The 2025 Legislative Session is well underway. Hearing concerns from residents and sharing bill updates, Representative for District 46 Gay Lynn Bennion and Senator for District 15 Kathleen Riebe hosted a townhall Jan. 29 at Brighton High School (2220 Bengal Blvd.). Over 40 attendees asked for updates on the session including House of Representative intern Ashlee Jackson, Senate intern Jackson Sheen, Town of Alta Mayor Roger Bourke and Brighton High School students.

Before jumping into individual bills, Riebe and Bennion asked attendees to get involved with their state and local governments. They mentioned there are over 140 boards and commissions (some only meet once per month or a few times per year) for residents to get involved in. 

“We really need your voices,” Riebe said. “The governor can appoint people… and they don’t even meet the description.”  

One of the most talked-about and controversial bills this session – H.B. 267: Public Sector Labor Union Amendments sponsored by Rep. Jordan Teuscher and Sen. Kirk Cullimore – was passed and signed by Gov. Spencer Cox on Feb. 14, right before a three-day holiday weekend. 

“There were hundreds of people who wanted to talk against this bill and it still passed,” Riebe said. “I wanted to ask him how many people need to take off work to come up here to have their voice heard. Cox does not support unionized labor.” 

Riebe recounted a record-breaking number of people who showed up in opposition to this bill. Four overflow rooms were completely full with people still filling in the standing-room-only spaces. 

“Three years – this guy has been trying to get it through. And he took the torch from someone else,” Bennion said. 

This bill focuses on public employees, public safety employees, and public fire labor organizations (which does include teachers, firefighters, police and transit workers). 

“They are very annoyed with the teachers who keep killing their bills so they had to bring the firefighters in,” Riebe said.

Beginning May 7, employers will be prohibited from entering into collective bargaining contracts and recognizing unions as bargaining agents. Public money and property will be prohibited from assisting, promoting or determining unions from organizing. In addition, new labor organization employees will be excluded from participating in Utah Retirement Systems, among other things. 

Riebe shared the origin story of H.B. 269: Privacy Protections in Sex-designated Areas sponsored by Rep. Stephanie Gricius and Sen. Brady Brammer. A single student who was attending Utah State University and living on-campus was uncomfortable with their RA who is transgender. 

As the Governor signed this bill Feb. 14, the Utah Board of Higher Education will now be required to provide guidance regarding student housing. The bill also “narrows an exception for a prohibition on sex-based distinctions…and a student’s participation in a certain gender-designated interscholastic activity.” 

“The biggest problem with this bill for me is that it came from one circumstance,” Riebe said. “We do not need to mandate how each university mandates their own communities. This should be left to the universities.”

S.B. 135: Educational Medical Services Amendment was last (as of publication) held in the Senate Committee on Feb. 7. Broadly, this bill would define terms related to educational medical services by reevaluating district costs related to extraordinary educational and medical expenses. 

“We have one nurse per 800 students,” Riebe said. “We have secretaries (who have no medical training) that are providing insulin to kids.” 

Riebe mentioned how the smallest districts in the state get hit hard by how the funding is allocated based on district. Depending on the needs of the student population, sometimes all the available resources will be tapped for one student.

H.B. 99: Residential Mortgage Loan Amendments sponsored by Bennion and Sen. Wayne Harper would allow for citations to be issued when residential mortgage loans violate trigger lead standards. This bill specifics a 20-day time period for citations to be contested. As of publication, this bill was on its third Senate reading. 

“There is an increasing number of build-for-rent communities where all housing is for rent and none are for sale,” Bennion said. “We are losing home ownership in this county. Summit (County) communities are already 75% second home or short-term rentals.” 

Bennion is also sponsoring: H.B. 89: Water Transfer Amendments (circled in Senate on Feb. 19); H.B. 151: Home Sales Amendments (held in Standing Committee on Feb. 16); H.B. 180: Employment Compensation Amendments (held in House Committee on Feb. 14); H.B. 182: Rental Amendments (failed in House Committee on Jan. 31); and H.B.196: Vehicle Traction Amendments (circled from Senate second reading on Feb. 19).

Riebe is also sponsoring: S.B. 236: State Parks Amendments (not considered in Committee on Feb. 12); S.B. 229: Organ Donor Amendments (moved to Taxation Committee on Feb. 21); S.B. 167: Guardianship Modifications (in Senate Rules Committee on Jan. 27); and S.B. 141: Office of Student Health Affairs (in Education Committee on Jan. 24). λ