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Checking In At The Legislature: May 2019 Although the Legislature is in session from January-March, there is a lot of work that needs to be done during the rest of the year to strengthen our State and effectively represent you.  The governor has created a legislative task force on readdressing our tax structure. The committee is looking at alternatives to the tax on services that was discussed during the last session. Stay tuned!  Many of you have reached out to me with suggestions for changes to laws and solutions to problems. Thank you for being involved! Many of your ideas have resulted in bills being filed for consideration in our next Legislative session.  In this newsletter are some highlights from the interim transportation and education committee meetings as well as some great events going on in our County and State. Thank you for the privilege of representing you!  Melissa Interim Session Update Newly elected State Party Chairman Derek Brown stopped by to give us his vision of supporting good Republican candidates and elected officials, being fiscally responsible, and engaging Utah citizens and younger generations to be involved in the party. It’s exciting to see our party working together! The Transportation Interim Committee meeting featured Jason Davis of UDOT who discussed the future of drones carrying packages AND people in our skies! The University of Utah Innovation Engineering Center is currently designing the “air traffic control” program for drones. Andrew Gruber, of Wasatch Front Regional Council, touting the anticipated air quality improvement over the next few decades from substantially reduced emissions from vehicles. This represents decades of hard work from many cities and state leaders working to improve air quality across the Wasatch Front. Speaker Brad Wilson with Republican Party Chairman Derek Brown, Vice Chairman Aaron Starks, Treasurer Mike Bird, and Party Secretary Kendra Seeley. Golden Spike 150th year anniversary celebration at Promontory Summit May 10, 2019 I had a wonderful time at the celebration.  It was amazing to get a glimpse into the ingenuity and industrious venture that was the transcontinental railroad.  People from all different backgrounds worked together to create something that united our Nation.   With the Irish Ambassador. With Representative Karen Kwan, one of our current legislators who is a direct descendant of Chinese railroad workers.  This is the Jupiter which met the 119 at Promontory point in 1869.  Both trains were at the sight on May 10!  Tanner Gift of Music concert and fireworks, celebrating the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad. Hosting Chinese Leaders and the Chinese Embassy We hosted 13 Chinese leaders from the Liaoning Province of China and the Chinese Embassy. Their tour of Utah elementary schools with Chinese immersion programs was priceless. Their response? “These children have better phonetics than the adults who learn Chinese!”   Featured in these pictures is my meeting with Heritage elementary school in Layton, Teacher Michelle Daly from Woods Cross, Weber State leaders, Rep Steve Handy, and Davis County School Board Members Liz Mumford, Brigit Gerrard, and Marie Stevenson. Hosting the Under-Secretary-General Alison Smale I enjoyed hosting the Under-Secretary-General Alison Smale this week and showing her around downtown. What a lovely woman from England. She has been a journalist for more than 40 years, including, the Associated Press and The New York Times. We had a lot in common.  She arrived in Berlin one day before the wall came down. I was there two months later as Berlin and all the world was celebrating.  Her daughter is living in Birmingham, just 10 miles from Coventry where I lived in England for 3 years. We had many lovely conversations. She also gave me a CD of her pianist husband, Sergei Dreznin, of his concert in Paris playing all Liszt pieces.     She will be back to Salt Lake August 26-28 for the United Nations NGO conference - the first ever held outside of New York! Here's why this United Nations conference will be held in Utah instead of New York for the first time ever. Attending a Press Conference With the UVU Center for Constitutional Studies Yesterday Was Amazing! They have been working for a few years to categorize all of the amendments and substitutions of the Utah Constitution that were signed in 1895 by the first group of Utah delegates. Noting how complex state’s constitutions are, it took more changes than the US Constitution- which was completed miraculously in 3 months taking in more than 2600 people contributing to its process.  State Constitutions are more complex by design- the principle of Federalism allows more power to the states rather than the federal government.  Thanks to UVU for their vision of working with Oxford University US history specialist to teach our undergraduates how to do this research which is normally done by graduate students.  I’m proud to be a Utahan. Great Day For Improving Air Quality In Utah The Governor signed 15 bills from the 2019 session dedicating $29 million to making it better for you and for me, and our families. You can’t miss me in this article- I’m wearing pink Hosting Republican Women and Congressman Stewart! Wonderful gathering for Legislative updates with Davis County Republican Women, Professional Republican Women, and Congressman Chris Stewart. I loved hosting all of you at the Capitol Board Room! Find Out More About Representative Ballard