By Adam Denison
Legislators are calling the 2006 Legislative General Session tough but successful.
Rep. David Cox, R-Lehi, said this year?s session, which ended this week, was more difficult and painful than previous sessions, but was very historic.
?We had to deal with issues that have some long-reaching effects that will be pivotal in a historical view,? he said.
One of the most significant decisions this year was lowering of the state?s share of the sales tax on food to 2.75 percent. Many legislators said the bill will benefit the poor, but Cox said it will instead hurt the needy.
The reduction of the sales tax on food, Cox said, will give legislators more of an excuse not to fund programs that benefit the poor.
Rep. Bradley Daw, R-Orem, said he felt the biggest accomplishment of the session was the decision on how to use the state?s $1 billion budget surplus.
?We were able to spend the surplus in a prudent manner,? he said.
Daw said it?s easy to ?go crazy? in spending surplus budget money, but the legislature this year was able to make wise decisions on how to use it. Daw said the tendency is to use budget money to create government programs. The problem with this, he said, is that eventually these programs will need more funding and the money may not be available at that time.
Instead of creating more programs, the legislature opted to create tax cuts. Daw said funding extra government programs would mean eventually having to raise taxes.
Rep. Lori Fowlke, R-Orem, said there was a lot of progress made in tax reform, although she had some mixed feelings on the surplus.
?The surplus was a help and a curse,? she said.
Fowlke said it?s easy for legislators to tell people no when there is no money to spend, but when extra money is available it is hard to tell some people no while giving support to others.
Fowlke said she was most proud of the passage the Lori Hacking bill. The bill, which Fowlke sponsored, raises the minimum sentence for convicted murderers from to 15 years, from the previous five. Lori Hacking was murdered by her husband in 2004.
Hacking?s family was very supportive in promoting the bill, Fowlke said. Hacking?s father came to Salt Lake City from California to give his support.
Another bill sponsored by Fowlke will require sex offenders who finish their parole to pay a $75 fee to help keep Utah?s sex offender registry up to date.
The sex offender registry was originally intended for the use of law enforcement officials, but has been increasingly used by the public, Fowlke said. That increased use has created a greater demand to keep the registry updated.
Controversial issues brought up made the session tough, Daw said.
?It seemed like there was a lot more tension this year,? he said.
Some of the more controversial bills, such as one that would allow public schools more freedom to ban clubs like gay-straight alliances, were never debated. Another much talked-about bill, SB 96, was also never debated. The bill would have required the State Board of Education to create a curriculum that would teach students that there is no hypothesis or theory that has been accepted as fact regarding the specific origin of species.
?At the end of the day [SB 96] became a tempest in a teapot,? Daw said.
One bill dealing with hate crimes legislation had the potential to be very controversial, but ended up being voted on unanimously in the Senate and nearly unanimously in the House, Daw said.
?Hate crimes [legislation] turned out to be a big group hug,? he said.
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