The 1989 Legislature could break a record.
If the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel is asked to draft just five more pieces of legislation, lawmakers will top the 1983 record of 1,086 requests for bills and resolutions.That's likely to happen even though Wednesday was officially the last day for lawmakers to ask the office to draft bills and other legislation. Both the Senate and the House allow members the option of overriding the self-imposed deadline.
Just why lawmakers want so many bills and resolutions to consider is a mystery, especially since they now meet only 45 days annually. The 1983 session lasted 60 days.
"I don't know what the answer is," said the office director, Richard Strong. "We don't have time to sit down and analyze what's going on. We're just trying to keep our heads above water."
(BU) Special service districts from Logan to St. George can breathe a little easier. At least for a while.
Rep. Glen Brown, R-Coalville, the sponsor of a bill that would have phased out all special service districts, substituted the controversial measure for one that calls for a committee of legislators to study the idea for a year and make recommendations to the 1990 Legislature.
There will be no representatives from the special service districts on the committee. "There will be no foxes in the hen house," said Brown.
The intent of both pieces of legislation, said Brown, is to foster better long-term accountability by special service districts on how they spend the tens of millions of tax dollars they collect every year.
The bill also calls for selective auditing of service districts by the legislative auditor general.