Alliance for a Better Utah

You cannot credibly champion free expression while simultaneously dictating the vocabulary of public higher education. Utahns deserve campuses where all ideas can be discussed and tested—and that requires consistency, not selective outrage.

After ‘Legislature was blamed’ for banned word list, new bill would ensure campus guest speakers aren’t censored Lawmakers aren’t the problem, said Sen. John Johnson, R-North Ogden, arguing some schools went farther than Utah's anti-DEI law required.

Free speech on campus is a genuine value — and it's worth protecting. But the Legislature has spent recent sessions restricting what faculty can teach, what words administrators can use, and what research universities can pursue.

🔗 Salt Lake Tribune: buff.ly/zR0BoZj

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Whatever it takes to secure real resources for the lake—even an unlikely presidential ally—is worth pursuing with open eyes and a clear-eyed demand for accountability on the details.

The lake supports millions of migratory birds, a significant brine shrimp industry, and the snow cycles that supply water to the entire region. Protecting it is the rare issue where conservation and economic self-interest point the same direction.

Trump says he wants to make the Great Salt Lake ‘great again’ Trump said he was working closely with Utah’s "very caring" Gov. Spencer Cox to help the lake.

The Great Salt Lake doesn't care about partisan labels—and neither does water scarcity. If federal investment materializes, it would be a genuine win for Utah's ecology, economy, and quality of life.

🔗 Deseret News: buff.ly/23PxzgM

They are signaling shame. Every patient deserves private, judgment-free medical records. Utah's doctors know this. The Legislature should listen to them.

Should abortions be labeled differently in Utahns’ medical records? GOP says yes, doctors say no. The Utah lawmaker most frequently tied to abortion restrictions now wants doctors to differentiate some abortions in medical records — a move opposed by the country’s largest OB-GYN group.

Medical records exist to protect patient health, not to make a political statement. When lawmakers try to change how doctors document care—singling out one procedure for special labeling—they are not advancing science or safety.

🔗 Salt Lake Tribune: buff.ly/4ytiV5h

The failure of the broader funding ban offers a small window of nuance in an otherwise harsh political environment for trans youth and their families.

Families, pediatricians, and mental health professionals are being overruled by politicians. That isn't protecting kids. It's substituting ideology for compassion, and government control for parental judgment.

Utah bill that ends gender affirming care for minors is one step closer to becoming law A bill that bans gender affirming care for minors in Utah is one step closing to becoming law, after passing in a senate committee Wednesday evening.

The Legislature is determined to make permanent what was sold as temporary. Utah commissioned a state report on gender-affirming care that found positive health outcomes for young people—and now lawmakers appear intent on banning the care anyway.

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Utahns care deeply about their children's futures. Protecting education funding is one of the most concrete ways to show that.

Utah lawmakers are trying again to reroute education property tax dollars Gov. Cox vetoed the idea last year. Republican lawmakers insist that they need the budget flexibility that moving the money to a state fund, instead of to school districts, would provide.

Diverting education property tax dollars—a stream voters & the state constitution have long directed toward schools—is not a neutral accounting move. It's a choice to take from kids.

🔗 KUER: buff.ly/4GnTHXY

H.B. 315 narrowly passed through the House Education Committee in 6-5 vote on Thursday morning (February 26). The bill is now headed to the House floor to be considered.

This bill attempts to force religiously motivated, medically inaccurate propaganda into all Utah classrooms.

Utah lawmakers are advancing H.B. 315, a bill from Rep. Nicholeen Peck requiring Utah public school students to watch biased and inaccurate videos in all biology and child development classes, in addition to health education classes between grades 7 and 12.

Ask your State House Representative to vote NO on H.B. 315 - Protect Utah's Accurate Health Education & Take Action Today!

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Surplus revenue is an opportunity. What we choose to do with it says everything about our priorities.

Utah's income tax cuts have been a years-long project that primarily benefits higher-income households. At some point, "fiscal conservatism" becomes a choice to chronically underinvest in people—especially kids.

Utah has more revenue than expected. Lawmakers still want leaner budgets, and a 6th income tax cut • Utah News Dispatch Utah lawmakers have more money to spend during their 2026 legislative session than originally projected, and still want to cut income taxes.

There is something revealing about a state that has more money than expected and responds by cutting taxes further rather than filling gaps in education, mental health, affordable housing, or child care.

🔗 Utah News Dispatch: buff.ly/M1JJgqa

If a court can be invented specifically to reach a desired outcome, it isn't a court at all. Utahns expect their legal system to be independent. This new creation fails that basic test.

In Utah redistricting fight, plaintiffs ask judge to block Legislature’s new ‘constitutional court’ • Utah News Dispatch The plaintiffs in Utah's redistricting legal battle have filed a new complaint alleging that the Utah Legislature has again overstepped its power by creating a new "constitutional court" to hear…

The Legislature keeps finding new moves in this chess match against the courts and the voters. Creating a hand-picked constitutional tribunal—seeded with the Legislature's first cases—is not judicial reform. It's judicial capture.

🔗 Utah News Dispatch: buff.ly/lFjQCjJ

When courts at every level say the maps must change — and voters already said the same thing in 2018 — continued resistance is not a principled stand. It's a choice to prioritize partisan advantage over the will of Utahns. The maps are set. Now, democracy gets to do its work.

‘This right is fundamental’: Federal judges reject lawmakers’ bid to toss Utah’s new congressional maps Three federal judges unanimously rejected the latest — and likely last — attempt by GOP lawmakers to block a new congressional map from being used in Utah's 2026 midterm elections.

Two unanimous courts. Two levels of the judiciary. The same conclusion. At some point, the question shifts from legal strategy to democratic values.

🔗 Salt Lake Tribune: buff.ly/lcCX6Bc

The rule of law requires accepting the process even when the outcome isn't the one you wanted. Utahns voted for fairer elections. Courts upheld that. The Legislature's continued resistance isn't principle—it's a refusal to give up power.

Utah Supreme Court dismisses lawmakers’ appeal to stop the new congressional map The justices didn’t wade into the substance of the case, but dismissed the appeal because it was procedurally improper.

This is not a technicality. The Legislature had months to file a timely appeal and didn't. Now, facing the reality that fair maps will be used in 2026, they tried an emergency end-run — and the court said no.

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Hands Off Vote By Mail | Vote ‘No’ on HB479 Take action with ACLU!

Utah already has strong safeguards against fraud. HB 479 doesn't make our elections more secure — it just makes them harder to participate in.

Contact your state representative today and ask them to vote NO on HB 479. buff.ly/1KRTtlS

The burden shifts to voters, not the state.
HB479 adds friction to a system that has been a national model for accessible, secure elections. Most affected will be seniors, people with disabilities, rural Utahns, and anyone whose circumstances make in-person voting difficult.

Drop boxes become far less accessible.
Drop boxes would only be open during limited windows in the days before an election, and only while attended by at least two poll workers. Voters would also be required to present photo ID to a poll worker before depositing their ballot.

Returning a ballot by mail becomes harder.
Voters who want to return their ballot by mail must now make a separate, specific request to do so — it's no longer the default. Miss that step, and your only options are in person.