With the session just two weeks away, I though you might be interested in a quick update about the issues I am hearing about. I am actually surprised at how little real policy discussion is happening, but I am sure that will change soon.
1. Education
There are several legislators putting forward proposals on state school elections. Some proposed solutions include:
- Eliminating the nominating committee
- Revising the nominating process
- Moving to a partisan-based nomination system
- Creating a new “representative democracy” process (*my preferred solution)
- Having a governor-appointed school board
As mentioned in a previous post, I am working on a bill that would have the state school board elected by local school board members. A summary brief should be available shortly and will be posted here.
Unfortunately, the need to focus on state school board elections has taken some of the energy and momentum away from addressing the problems associated with Common Core. I don’t think that issue is dead, by any means, but haven’t heard many specifics from my colleagues.
2. Wood Smoke
I have heard from many of you who are concerned about the proposed rule banning wood smoke as a home heating source from November through March. I have been pushing hard to get the real facts from the Division of Air Quality (DAQ). Let me just say that you should not believe everything you read in the newspaper. The proposed rule change is bad policy. It simply extends the burning ban (with current exceptions) from “bad air” days to all days. The data supplied to me from DAQ clearly shows that this proposed rule change will have virtually no impact on overall air quality on inversion days or non-inversion days.
The whole rationale behind the proposed ban can be summarized as follows:
Compliance on restricted action days is less than the board hoped for. It is believed that much of the non-compliance is due to uncertainty about when burning is banned. Banning burning from November through March would remove that uncertainty and increase compliance on inversion days.
I find this to be bad policy for many reasons, but to summarize – the proposed ban is the most intrusive solution possible and is likely to make little or no difference in improving overall air quality.
I encourage you to submit your comments to DAQ by the February 9, 2015 deadline. I would also be happy to help you interpret the “facts” that are being thrown around so that you understand what is really happening (and how little wood smoke is actually mattering).
3. Transportation Funding (Gas Tax)
The current tax on motor fuels is a cents-per-gallon tax. There are pros and cons to having this form of tax. One of the pros is that the revenue to the state per unit does not depend on the price and as you have seen recently, the price of gasoline can be quite volatile. On the other hand, this type of tax does not automatically adjust for inflation, which means that over time, the revenue collected loses its purchasing power. Historically, this puts legislatures in a bind, forcing them to periodically vote to raise the gas tax to “reset” in terms of inflation. They have tended to put this off as long as possible, meaning that the sudden increase tends to be fairly large. Some legislators are kicking around tax increases in the eleven to twenty cents per gallon range.
I do not support an overall increase in the gas tax, but I believe that now would be a good time to restructure the gas tax. I will be looking for proposals that help offset the effects of inflation while keeping the revenues roughly in line with the costs of transportation infrastructure without raising additional revenues in the current year.
4. Medicaid Expansion
It is pretty clear that there isn’t support in the House for adopting the proposed HealthyUtah plan. The primary concerns that have been expressed are the long-term impact on the budget, not wanting to put forward a “bait-and-switch” program, and keeping the size of government small.
Utah has a history of providing a mechanism to take care of the most vulnerable among us. I am working with a team of House Republicans to find a solution that helps those who are most vulnerable to address their needs and become self-reliant. I am particularly interested in refining a proposal that would help around 10,000 adults (compared to the 95,000 proposed in HealthyUtah) who have unmet health care needs that prevent them from becoming self-reliant. Watch for this to be a major news story in the upcoming weeks.
Thanks for taking the time to write up your thoughts. We disagree on the gas tax issue. As a city council member (Highland) I can tell you that the B&C roads funds we currently receive cover about 65% of our road maintenance needs.
I like the current form of tax (fixed price per gallon) because as you mentioned it is more predictable but also because it requires legislative action to raise it. If the tax was somehow indexed to inflation there would be little incentive for govt to become more efficient. I realize that the legislature is slow to act and in this case way to slow but that is a tradeoff I am ok with.
I agree with Rod although for different reasons. I feel that government can be far more efficient with the existing revenue even as purchasing power of the dollar decreases. Take the recent Utah County expansion of I 15, the contactors were informed about just how much money the county was able to spend and the county kept taking bids until someone could do it at the proposed price. In the end it came in on time and under budget. I think the state could take a lesson.
Education: I strongly support your position on the state school board. I’ve looked into the Common Core and have found educators I respect on both sides of the issue. One of the reasons we are so divided on the Common Core is that it was forced upon us by a state school board over which I have no control. A state school board elected by local school board members provides an appropriate level of accountability to the population they influence.
Wood Burning Ban: I strongly support your position on the proposed ban of wood burning. Yes, the geography and population growth along the Wasatch Front are creating air quality challenges which affect my health. It’s a serious problem that needs to be addressed. The data you previously shared with me doesn’t show that banning wood burning on non-inversion days would provide any improvement. Typical of so many initiatives in the areas of sustainability, there is a lot of hype and little data. The data you provided earlier does not indicate that the agencies really understand the sources of the air quality problem. If they do, they have not clearly communicated their understanding. I support making this a data-based decision. Those agencies need to feel some real pressure to get the right data and present it to us in an understandable format.
Transportation Tax: I oppose any tax rate increase when that tax is tied to inflation. In this case the tax is fixed and does not adjust with inflation; so we have a real issue to deal with. I have lived in a growing community which did not plan for that growth and did not fund the required infrastructure. It was a mess. When the reality of that mess descended upon the community it started very wasteful and expensive projects to fix the problems quickly. All sorts of back door approaches to managing growth appeared, including new expressways which were toll roads. Utah Valley’s population is forecast to double by 2035. The rest of the Wasatch Front will also be growing. If we don’t provide the funds to support that growth we will have a real mess. I’m not sure what the answer is, except it shouldn’t be a blank check. But we are headed for a mess if we don’t begin addressing these transportation infrastructure issues immediately; and that will include providing funding.
Thanks, Norm. I am watching all the clean air legislation closely. FYI.
I appreciate this information. I agree with #4 on the education process. I am against Common Core.
I also appreciate that your stance on the wood burning issue.
However I feel very resentful of the legislature wanting to raise the gasoline tax when we are finally getting a reasonable price per gallon for the3 first time in years!! My credit cards were all that got me through last year when gas got so high.
I agree with Clinton Miller above, about finding contractors who will meet the state budget on these projects and keep costs down!
Thank you again for keeping us informed.
Norm, on the air quality issue, have you talked about this with our mutual friend and my fellow constituent, Arden Pope?
As you know, he is one of the leading expert economists in the world on air quality and its impacts, based on research done right here in Utah on the health impacts of the inversion layer. I can’t imagine that he wouldn’t be happy to talk to you about this issue, and lend his significant expertise to any legislation that might ameliorate the health threats of the inversion.