UT Legislature Can't Even Pass A Non-Binding Resolution Supporting Protecting The Environment
SALT LAKE CITY — A short-lived environmental resolution failed alongside its spiritual predecessor Monday after House lawmakers were divided on a vote to move the measure forward.
HJR18, sponsored by Rep. Becky Edwards, R-North Salt Lake, found a moment of life after a group of Utah students raised the issue of climate change with an informal public hearing at the Capitol that gained nearly 14,000 views on Facebook. The students originally held their hearing as a protest of Orem Republican Sen. Margaret Dayton's decision to not hold a formal hearing on SJR9, a similar resolution sponsored by Sen. Jim Dabakis, D-Salt Lake City.
Edwards' resolution, submitted over the weekend before the final week of the 2017 Legislature, borrowed much of the sentiment of the earlier resolution. It called for a conservative environmental stewardship through the argument that Utah could sustain both a strong economy and environmental cleanliness and sustainability without compromising one for the other.
The resolution, which Edwards presented in a bipartisan effort with Rep. Joel Briscoe, D-Salt Lake City, calls on "economically viable" public and private solutions to reduce air pollution and balance human impacts on the climate.
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http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865675009/Lawmakers-divided-on-Utahs-environmental-message.html
