About Utah Politics - March 20, 2014

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Thursday, March 20, 2014 - 7:30am

Local News Highlights: Daily Briefing

How to Sound Smart About Utah Politics - March 20, 2014

Two Salt Lake County Republican Party leaders resign. Bluffdale ordered to turn over water usage records for the NSA data facility. Utah A.G.'s office works to plug leaks to the media.

Countdown:

The Utah candidate filing period closes today at 5 pm
Utah Republicans hold their caucus meetings tonight
36 days until the Utah State Republican and Democratic conventions
96 days until Utah's 2014 primary elections
229 days to the 2014 midterm elections
312 days to the start of the 2015 Utah Legislature
592 days to the 2015 elections
657 days until the 2016 Iowa Caucuses
963 days to the 2016 presidential election

Today's Utah political news highlights:

Two members of leadership for the Salt Lake County Republican Party, including chairman Chad Bennion, resign [Deseret News, Tribune].
The city of Bluffdale has been ordered to turn over records about water usage at the NSA's data center [Tribune].
The Utah A.G.'s office unveils a new policy designed to crack down on leaks to the media [Tribune].
Attorney General Sean Reyes files to complete the term of former A.G. John Swallow [Deseret News].
Editorial calls for former A.G. Swallow to be prosecuted [Standard-Examiner].
Rep. Brad Daw, who was driven from office by the dark money scheme perpetrated by Swallow, is challenging to get his seat in the legislature back [KUTV].
Even though the 2014 session is over, lawmakers still have some things on their "to do" list [Daily Herald].
Here's a great rundown of which initiatives passed and what got derailed during the 2014 session [City Weekly].
Utah Data Points has a number of fascinating breakdowns from the 2014 session:
- Who sponsored the most bills in 2014?
- Who missed the most votes?
- What bills had the closest votes?
Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder is seeking a third term in that office [Deseret News].
There are less than two weeks for Utahns to sign up for healthcare coverage under the Affordable Care Act [Tribune].

On this day in history:

1727 - Sir Issac Newton died in London.
1815 - Napoleon Bonaparte entered Paris, beginning his Hundred Days rule.
1816 - The Supreme Court affirmed its right to review state court decisions.
1852 - The book "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowe was published.
1995 - A doomsday cult in Japan released sarin gas in five Tokyo subway stations, killing 12 people.
2003 - British forces invaded Iraq from Kuwait.
2004 - The U.S. military charged six soldiers with abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

Today At Utah Policy

Bryan Schott's Political BS: Another Defeat for Transparency
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2014 Candidate Tracker
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Provo/Orem is the Worst Paying City for Women in the U.S., Ogden is 8th Worst
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2014 Session Passed 3rd-Highest Number of Bills Ever
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