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SALT LAKE CITY — With the clock ticking on the 2025 general legislative session, Utah lawmakers met well into the evening Tuesday to chip away at the hundreds of proposals they have until midnight Friday to pass.
The Legislature had approved 242 such bills as of Wednesday morning and is expected to give the thumbs up to several hundred more as lawmakers meet in marathon sessions on Capitol Hill over the next three days.
Some of their high-profile actions this week will include finalizing the state budget — which should include some $100 million in income tax cuts for Utahns — and wrapping up efforts to reform the state’s vote-by-mail system. But lawmakers will also consider a plethora of other proposals touching nearly every aspect of state governance.
Here’s how lawmakers are spending their time during the antepenultimate day of this year’s legislative session:
Nuclear power could be coming to Utah
The Utah Senate suspended the constitutional requirement that all bills be read three times and passed a major bill designed to eventually bring nuclear power to the state.
In a 22-6 vote Wednesday, the Senate approved HB249, sending it back to the House for further consideration.
The bill would establish the Nuclear Energy Consortium to advise on nuclear development in Utah and recommend appropriate regulations for it. Sen. Ann Millner, R-Ogden, said bringing nuclear power to the state is a long-term effort, but it’s critical to start now.
“If we’re going to make sure we can meet the power needs of our citizens now and into the future, we have to begin to explore this,” Millner said.
Most Democrats opposed the bill, expressing concerns about communities losing local control and “kneecapping” other energy sources like wind and solar. Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy, also voted against it.
Senate committee rejects school pronoun bill
A Senate committee rejected a proposal Tuesday that would have prevented school districts from punishing teachers for referring “in good faith” to the pronouns of a student that match their biological sex, even if the student goes by another name or pronouns.
HB250 sponsor Rep. Nicholeen Peck, R-Tooele, said the bill aimed to clarify the policy for schools and prevent teachers from “having to compromise” their “personal religious beliefs.”
Marina Lowe, with Equality Utah, spoke against the bill, saying it “seemingly targets the transgender community” and it is unnecessary because state statute already addresses the issue.
HB250 failed 3-2, with two Democrats and one Republican voting against.
