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• Initiatives

• Courts and Privacy

• Government Ethics

Initiatives

HJR 3 (require signatures in every county) and HJR 11 (greatly increase the number of signatures required) were both heard in House Rules 3/10. Either of these constitutional amendments would have to be voted on in a general election. However, either would destroy the initiative process as we know it by making it much, much more difficult to get an initiative on the ballot. The legislature would, in effect, be insulating itself from being second-guessed by the voters. However, the whole purpose of the initiative process is for voters to have a say in issues that the legislature has failed to deal with. The League strongly opposes both these bills.

Courts and Privacy

By Becky Gladstone

This week’s Joint Legislative Council Public Records committee hearing had more background for panelists, noting that cybersecurity and IT support are like plumbing, you don‘t think about them unless they don’t work.

Tuesday’s Future of FEMA: Perspectives from the Emergency Management Community, hearing video   highlighted an additional 800 in staffing cuts projected on top of 300 already cut. Anticipate urging to protect FEMA.

HB 3012 calls for 16 and 17 year olds who are registered to vote, being able to cast ballots soley for their school districts. The League lacks a position for a specific optimal voting age. We have Strongly supported learning to vote, both with repeated legislative advocacy and for decades with our Mock Elections and Civics Education curriculum. See League COMMENTS filed, including in the hearing video, at time stamp: 1:14:49 to 1:15:58. Verbal testimony was limited to one minute.

HB 2581 to coordinate expanded resiliency services with the State Resiliency Officer (SRO), is scheduled for a Senate side work session after passing a House floor vote last week, League testimony.

HB 2341, to add veterans’ email addresses to shared information, has a Senate side public hearing scheduled, after passing a House floor vote with 58 in favor, two excused, League testimony.

SB 470 is scheduled for a work session, League testimony filed and presented in support. This bill to protect lodgers’ privacy from illicitly taken videos, seemed likely to generate amendments from discussion in the public hearing but none have been recorded.

Upcoming

SB 414 is an AI bill, making disclosing fake intimate images a crime. It was slated for a public hearing, removed and rescheduling is anticipated, with League support.

HB 5537 We anticipate speaking to this SoS budget bill, during the week of April 7.

Government Ethics

By Chris Cobey

SB 983 to be heard 3/17 in the Senate Education committee, would allow a local public official to discuss, debate and vote on a local budget that includes compensation for the public official or their relative after announcing an actual conflict of interests. This would be a major change in ethics laws. Small local jurisdictions are where most of the conflicts of interest arise.

HB 2330 would create a task force to come up with ideas to address fraudulent schemes that target the elderly. The bill passed out of House Commerce and Consumer Protection to the House floor with a 10 to 0 vote.

Interested in reading additional reports?  Please see our Climate Emergency, Natural Resources, and Social Policy report sections.