Morning TARGET Workshop

7:45am-9am; Second Tuesday of the Month

Target Morning Workshop with Chamber of Commerce – Utah Representatives

Rep. Stephen Whyte and Rep. Norm Thurston provided a report on the 2022 Utah Legislative Session to the Springville-Mapleton Chamber of Commerce.

The 2022 Utah Legislative Session was Rep. Whyte’s first session in office and Rep. Thurston’s 8^th session in office. They described how the state legislature operates as a part-time body with 75 representatives and 29 senators who vote on Utah’s budgets and Utah’s bills. In 2022, there were 1,273 total bill requests and 513 bills passed – all within 45 days.

During the Legislative Session, over 300 people came to visit Utah Capitol, including Springville Mayor Matt Packard, Springville Police Department, and many citizens. Our representatives shared that this was the best part of the session – speaking with citizens about their concerns and ideas.
 
Legislative Priorities for Springville/Mapleton –

• Population growth.
  • There will be an additional 1 million people in Utah Valley alone in 30 years

• While we cannot control the growth, we can prepare for it. “Preparing for our population growth is a generational opportunity and challenge like the pioneers who first came to Utah experienced,” said Rep. Whyte

 
Project funding to be invested in our area:

• Internal transfer of $30 million for Springville/Spanish Fork interchange – this project has been planned as an idea for a long time, but now the funding has been approved and allocated by the Utah state budget
  • Will start construction at the end of 2022
  • Utah Valley caucus was instrumental in getting approval for this
• $40 million allocated for rail consolidation – 2 railroad lines will no longer go through Spanish fork – just 1 through Mapleton
• $5M allocated for Environmental Study for Frontrunner will be extended to Payson. This is an important step towards building the frontrunner stations.
  • Utah Valley Chamber of Commerce and MAG were instrumental in getting approval for this

 
Educate Yourself on the Process and Get Involved!
You can see transparent reporting on how the state is spending money by going to BUDGET.UTAH.GOV
You can see bill status using the Bill Tracker tool on the Utah Legislative website.
Participate in the process by commenting in committee meetings virtually or in-person at the Utah Capitol.
 
Utah was rated #1 in the nation for Economic Stability and Potential by U.S. News and World Report. Utah has a strong financial position with a balanced budget, and we can be proud of how our state is being run.
 
The Springville-Mapleton Chamber of Commerce sincerely thanks Rep. Stephen White and Rep. Norm Thurston for sharing their 2022 Utah Legislative Report.