Democratic Senators Gain Committee Support for Accountability and Transparency on COVID-19 Spending

For Immediate Release:

Tuesday, May 13, 2020

Contacts:

Jon Hennington

Utah State Senate

(801) 214-4611 | jhennington@le.utah.gov

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah’s six Democratic Utah State Senators successfully gained support for increased public accountability and transparency on COVID-19 spending and executive actions.

At a pair of legislative meetings held today, Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne (D-West Valley) and Senate Minority Whip Luz Escamilla (D-Salt Lake/West Valley) introduced motions calling on the administration of Governor Gary Herbert to publicly present reports on COVID-19 spending and executive actions at upcoming meetings of the Executive Appropriations Committee and Legislative Management Committee.

“The Governor has been granted expansive powers during this pandemic crisis,” said Sen. Escamilla, “and reporting publicly is important for accountability and transparency.” With hundreds of millions of federal and state funds being utilized for COVID-19 response, Senate Democrats have raised concerns about transparency and accountability. The motions adopted by these key committees will ensure that the public has an opportunity to hear how these dollars are spent and will give legislators the opportunity to ask questions of the administration. “This will give clarity and transparency to our process,” said Sen. Mayne.

Utah six Democratic Senators are: