States’ Rights Legislation

States’ Rights is one of this year’s buzz phrases at the capitol.  At last count there were 10 bills and 7 resolutions on the docket aimed at asserting our state sovereignty.

A few of these items that are in process this week include:

SJR6 State Sovereingty and Tenth Amendment (Sen Stephenson) strongly urges Congress and the President to refrain from exercising authority related to the individual states beyond that granted by the states in the Constitution of the United States, and declares the state’s sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.  This resolution has been introduced in the Senate.

HB67 Health System Amendments (Rep Wimmer) prohibits a state agency or department from implementing any provision of a federal health care reform law unless the Legislature/Governor approve the implementation.  This bill passed out of committee yesterday with a favorable vote (5 yea, 1 nay, 1 absent) and will now be debated in the House.

HJR 11 Joint Resolution Regarding Federal Health Insurance Reform (Rep Morley) urges Congress to refrain from instituting a new federal review, oversight, or preemption of state health insurance laws, refrain from creating a federal health insurance exchange or connector, and refrain from creating a federal health insurance public plan option.

Another interesting bill to watch is SB11 Utah State-Made Firearms Protection Act (Sen Dayton), which addresses state sovereignty over firearms/ammunition produced and kept wholly within the state of Utah.  This bill passed its second reading in the Senate yesterday (19 yea, 10 nay).

There is a lot of inspiring, fascinating, and spirited discussion surrounding most bills in the legislative process, and it is informative and entertaining to take part in this process by listening to/watching committee and floor debate at the State Legislature’s website.  We highly recommend listening in.

Lincoln Day Dinner Coming up on Feb 6

The Utah County Republican Party’s annual Lincoln Day Dinner fundraiser is just around the corner, so mark your calendars and get your tickets while they’re still available.

The event will be Saturday, February 6, at 7:00 p.m., at the UVU Sorensen Center.  The theme for this year’s dinner is a tribute to former President Ronald Reagan.  Amity Shlaes (author of ‘The Forgotten Man’ and ‘The Greedy Hand’) will be speaking, and famed pianist Jon Schmidt will entertain.

The big news this year is that the Party has added per-plate ticket pricing for this event so that more people can enjoy the food and festivities (in the past, tickets were sold only on a per-table basis).  This will be a great opportunity to not only enjoy an evening filled with dining and patriotic entertainment, but to also help fund the Party in its quest to advance Republican principles.   Ticket prices range from $50 per-plate to $1,500 for an Event Sponsor Table (includes a VIP reception beginning at 5:30).

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit utahlincolndinner.com.  Contact Corey Norman with any questions (801-380-6921).

Ex Officio / Automatic Delegate Panel Discussion Saturday

The Utah County Republican Party Constitution and Bylaws Committee is sponsoring a panel discussion this weekend, entitled “Ex Officios, Automatics and Other Enigmas”.  The event will be held this Saturday, January 30, from 9:45 – 11:45 a.m., at the Provo City Council Chambers (351 W. Center, Provo).  The event will strive to help to help Republicans understand and help resolve the issues surrounding delegate allocation in the Utah County Republican Party.  This will be especially helpful to Central Committee members, who have heard (and will hear more) C&B revisions involving delegate allocation.

The C&B Committee is billing the event as “fact-filled, logical, non-emotional, and highly entertaining.”  Kirby Glad will be acting as moderator, and panelists are expected to include Morgan Philpot, Lynn Taylor, Dave Duncan, and Adrielle Herring.  Informational handouts and discussion are on the agenda, and the audience will be able to submit questions for the panelists.  Questions may submitted in advance by emailing Kirby at: kirbyglad@comcast.net.
Contact Kristen Chevrier with any questions: politicalmommy@gmail.com (no text messages please).

Educational Documents Now Available on UCRP Website

In an effort to help Republicans be better informed and educated, the Utah County Republican Party has included a Documents section on its website that is full of useful and educational information.

Today we would specifically like to draw your attention to the new Education documents posted online.  To view these documents, go to the UCRP website (utahcountygop.org) and click on the “Documents” tab at the top of the page, then click on the “Education” link.  There is a wealth of information there, including info about Party organization, voter education, how to get involved, precinct officer aids, delegate info, precinct walking scripts, delegate allocation info, and more (with more to come).  This is a great resource for our precinct officers and delegates, as well as for the public.  It is exciting to see so much information made so easily accessible.  Please take a moment to check it out!

Meet with your Legislator for “Eggs and Issues”

Legislators are available to speak and listen to constituents at the Provo/Orem Chamber of Commerce “Eggs and Issues” breakfast forum, which is held at 7:30 a.m. each Saturday morning during the legislative session.  The event is sponsored by Intermaountain Healthcare and is held at their Northwest Plaza (450 W 1230 N, Provo).  All are invited.

Legislative Session Starts Monday – How to Keep Up with the Action

The Utah Legislature convenes Monday for another intensive, faced-paced session.  The session runs for just 45 days,  adjourning on March 11.  Fortunately for Utahns, it is  easy to keep up with all of the legislative action.   Here are some tips for keeping up with the legislature:

• Use the Utah State Legislature website — Visiting le.utah.gov is the next best thing to visiting the capitol.  Here are some of the great amenities of the site:
  1. Calendar – View the legislative calendar to see what’s coming up by day, by week, and by month.  Click each calendar item to see details and agendas, and to listen to audio and/or subscribe to podcasts of meetings.  You can even request to have a committee’s agendas and minutes emailed to you.
  2. Listen in on meetings — You can listen to committee meetings and floor time live, and also find previously recorded audio.  Video is also available for some meetings.  This is a fascinating, up-to-the-minute approach for following your favorite issues.
  3. Read Bills and Resolutions — The “Bills” link lets you search for legislation/resolutions by bill number, legislator, subject, and more.  You can read the bill, check its status (where it is in the process), see how legislators voted on it, and even sign up to receive email updates when the bill’s status changes (a very easy way to keep track of legislation that is of particular interest).
  4. Citizen’s Guide – Click on the “Citizen’s Guide” link to learn all about the legislative process.

• Eggs & Issues — Utah County legislators are available every Saturday morning during the session at their Eggs and Issues breakfast/legislative info meeting, held at 7:30 a.m. at IHC’s Northwest Plaza (450 W 1230 N, Provo).  The public is welcome to attend.

• Follow that Legislator — Social networking sites are great for keeping up with your legislator.  Become a friend or follower of your legislator on Facebook or Twitter, where you can read their posts about issues and keep current on what they’re accomplishing in the legislature.   This is a great way to get to better know your legislator’s principles and practices.

• Open Houses / Forums — Watch for legislative open houses / forums that may be held in your precinct or district during the legislative session.  Our District 61 Leadership team is working to organize forums where you can come and listen to/ask questions of our legislators.

• Contact your Legislators – As always, we encourage you to contact your legislators about issues that are of particular concern to you.  As your representatives, they need to know where you stand on the issues.  Give them a phone call or send them an email.  The legislative session moves along quickly, so if you hear that the legislature is addressing an issue that is important to you, don’t delay contacting your legislators.

• Visit the Capitol — The public is free to visit the capitol and attend regular committee meetings and house/senate floor time.  Seating for the public is provided at the back of committee meeting rooms.  Public viewing galleries for the house and senate are located upstairs above the house/senate floors.   Check the legislative calendar to find out what’s going on and when.  There are plenty of people at the capitol to help you find what you’re looking for, so don’t be afraid to ask for assistance. Visiting the capitol during the legislative session is educational and enjoyable, and is highly recommended.

Central Committee Meeting Summary

The Utah County Republican Party Central Committee met last night to perform the business of the Party and to hear a group of panelists discuss various issues that are affecting politics and our Party today.

Some new items to be aware of are:

• Education documents are now available online under the “Documents” tab on the county Party website.  Topics include Precinct Officer FAQ, Caucus Basics, How to Get Involved, Common Motions of Robert’s Rules, and many more.
• Caucus locations will be posted on the county Party website as soon as the completed list is compiled.
• The UCRP Constitution and Bylaws Committee is sponsoring a panel discussion regarding “Ex Officios, Automatics, and Other Enigmas”, to be held Saturday, January 30 from 9:45 – 11:45 a.m. at the Provo City Council Chambers (351 W. Center St., Provo).  This event promises to be both entertaining and informative, and will help us understand the issue of delegate allocation, which will be especially  helpful with some of the C&B issues that are expected to come before the Central Committee in the near future.
• The “Constitution and Bylaws” tab on the county Party website shows what C&B changes are coming up and where they are in the process (C&B Committee, Exec Committee, Central Committee, etc).  Check it out to stay on top of upcoming issues/discussions/changes.

The following Bylaw amendments were addressed:

1. B105 – State Delegate Vacancy Replacement in Both Years – Currently the Bylaws only specify how delegate replacements are to be handled in primary years; this bylaw amendment requests deleting the text “in the primary year” so that the delegate replacement process currently in the bylaws will apply at all times.  This amendment passed unanimously.
2. B106 – Ratify Platform Changes Separately – The committee voted to send this proposal back to the C&B committee for language clarification (specifically, clarification about what constitutes “changes” and to consider changing “shall” to “may”).
3. B107 – Ratify Platform Changes by Ballot – The committee voted to send this proposal back to the C&B committee for language clarification (specifically, clarification about the definition of “changes” and “ballot”).
4. B113A – Rules of Order — The committee voted to send this proposal back to the C&B committee for language clarification (specifically, there was concern over whether the county Party documents should supersede the state Party documents, and whether state Party standing rules should be added to the document list).

PANEL DISCUSSION – A panel discussion was held addressing issues facing our Party today.  Following are some memorable moments from the discussion:

Senator Mark Madsen — “Principles are more important than parties or labels.”  The public needs to become educated in civics, and vote.  Addressing the “throw the bums out” mentality:  If you have a Toyota and a Dodge and one runs great but one gives you trouble, does it make sense to sell them both?  No.  Not all incumbents are bad; weed out the bad ones.

Deidre Henderson (Jason Chaffetz Campaign manager) – GOP needs to fess up to mistakes, put forward a good principled action plan, and follow through.  People should affiliate with a party so they can choose candidates and participate in fixing political problems.  Change will come not from the top down, but from the bottom up.

Representative John Dougall — The GOP should stand for limited government because we believe in an individual’s ability more than in government control.  The vast majority of Americans have no idea what the Constitution is or says; we need to explain constitutional principles in practice and how they benefit people.   The “tyranny of democracy” does not follow constitutional principles.

Thomas Wright (Chair, Salt Lake County Republican Party) — How can you support either your incumbent or the anti-incumbent movement?  By working.  Get out and support your cause, physically and/or financially.  We are not working hard enough.  Federal officials have destroyed the Republican brand by being irresponsible.

Steve Diamond — Utah is not a free state; the federal government owns most of our land.  What is important is that we are grounded in good principles and that we use these principles to make sound decisions.

Doug Cannon — Part of what makes voters apathetic is that they feel that neither party truly represents them.  Infighting drives people away; gentle persuasion works better than anger.  Principles are faith-based.

John Curtis (Provo Mayor) – It is detrimental to put political games and self-promotion of party over serving the people.  Arrogance in public servants turns people off.  “We’re here to serve, not to rule.”

Common Sense Rally in Orem Saturday

Several major grassroots political organizations and patriotic groups have joined together to sponsor a “Common Sense Rally” that will be held right next door to our own District 61.  The event will take place this Saturday, January 23, from 5 – 7 p.m., at the Pinnacle Building, 1290 South Sandhill Road in Orem (just off the University Pkwy Exit, next to Hampton Inn).

Rally organizers state that the purpose of the rally is to help return America to Constitutional principles.  There will be free Constitutional education, delegate training, booths to peruse, live music, and inspirational speakers including Representative Steve Sandstrom (Patrick Henry Caucus), Jeff Allen (Thomas Jefferson Center), and Deidre Henderson (Campaign Manager for Congressman Jason Chaffetz).  All are invited to attend.

