salt lake tribune | Alliance for a Better Utah

Rep. Mike Noel Says He’ll Seek a Presidential Pardon to Clear the Criminal Record of San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman

Kyle Garahana February 18, 2018

During a meeting at the Capitol that included staunch opponents to federal land policies in Utah, Rep. Mike Noel floated an idea to help his ally out of legal trouble. Noel questioned the judges in the case against San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman, who led a protest ATV ride through Recapture Canyon near Monticello

Commentary: Utah Needs to Reclaim Position as a Safe Haven Against Hate Crime

Kyle Garahana February 6, 2018

Last year in Draper, 57-year-old Mark Porter was arrested after shouting racial slurs at a 7-year-old boy and then zapping the boy’s father in the neck with a million-volt stun cane. Charged with third-degree aggravated assault, Porter faced no more than five years in prison. This September, the state charge against Porter was dismissed to

Hundreds of people want Utah County Commissioner Greg Graves to resign. But they can’t force him out.

Better Utah December 20, 2017

Source: Salt Lake Tribune Utah’s elected officials are safe from being recalled from office when their conduct upsets voters. Hundreds of people made clear this week they want Utah County Commissioner Greg Graves out of office, but it is not up to them. Utah law leaves no realistic avenue to oust the commissioner until next

A chocolate chip delivery for Utah’s Sen. Orrin Hatch — in the name of restoring CHIP health insurance for up to 20,000 kids

Better Utah December 12, 2017

Source: Salt Lake Tribune The 20,000 chocolate chips were piled inside a foot-high plastic container, with a message for Utah’s senior senator scrawled on the outside in permanent marker: “One chocolate chip for every child waiting for Senator Hatch to do the right thing.” Each chip, explained Katie Matheson, with the group Alliance for a Better

Commentary: Health care does not have a free market solution

Better Utah August 27, 2017

Source: Salt Lake Tribune I want to talk to anyone who thinks the free market is the answer to our health care crisis. What is the free market? It’s a transparent and competitive marketplace where a willing buyer and willing seller can engage in an informed transaction. Sounds like buying a cellphone, a car, even

Chaffetz says poor people should forgo iPhones to pay for health care

Better Utah March 7, 2017

Source: The Salt Lake Tribune Rep. Jason Chaffetz faced a torrential backlash Tuesday about the way he framed the difficult decisions poorer Americans may have to make when it comes to their insurance under a new Republican plan to slim down Obamacare. “Americans have choices, and they’ve got to make a choice. So rather than

Breakneck approval of over $1B in borrowing with little or no public comment leads to questions

Better Utah March 7, 2017

Source: The Salt Lake Tribune Completing a whirlwind trip through the Legislature, lawmakers gave final approval Tuesday to two big borrowing proposals: bonding for $1 billion to accelerate state highway projects and seeking an extra $100 million for the new state prison. The House gave final approval to the highway bill, SB277, on a 72-3

OpEd: Hughes’ closed legislating is odd public morality

Better Utah March 4, 2015

Board members of Alliance for a Better UTAH penned an op-ed this week in the Salt Lake Tribune, pointing out the odd contradictions in House Speaker Greg Hughes’ decision not to publicly discuss Healthy Utah. On the one hand, the House is the voice of the people–as evidenced by the dictum Vox Populi that displays over

Kanter: Anti-regulatory sound bites are not governing

Better Utah December 6, 2014

We live in a world of sound bites. Six-second Vines, 140-character Tweets, and Instagramable infographs are here to stay. Though these brief bits of information may be sufficient for getting elected, they make terrible policy. “Not only are our airwaves burdened by sound bites,” said founder Josh Kanter in a recent Salt Lake Tribune Editorial. “But our

For balance, we need Tribune and News

Better Utah May 6, 2014

“Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations.” –George Orwell I’m old school. I still get the Salt Lake Tribune delivered every morning on my doorstep as I drink my morning tea. But I read the Deseret News online, too. I like the balance I get from reading

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