After breathing clean ocean air on the California coast last week, I returned to Salt Lake City wondering about the quality of our air. I checked my Utah Air app and was dismayed, but not surprised, to see the next three days were forecast to be “unhealthy for sensitive groups.” This includes a large part of our community — and it includes me as an older adult.
Understanding how polluted air damages our health, I was especially pleased to learn that Sen. John Curtis has spoken and written persuasively in favor of retaining many of the clean energy tax credits in the federal reconciliation bill (aka., the “Big, Beautiful Bill”). These tax credits are important for Utah jobs, the Utah economy, our future electricity costs and our health.
I compliment Senator Curtis for writing so thoughtfully about these tax credits. I encourage Sen. Mike Lee and Reps. Blake Moore, Burgess Owens, Mike Kennedy and Celeste Maloy to approach this bill with “a scalpel, not a sledgehammer,” as Senator Curtis advocates. They need to hear from Utah citizens that you want them to keep these credits that will preserve Utah jobs and help clean our air for everyone, especially for “sensitive groups.”
David Folland, M.D.
Sandy