The following groups have united to sponsor this rally:  Restoration of America, 9-12, Tea Party, Eagle Forum, Thomas Jefferson Center, United Women’s Forum, Roots of Freedom, Proper Role of Government, Patrick Henry Caucus, The Naked Republic, and Liberty For Citizens.  The Common Sense Rally is not a sponsor of any political candidate, nor does the alliance of its associated groups endorse any particular campaign. The coalition is strictly candidate neutral.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/COMMON-SENSE-RALLY/127949045039#/event.php?eid=223805360072&index=1

Central Committee Meeting this Thursday

Central Committee members, please remember to attend the UCRP Central Committee meeting this Thursday, January 21, at 7:00 p.m. at Lakeridge Junior High School (951 South 400 West, Orem).

According to the meeting agenda (emailed to all CC members last week), the majority of the meeting will consist of a panel discussion regarding “The Increase in Apathy/Voter Frustration, Growth of Government, and the Future of the Republican Party.”

However, there are some business items on the agenda CC that members should be prepared for, including:

• Caucus Prep — what’s the Party’s plan for the upcoming Precinct Caucuses?
• Caucus Delegate Disclosure — regarding releasing of delegate contact info and meeting attendance; might also include whether delegate votes should be recorded and posted.
• New Precinct Officer training — Preview of preliminary training plans.
• Responsible Ethics website — check it out at responsibleethics.com.
• Recommendation from the Elected Official Support Research Committee (**see below).
• Constitution and Bylaws proposals (review the 7 proposals in queue on the Party website).

During the past several months there has been some confusion and contention regarding how and when the Party should financially support our Republican Utah County legislators.  There are currently no rules or documentation governing this issue.  In an effort to standardize procedures, the Executive Committee commissioned the Elected Official Support Research Committee to research the issue and make recommendations.  This committee has released the following statement, which will be presented at our CC meeting:

**Elected Official Support Research Committee
The purpose of the Utah County Republican Party (UCRP) is, in part, “to seek, support and elect capable and effective Republican candidates for elective public office” (UCRP Constitution).  The Executive Committee authorized the Chair to create a committee to determine how the UCRP can best support its elected officials as they work to promote the party platform.  The members of this Elected Official Support Research Committee (EOSRC) are:

•    Taylor Oldroyd, UCRP Chair
•    Lowell Nelson, Constitution & Bylaws Chair
•    Lynn Taylor, UCRP Treasurer
•    Don Garlitz, Legislative District 64 Chair
•    Kepi Heimuli, Legislative District 67 Chair
•    Mark Madsen, Utah State Senator, District 13
•    Keith Grover, Utah State Representative, District 61

The EOSRC acknowledges that any action on this issue will have profound and far-reaching effects that will impact the effectiveness of the UCRP in accomplishing its purpose.   Due to the significance of this issue, the EOSRC recommends that the UCRP initiate a two year study to research and evaluate the likely effects of proposed actions in support of its elected officials.  This study should include an evaluation of current practices, as well as practices in other counties in Utah and other states.

Until the study has concluded, the EOSRC recommends that the UCRP

•    Provide campaign funding support from the time the candidate becomes the party nominee through the final results of the general election.
•    Track, measure and report elected official activities and votes compared with the UCRP platform to hold elected officials accountable to the party platform.
•    As part of this accountability, the UCRP should consider adapting the Utah State Republican Party’s practice of having Republican candidates sign a statement that identifies the candidate’s degree of alignment with the party platform.

Respectfully,
The UCRP Elected Official Support Research Committee

See you Thursday!

6th Grade Essay Contest

Do you know a 6th grader? Are YOU a 6th grader? Read on…

The Utah County Republican Party is sponsoring an essay contest for all 6th grade students in Utah County. The winner and their respective class will each receive $250. Second and third place cash prizes will also be awarded to both the class and student at $100 and $50 respectively.

The topic of the essay is: What is former President Ronald Reagan’s most important legacy? The winning student will have the opportunity to read their essay at the County Party’s annual Lincoln Day Dinner.

Submitted essays should be no longer than 600 words. Entries will be judged by the UCRP Steering Committee. To enter, students should include their name, the name of a parent or guardian, teacher’s name, school name, city, and home phone number. In order to be considered all submissions need to be received by January 21, 2010 (NOTE — THE DEADLINE HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO MIDNIGHT ON JANUARY 29). The winner will be notified by phone.

Entries can be emailed to essaycontest@utahcountygop.org