcox presented the bill.
Justin Lee, Director of Government Relations, Utah League of Cities and Towns, spoke in favor of the bill.
MOTION:Sen. Buxton moved to replace H.B. 282 with 1st Substitute H.B. 282.The motion passed with a vote of 4-0-3.
Yeas - 4Nays- 0Abs- 3
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Sen. E. Vickers
MOTION:Sen. Buxton moved to pass 1st Substitute H.B. 282 out favorably.The motion passed with a vote of 4-0-3.
Yeas - 4Nays- 0Abs- 3
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Sen. E. Vickers
6.H.B. 310 Vital Records Special Characters (Stoddard, A.)
Rep. Stoddard presented the bill.
MOTION:Sen. Hinkins moved to pass H.B. 310 out favorably.The motion passed with a vote of 3-0-4.
Yeas - 3Nays- 0Abs- 4
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Sen. E. Vickers
MOTION:Sen. Hinkins moved to approve the minutes February 18, 2022 meeting.The motion passed with a vote of 3-0-4.
Yeas - 3Nays- 0Abs- 4
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Sen. E. Vickers
MOTION:Sen. Hinkins moved to adjourn.The motion passed with a vote of 3-0-4.
Yeas - 3Nays- 0Abs- 4
Sen. D. Hinkins
Sen. J. Johnson
Sen. D. Thatcher
Sen. J. Adams
Sen. D. Buxton
Sen. J. Iwamoto
Sen. E. Vickers
Chair Thatcher adjourned the meeting at 9:44 a.m.
NOTE: S.R. 0002 was not discussed in the meeting.