Get smart fast! Everything you need to know about Utah politics for Tuesday morning from UtahPolicy.com

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Tuesday, October 17, 2017 - 12:45pm

Utah Policy

Daily Briefing

Good Tuesday morning from Salt Lake City. Today is the 290th day of the year. There are 75 days remaining in 2017.

The clock:

Ballots for the 2017 general election are mailed to voters today (10/17/2017)
21 days until the 2017 election (11/7/2017)
97 days until the opening day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (1/22/2018)
142 days until the final day of the 2018 Utah Legislature (3/8/2018)
385 days until the 2018 midterm elections (11/6/2018)
1,113 days until the 2020 presidential election (11/3/2020)

Today's political TL; DR -

A new study from the Utah Foundation finds Utah has terrible voter turnout (39th in the nation), and the high number of "uncompetitive" races is the likely culprit [Utah Policy].
Rep. Mia Love posts some alarming fundraising numbers. She's spent more this year than she's raised. However, her campaign chief, Dave Hansen, says they're not worried because most of their spending has been on prospecting for future fundraising. Hansen says they've also seen a sharp uptick in donations following word that Democrat Ben McAdams might challenge Love in 2018 [Utah Policy].
Sen. Orrin Hatch defends himself against a news report that claimed legislation sponsored by him weakened the effort to slow down the spread of opioid painkillers [Utah Policy, Deseret News, Tribune].
Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz joins the chorus of those on the right who say Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell needs to go [Utah Policy].
Utah leaders announce they're forming an exploratory committee to possibly bid on hosting the Winter Olympics in 2026 or 2030 [Deseret News, Tribune].
Sen. Mike Lee endorses conservative firebrand Roy Moore in Alabama's Senate race [Tribune].
Faith leaders are urging Salt Lake Mayor Jackie Biskupski to boost the amount of affordable housing available before the homeless shelter in downtown Salt Lake closes in 2019 [Deseret News, Tribune].
House Speaker Greg Hughes fires back at Iain De Jong, an expert on homeless issues, who has been critical of Operation Rio Grande. Hughes also questions whether it's appropriate to keep De Jong on as a consultant for the new homeless resource centers in Salt Lake City [Deseret News].
The Utah Transit Authority wants to borrow $88.5 million next year. UTA already has about $2 billion in debt [Tribune].
Utah's fight against a movie theater that served alcohol during a showing of the movie "Deadpool" could end up costing taxpayers more than $500,000 in legal fees for the theater. Brewvies is asking the state to pay their legal fees following a judge's ruling against the state [Tribune].
Some Utah school officials are complaining that wealthier school districts are "poaching" teachers away from jobs in their organizations, which is making the teacher shortage in Utah acuter [Tribune].
Weber School District officials are investigating a social media post in which a group of teen girls takes turns shouting racial slurs [Deseret News].
Federal prosecutors will drop 11 of the 14 felony charges brought against former Utah Transit Authority board member Terry Diehl [Tribune].
LaVarr Webb looks at how autonomous vehicles might change the future of transportation planning in Utah [Utah Policy].

National headlines:

Welp! North Korea officials are warning the situation on the Korean peninsula "has reached the touch-and-go point and a nuclear war could break out any moment" [Associated Press].
A new nationwide poll shows President Donald Trump's approval rating holding steady at just 37% [CNN].
Sen. John McCain blasted "half-baked, spurious nationalism" during a speech directed at the supporters of Donald Trump on Monday night [Politico].
President Donald Trump called an impromptu press conference on Monday where he blasted the news media ("fake"), his low poll numbers ("fake") and blamed Democrats, the NFL and other groups for the ills facing America [Politico].
During his impromptu talk with the media, Trump made the demonstrably false claim that other presidents, including President Obama, did not contact the families of American troops killed in the line of duty. The false statement drew an immediate backlash [New York Times].
President Trump reportedly is seeking a bipartisan deal with Congress to shore up Obamacare [Politico].
Worth watching. New Jersey is reportedly offering up to $7 billion in incentives to lure Amazon to build their second headquarters there [Wall Street Journal].
Members of President Donald Trump's administration are growing increasingly worried that their tax reform proposal will fall in the Senate just like the effort to repeal Obamacare [Politico].
President Trump will declare a national emergency next week to address the opioid epidemic. He also said he would re-examine his nomination of Rep. Tom Marino (R-Pa.) to be the nation's drug czar following a report he sponsored legislation to help drug companies avoid government interference when distributing large amounts of painkillers [Washington Post].
Even though President Donald Trump likes to attack big media organizations as "fake news," his actions while in the White House have strengthened the big media conglomerates while hurting smaller groups [Axios].
This is weird. The Las Vegas security guard who was shot by the Las Vegas gunman before he opened fire on an outdoor concert has disappeared [Los Angeles Times].

On this day in history:

1781 - British General Charles, Earl Cornwallis surrenders at the Siege of Yorktown.
1888 - Thomas Edison files a patent for the Optical Phonograph (the first movie).
1931 - Al Capone is convicted of income tax evasion.
1933 - Albert Einstein flees Nazi Germany and moves to the United States.
1973 - OPEC declared an oil embargo on countries supporting Israel in its war with Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. The ensuing energy crisis created a gasoline shortage in the United States, prompting long lines at the pump.
1979 - The Department of Education Organization Act is signed into law creating the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Today At Utah Policy

New study says Utah voter turnout is dismal and 'uncompetitive' races may be the reason why
By Bob Bernick, Contributing Editor
Utah ranks 39th in the nation in voter participation, a just-released study of 2016 state office elections by the Utah Foundation shows....

Love's campaign spending is outpacing donations, but her team isn't worried
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Rep. Mia Love's campaign is spending cash faster than they pull it in, but her top political adviser isn't worried....

Experts weigh in: Will autonomous vehicles mean more congestion -- or less?
By LaVarr Webb, Publisher
Here's a simple little multi-billion-dollar question for Utah's transportation planners:Will autonomous vehicles, smart highways and the sharing economy increase congestion or reduce congestion on our highways?...

Press release: Hatch sets record straight on one-sided opioid report
By Press Release
Monday on the Senate floor, Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), the senior Republican in the United States Senate, addressed the Washington Post's recent misleading report about Congress's ties to the drug industry....

Chaffetz says he doesn't see the case to keep McConnell as Senate Majority Leader (with video)
By Bryan Schott, Managing Editor
Former Utah Representative turned Fox News contributor Jason Chaffetz joined the attack from the political right on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, saying he does not "know what the case is" to keep McConnell in that position....

Policy News

Rep. Chris Stewart to hold two town hall meetings
Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah) will be holding two town hall meetings on Thursday, October 19, 2017....

Fox Files: 'Greer, South Carolina'
I participated in the World Trade Center and the Governor's Office of Economic Development's tour of the Greer, South Carolina inland port this week....

Utah selects new statewide school testing provider
The Utah State Board of Education will begin negotiations with Questar Assessment Inc. for a five-year, computer-adaptive testing contract that will begin being used in schools in the 2018-19 school year. ...