ELECTIONS, POLITICS, & GOVERNMENT
Utah lawmakers return to Capitol Hill ahead of special session
Jun 13, 2023, 9:00 AM | Updated: 12:15 pm
The Utah State Capitol is pictured in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Kira Hoffelmeyer/ KSL NewsRadio)
(Kira Hoffelmeyer/ KSL NewsRadio)
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah lawmakers head back to the state capitol today to begin subcommittee meetings ahead of Wednesday’s special session.
The special session is to plan for the special election of Congressman Chris Stewart’s seat in Washington following his resignation notice filed last week.
Today, numerous subcommittees will meet and discuss other issues around Utah.
The Executive Offices and Criminal Justice Appropriations Subcommittee expects to get reports on how money was spent on the Department of Corrections and flood mitigation.
The Natural Resources, Agriculture, & Environmental Quality Appropriations Subcommittee will talk about geologic hazard mapping and landslides around Utah homes.
Tomorrow the Education Interim Committee is expected to talk about sensitive materials in Utah schools.
Then, the Government Operations Interim Committee plans to draft the legislation for the special session.
It’s widely expected that lawmakers will adjust laws regarding the timeline of special elections. Currently, Utah law required 90 days for a primary and 90 days for an election.
With that timeline, there are concerns it could leave a vacant seat in Washington for a time. Or, that it might interfere with a reelection campaign for Rep. Stewart’s replacement.
Lawmakers return to the floor at 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Related: Congressman Chris Stewart announces resignation
