COLUMN: Utah’s legislative session needs to be extended
Utahns deserve a legislature that is in session longer than 45 days. Two weeks ago today, the Utah legislative session came to a close. It is absolutely astounding how many bills are discussed and voted on during a given session. The recently ended 2014 session passed the third highest number of bills ever. According to UtahPolicy, a public policy research website, 786 bills and resolutions were introduced during the last session, and a record 486 of those bills and resolutions were passed by both chambers of the Legislature and sent to the governor for his signature.
Public policy should be as the name infers; public. When a bill is created, it must be sent to a committee where a group of legislators discuss the merits of the bill. Expert witnesses and others who take a special interest in the bill can testify before committees. Once all of the testimonies have been given, the members of the committee discuss the merits of the bill. Often, bills are amended in committee. A committee then holds a vote on the bill and either refers it to the general session or votes it down. Is 45 days really enough for bills to be weighed adequately in committees? Committees are meant to be a place where experts and the general public can weigh in. They are supposed to be a place where legislators are gathering information on the bills so they can cast an educated vote.
Earlier I mentioned that the legislative session is 45 days long, but that number is not completely accurate. It doesn’t take into account the weekends, so in reality, the Utah legislative session is only about 32 or 33 days. Our representatives and senators cannot possibly be expected to read or even understand every bill they vote on. We wouldn’t expect a doctor to act without fully understanding a situation, so why do we expect our legislators to act with limited information or understanding? I recognize our legislators can never fully understand every single issue that comes before them, but we can do better.
Something needs to change. If the legislative session were extended, our legislators could spend more time truly understanding what they are voting on, the public would have more time to actively participate in the creation of public policy, and the people of Utah would be represented in a manner befitting this great state.
– Andy is a senior majoring in political science. He is currently the vice president of USU Pi Sigma Alpha, a member of the GRC, the secretary of the Utah Federation of College Republicans and president of USU College Republicans.