Checking In At The Legislature:
2021 Legislative Session Week 4

This has been a busy week with so many of my bills passing committee and the House Floor. Here’s a summary of the bills I’ve sponsored this week and are headed to the Senate:

• H.B. 55 Marriage Commission Amendments: I’m the Chair of the Utah Marriage Commission. This legislation moves it from the Department of Human Services to a 501(c) 3 status housed in Utah State University to allow donations and sponsors of marriage promotion, events and bring on media and community partners.
• H.B. 226 Long Term Care Facility Amendments: requires long term care facilities to disclose upfront if they allow any outside providers or limit them. There was an amendment allowing the patient to have any provider treat them as long as the patient is willing to pay for their services. 
• S.B. 69 Accident Report Amendments: allows UDOT to share accident reports with insurance companies to get compensation for damage done to federal and state roads from accidents.
• Co-sponsor of H.B. 217 Regulatory Sandbox Program will encourage innovation and economic development for businesses and entrepreneurs in Utah. This bill will allow businesses to test new products or services under a minimal regulatory environment with monitoring from GOED. 
• Co-sponsor of H.B. 170 Vehicle Registration Renewal Notice Requirements: The DMV will start sending license plate registration renewal cards again, but with an option for Utahns to opt into an email reminder

I enjoy representing House District 20. Thank you for having confidence in me to work hard and support good policy. You are welcome to reach out to me anytime at mballard@le.utah.gov.
 
Enjoy the long weekend!
 
-Melissa

In This Issue

• Clean Air Caucus bills
• Tax Relief
• Housing Affordability
• Economic Development Incentives Podcast
• “Sarah’s Bill”- Sarah visits the House
• Bills Passed this week
• Weekly Town Hall Meeting

Clean Air Caucus Bills

Tax Relief

Several bills are making their way through the legislative process that will provide tax relief to many Utahns. Last week, H.B. 86 Social Security Amendments passed the House unanimously and if passed by the Senate, will benefit many living on a fixed income. Additionally, H.B. 161 Military Retirement Tax Amendments passed the House this week, which removes the tax on military retirement, benefiting those who have served our country. Finally, a bill is in the works to help restore the child dependent exemption. 

Housing Affordability

HB 82 Single-Family Housing Amendments. This bill passed out of the House Business and Labor Committee this week. This bill, sponsored by Representative Ray Ward, helps increase housing availability and relieve pressure on prices by decreasing regulations in housing. 

Podcast - Economic Development Incentives

Utah's economic growth has been incredible these last few decades, but that growth and economic strength are far from reaching their peak. Representative Hawkes joins us on the show this week to talk about more ways Utah is staging itself to be the country's economic leader. Listen here!

Sarah’s Bill

This week, we had the pleasure of welcoming Sarah Frei and her parents to the House Floor. Sarah was involved in a car accident over the summer, resulting in the loss of her legs. Sarah’s optimistic outlook is truly inspiring. HB 20 Driving Under the Influence Sentencing Amendments, nicknamed “Sarah’s Bill,” will create stricter bail terms for DUI offenses. You can listen to me discussing this bill on Jay MacFarlane's podcast here. 

Bills Passed This Week (updated through Thursday)

Weekly Town Hall Meeting