- Utah's birth rate quickly fell from No. 1 in the nation to 10th over the past decade.
- Utah House Republicans want to expand the residential property tax exemption.
- GOP leaders also want to cut gas taxes, shrink agencies and boost child care.
Utah is not at risk of losing its reputation as the most family-friendly state in the nation. It already has.
The decline has been rapid.
Over the past decade, Utah went from having the most births per woman, to the fastest falling fertility rate in the country.
The state now ranks No. 10 — and state lawmakers worry the obstacles to family formation are only getting bigger.
Utah has the ninth priciest housing market, the 14th highest tax burden and the most child care deserts anywhere.
Removing these barriers is the top priority for Utah House Republicans in the upcoming general legislative session, the GOP majority leadership team told the Deseret News Editorial Board in an in-depth interview.
“Cost of living is one of the biggest threats to Utah’s ‘Utahness’ because what’s made us so unique is we are thriving because we have vibrant families and a social structure outside of government,” said House Majority Whip Candice Pierucci, R-Herriman.
Under Speaker Mike Schultz, the Republican-dominated chamber plans to put “families first” in 2026 by cutting residential property taxes, expanding the child tax credit and passing first-in-the-nation child protection laws.
Revenue reductions must be paired with shrinking the size of government — Schultz wants every state agency to shave 5% from its budget — as Utah faces a $300 million shortfall because of federal changes to the income tax rate.
Utah’s Democratic caucus wants to see increased spending on government services this year, but Republicans say subsidies are not the answer to Utah’s slowing population growth. A cultural shift is, and lawmakers intend to clear the way.
Family-first tax cuts
The first thing on Republicans’ list is pushing property taxes down after a yearslong surge.
While Utah has one of the lowest property tax rates in the nation, the recent spike in home values has significantly shifted the property tax burden from commercial to residential properties.
Combined with a poorly timed freeze on state rate adjustments and the inflation of government administration costs, the increase in property taxes has been as high as 10% in some counties.
House lawmakers aim to address this by increasing the state’s primary residential exemption, which currently allows county assessors to exempt 45% of the fair market value of a home from taxation.
The exact increase has not been determined, but Schultz said it will be enough to flip the property tax burden from 55% falling on residential owners, and 45% on commercial, to 55% on commercial owners, and 45% on residential.
The state will also be asking municipal governments — without mandating them — to find cost savings, Schultz said, particularly in school districts, so municipalities can avoid raising property taxes further.
“It’s the No. 1 issue we hear about all across the state,” said Majority Assistant Whip Bridger Bolinder, R-Grantsville, of property tax increases. “Whether you’re from southern Utah, or rural Utah, it’s across the board.”
The Legislature will also pursue a personal priority for Schultz, eliminating the tax exemption for fuel sold outside of the state of Utah as a way to lower the gas tax rate, and the overall gas price, for Utahns.
Despite the tight balance sheet, lawmakers hope there’s also some money left over for a small reduction in income tax, to keep the state’s five-year streak of income tax cuts going, and to work toward Schultz’s goal of dropping below a 4% flat rate.
Child care and protection
In 2025, lawmakers expanded the child tax credit to include children who are 5 years old and under the age of 1. They also gave Utah businesses a 20% tax credit for creating new child care options for employees.
In 2026, the GOP hopes to build on both of those initiatives.
This would align with Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s budget recommendation for a $2.5 million expansion of the child tax credit that would extend the benefit to more families with children under 3 years old.
Without mentioning a bipartisan compromise to use vacant, state-owned buildings to be retrofitted for licensed day care facilities, Schultz said he supported increasing the number of children that can join an in-home day care without a license.
The state will also continue its crusade against Big Tech, lobbying for more restrictions on social media and regulations on artificial intelligence, according to Schultz.
On Tuesday, lawmakers announced a pair of high-profile bills that would make Utah the first state to limit the amount and type of education technology that can be used in the classroom, especially in younger grades.
Homelessness and housing
However, somewhere the House is not aligned with the governor is on funding for the state’s ambitious pivot on homeless policy toward a massive central campus north of the Salt Lake City International Airport.
Securing $25 million for the construction of the 16-acre, 1,300-bed facility, and $20 million in ongoing funds for its operation, is his top spending request for the Legislature, Cox told the Deseret News Editorial Board.
But on Wednesday, Schultz threw cold water on the state-led solution, saying Utah’s government spent more money per capita on homelessness than almost anywhere else in the country, and that local partners need to step up.
“We’ll see what’s available with funding and how things shake out,” Schultz said. “We want to begin to be partners with our local governments. We expect them to step up and do more. This isn’t going to be laid at the feet of the state overall.”
Schultz did, however, reaffirm the Legislature’s commitment to backing the governor’s shift from housing-first models to an emphasis on cracking down on drug use and opening the door to involuntary commitment for the chronically homeless.
On home ownership, Schultz said the Legislature shared Cox’s goal of increasing the supply of single-family starter homes by investing in infrastructure, but he pushed back on any attempt to implement new statewide zoning mandates.
What else to watch out for
On Wednesday, Senate Republicans also released their 2026 priorities, which overlapped significantly with their lower chamber counterparts, focusing on tax cuts, affordable housing and infrastructure for water and energy.
Senate Democrats released a list on Tuesday framing their priorities around opposing Republicans’ actions on redistricting and removing sensitive content from schools, while pushing for investments in schools, health care and the Great Salt Lake.