Why Utah interim legislative sessions are important to you

In the early part of the year, work in the Utah State Legislature takes precedence in the minds of many in our special districts. Laws and regulations passed during the months-long session often affect the work you may be doing throughout the year.

What goes a bit under the radar are the interim meetings of the state legislature. This year, they began in June and run through August, with several aspects that could affect how special districts operate or the agendas they will sort through as the year continues.

We wanted to go into some reasoning behind the interim sessions, including why it’s important to you to follow them as an engaged, special district member.

Why these sessions take place

There’s a pretty simple reason behind these sessions. It’s to start crafting the legislation that will be a part of next year’s larger session. To that end, it’s a chance for the public and private sectors to talk more with legislators about specific issues or proposed bills that don’t get the same attention in the legislature’s compressed – and often fast-moving – main session.

As part of the sessions, the committees feature legislators from both parties and both sides of the government houses, a difference from what commonly happens during the main session. That’s when bills might originate from the Senate or House only, and often along party lines and concerns.

What’s being covered

A great and exhaustive source of what might be discussed during these summer sessions is a document prepared by the government. The 2023 Interim Study Items document goes by each committee with what might be covered during these meetings.

Among the discussions are plans for using conserved water, crafting more effective cybersecurity policies, or evaluating the current health of the state’s power grid. Renewable energy proposals, recreational funding, rural emergency services, and wildlife management could also be discussed.

How to follow what’s going on. If you want to learn more about what is taking place with the 2023 interim sessions, you can visit our Legislature website, which has links to the schedules and updates the state government has outlined so far.

We’ll continue to monitor what is taking place and will let you know via our website about any progress made during these additional sessions. If you have any questions or concerns and want to contact us, please do so from our website.