

Senator Mayne seeks official Utah week to bring gang prevention to the forefront
Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne presented SB175 last week to the Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Committee. The bill would create an annual Utah Gang Awareness Week the third week of September. The purpose is to both honor those officers whom she calls “soldiers of the streets,” dedicated to seeking out gang members in an effort to rescue them from gang life, and to promote the efforts surrounding rehabilitation of gang members and the prevention of


Senator Escamilla named Child Advocate of the Year
Senate Minority Whip Luz Escamilla was honored Friday night as the Child Advocate of the Year 2019 by the Children's Service Society (CSS), at the Marriott City Center Hotel, Salt Lake City. At its annual winter gala, themed this year as “Swinging on a Star,” CSS recognizes an individual who has or is making a difference for the families and children of Utah. “We believe you are a dedicated and passionate public figure who is a concerned advocate,” CSS Executive Director Enca


Week 4 Updates
Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne presented SB175 Thursday to the Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Committee to create a Gang Prevention Awareness Week the third week of September to honor those officers whom she calls “soldiers of the streets,” dedicated to seeking out gang members in an effort to rescue them from gang life. Several gang units from area law enforcement agencies attended the presentation to support


Filling a Need for Corrections Officers
SB 162 Corrections Officer Certification Amendments Senate Minority Assistant Whip Jani Iwamoto presented a bill Tuesday in the Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Standing Committee to change the minimum age for correctional officers working in a jail facility to 19 years old. Seeing a shortage of needed corrections officers, Iwamoto and several advisers—including Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera—decided to try a 3-year pilot program to determine if


Week 3 Updates
Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne Senator Mayne's SB10 and SB76 have passed the House and Senate and are waiting to be signed by the governor. She has a few bills waiting to be heard in House committees. Her town hall on Monday with Representatives Kwan and Weight was very informative and she discussed the beer law (SB132), health care (SB96), a few of her bills, and how the community could get more involved in local and state government with the constituents in attendance


Week 2 Updates
Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne Senator Mayne had two bills move out of the Senate this week to the House and has three that are waiting to be heard on the Senate floor. She also met with students from Connections High School in Granite School District and talked about how they could get more civically engaged. Bill requests: 16 Bills in Senate: SB68 Substitute Driver License and Implied Consent Modifications SB124 Local Government Administration Amendments SB43 Criminal

Utah State Senate Recognizes Navajo Code Talkers
Declares Navajo Code Talkers Day and Looks to Name State Highway Senate Minority Assistant Whip Jani Iwamoto today presented, SCR 2, Concurrent Resolution Recognizing Navajo Code Talkers, to recognize and honor the Navajo Code Talkers’ legacy for their extraordinary contribution to the nation. The resolution, presented during general session floor time, designates August 14, 2019 as Navajo Code Talkers Day in the state of Utah. “I am very honored to sponsor this concurrent re


Week 1 Updates
As the new Senate Minority Leader, Sen. Mayne was busy in the days leading up to the session with a fair number
of media interviews and panel discussions, including the United Way Legislative Preview Breakfast and the Utah Economic Outlook and Policy Summit. In addition to the business of fighting changes to the Prop 3 Medicaid expansion, three of her bills passed out of committee this week, another was introduced, and she has a number of other bills in the works. Bills pass