{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "is_view": false, "human_description_en": "where party = \"Republican\", state = \"UT\" and year = 2019 sorted by date descending", "rows": [["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=1134A488-6572-4C2E-8205-DE540F84A3D4", "Protecting America Livestock", "2019-12-20", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "This March the United States Fish and Wildlife Service proposed a new regulation that would remove the gray wolf from the endangered species list. The science is on the government's side. Today there are an estimated 5,600 gray wolves in the United States and grey wolf population continues to exceed the appropriate management levels established by relevant state wildlife divisions and benchmarks from the Fish and Wildlife Service. There are so many grey wolves roaming the west that they have become a real threat to America's livestock. Populations have reached critically high numbers in many states - so high, in fact, that wolves are not just preying on livestock, but pushing elk and deer onto U.S. farms and ranches, which leads to even more destruction, The American Farm Bureau Federation said when the FWS announced their new regulation. Unfortunately, wealthy environmentalists whose livelihoods do not depend on healthy herds of sheep and cattle disagree. They have promised to sue to stop the rule in federal court. And while it is almost assured FWS would win eventually, the lawsuits could delay implementation of the regulation for months and even years. That is why I introduced the American Wild Game and Livestock Protection Act this week. The bill would avoid all litigation over the grey wolf's endangered species status by simply declaring them not endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. This bill would in no way stop or even slow a possible relisting of the grey wolf if population numbers fall in the future. If the situation changes, if the science shows the grey wolf has become endangered again, then a future government could relist the grey wolf. This bill does not prevent that. All this bill does do is cut out all the wasteful litigation taxpayers will face from radical environmentalists as they fight the science and this new regulation in court.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=40B3E246-1811-4686-ACD5-8DD587AF6F01", "Another Spending Extravaganza", "2019-12-20", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "John F. Kennedy famously said to govern is to choose. But as the omnibus spending bill passed by the House and Senate this week shows, Congress's defining dysfunction is that it doesn't choose. We don't budget. We don't reform. We don't prioritize. We just spend, and hope we're retired or working as lobbyists or consultants when the bill for our negligence and recklessness comes due. This omnibus will add $2.2 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. By that time, we will be spending more on interest on the debt than we do on national defense. Discretionary spending will be set at record-high levels in nearly every category. Not only does this package feature reckless spending, but it includes many irrelevant bills that it should not  funding broken, inefficient, and even harmful programs. For instance, this bill reauthorizes the National Flood Insurance Program  a program which subsidizes beachfront properties right in the middle of dangerous flood plains, and which is already in $20.5 billion in debt to American taxpayers  for a full year without a single reform. The bill also includes $495 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund  a 13% increase from the last fiscal year, and the highest appropriation it has had in 17 years  for a program that has been of particular detriment to my state of Utah. The LWCF has been used as a tool for the federal government to greedily acquire more lands, even as it is failing to care for the ones it already owns, with a current maintenance backlog of $19.4 billion. Worse, in addition to funding broken programs, it funds blatant cronyism. The bill reauthorizes the Export-Import Bank -- Washington's favorite corporate favor bank, which doles out taxpayer-backed loans to help American exporters  for a full seven years, without so much as a word of debate. Their biggest customer is Pemex  Mexico's famously corrupt, state-owned oil company. So corrupt, in fact, that its own employees collaborate with Mexico's cartels to facilitate the theft of the best of their oil. And ranked right after Pemex is the People's Republic of China, whose state-owned enterprises are granted generous American taxpayer-backed financing for purchases they could fund through their own communist government. To top things off, a last-minute tax-extenders deal was added to the package late on Monday night  spending billions of dollars on central economic planning and picking winners and losers in the marketplace. Over the next 10 years, the package provides about $2.7 billion in tax benefits through programs that use the tax code to incentivize businesses to invest in government-selected communities, seeking to control the flow of investment instead of relying on the free market. And it includes naked handouts to cronyist, special interests. For example, it spends over $2.1 billion on subsidies for the energy sector  awarding $113 million for coal production on Indian lands, $331 million for facilities to refuel alternative fuel vehicles, and $1.5 billion for biodiesel and renewable diesel tax credits, for instance. The legislation, however, does include some good measures that I support  like repealing the medical device tax, fixing a tax provision that would inappropriately subject new churches to more taxes, and making retirement account reforms that allow Americans to access these funds in times of particular need. Sadly, I had to vote against these measures that I do support because they have been lumped into this massive package as a whole. The thing about these omnibuses is that they put us in a take-it-or-leave it situation. We are given no choice but to support or oppose the whole thing  good and bad measures alike. Unfortunately, this has become standard practice in the United States Senate. Every year we wait until the last minute to fund the federal government, and every year we spend more, and expand the federal government. This can't go on forever. Eventually our borrowing costs will rise. If we don't start making hard choices now, the choices we have to make in the future will only be harder.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-enzi-barrasso-introduce-bill-modernize-how-community-colleges-report-graduation-rates", "Romney, Enzi, Barrasso Introduce Bill to Modernize How Community Colleges Report Graduation Rates", "2019-12-20", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Enzi, Barrasso Introduce Bill to Modernize How Community Colleges Report Graduation Rates\n      \n            Friday, December 20, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Mike Enzi (R-WY), members of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), with Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced the Time for Completion Act, legislation that would help ensure community colleges more accurately report on graduation rates to provide better transparency for students.  \n                 \nCurrent law requires institutions of higher education to report on graduation rates for first-time, full-time students, excluding millions of nontraditional students and creating incomplete and inaccurate information. The Time for Completion Act would modify existing reporting requirements to better reflect diverse populations of mostly part-time, non-first-time students at community colleges.  \n          \nRight now graduation rates do not accurately reflect the scope of students who attend our community colleges in Utah and around the country, Senator Romney said. Our bill will fix that discrepancy by modifying the reporting requirements to include non-traditional students, such as those students who attend part-time or return to school after serving in the military.\n   \nIt's important for students and families to have the most accurate information before choosing a college that best fits their needs, Senator Enzi said. The Time for Completion Act would update how colleges report on graduation rates to help make sure our institutions of higher education are serving students well. It would benefit Wyoming's seven community colleges by more appropriately reflecting the diversity of our students there.\n   \nWyoming is fortunate to have seven wonderful community colleges. They deserve to have all of their students, traditional or non-traditional, accurately accounted for in graduation rates, Senator Barrasso said. The Time for Completion Act will make sure prospective students have the most up-to-date information about graduation rates before choosing the best school for them. \n      \n  \n    Issues", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://robbishop.house.gov/media/press-releases/bishop-statement-passage-new-trade-deal-canada-and-mexico", "Bishop Statement on Passage of New Trade Deal with Canada and Mexico", "2019-12-19", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Rob Bishop", "B001250", "robbishop.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Today, the House of Representatives voted on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Following the vote, Congressman Bishop stated:\nIt is about time!\nDespite USMCA's bipartisan and bicameral support, Speaker Pelosi has refused to bring it to the floor in what can only be described as an attempt to deny President Trump any victories until she could impeach him.\nI am pleased the House passed the trade deal with Canada and Mexico. This is a vast improvement over NAFTA. This bill is good for Utah and the country. It is just too bad it took so long for Democrat leadership to do the right thing.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://stewart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/stewart-proposes-budget-process-reform", "Stewart Proposes Budget Process Reform", "2019-12-19", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Chris Stewart", "S001192", "stewart.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Today, Congressman Chris Stewart (R-UT) introduced legislation requiring that the annual Presidential budget provide an estimate of the per taxpayer cost of the deficit and of the public debt.\nOur budget process needs to be reformed and this is a simple idea that could make a big difference. American taxpayers deserve increased fiscal transparency and greater ability to hold their legislators accountable regarding how their money is being spent.  Rep. Chris Stewart \nThe federal debt is on an unsustainable trajectory. It has become clear that better-informed debate is necessary for lawmakers to navigate the broken budget process and finally address our growing deficits and debt. H.R. 5490 would make the budget process more transparent and enable smarter decision-making about our country's budgetary priorities. I appreciate Representative Stewart's leadership and commitment to tackling the fiscal crisis we face.  Ranking Member Womack \nMore about the bill: \nThe federal debt, which has eclipsed $23 trillion and continues to rise, is on an unsustainable trajectory. If Congress does not act, the federal debt will reach the highest level in American history as a percentage of the economy.\nThe Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that by 2049, the federal debt will equal $248,000 per American  almost one million dollars per family of four. CBO also projects that interest payments on the debt will amount to $390 billion in fiscal year 2020, which is 11 percent of federal tax revenue.\nUnfortunately, policymakers in Washington, D.C., are not prioritizing the fiscal crisis we face and seem to be ignoring its adverse impacts on the federal budget, our nation's economy, and the American people.\nIt has become clear that better-informed debate is necessary for members of Congress to navigate the broken budget process and address the nation's growing deficits and debt. H.R. 5490 would make the budget process more transparent and enable more informed decision-making about budgetary priorities.\nH.R. 5490 increases transparency in the budget process by requiring that the President's annual budget include the projected dollar cost of deficits per taxpayer, using individuals who file tax returns as the measure.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=15EB2120-F306-4AA0-A1DC-ED58930A05A3", "Sen. Lee Statement on Impeachment", "2019-12-19", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) issued the following statement Thursday, responding the partisan impeachment of President Trump by the House of Representatives: Yesterday was a sad day for our republic. A president of the United States was impeached along partisan lines for purely partisan political reasons. President Trump has done nothing wrong. All he did was ask the Ukrainian government to investigate a corrupt Ukrainian energy company. There was nothing wrong with that request. In fact, the Obama administration tried to get Ukraine to investigate the exact same energy company. The only difference is that Trump succeeded where Obama failed. Ukraine is finally investigating Burisma. Unfortunately, we have known this day was coming since Tuesday, November 6, 2018the day Democrats took control of the House. Speaker Pelosi tried to hold her colleagues off as long as she could, but the Democratic base simply hates President Trump too much, and the pressure to impeach himfor any reason at allapparently became overpowering. This day was a long time coming. It is a sad day but definitely not a surprise.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/speeches?ContentRecord_id=D493B07F-5DB6-4DF3-8B5A-EF6C7734063B", "Another Spending Extravaganza", "2019-12-19", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "It's December, Mr./Madam President. And so America's attention turns once again to the great debate of our times: which is the best Christmas movie? White Christmas? Elf? A Christmas Story? Die Hard? I'm partial to It's a Wonderful Life myself.\r\nWe have to debate the best Christmas movie that we all watch every year because there really is no debate about the worst. The worst Christmas movie is the one that runs every year on C-Span the week before Our Savior's birthday: it's called Omnibus.\r\nCritics and fans have hated it for years. And as is always the case in money-grabbing sequels, the actors and writers and directors are all just mailing it in. The only plot-twist this time around is that instead of a continuing resolution or an omnibus, leaders and appropriators have put the single negotiated spending agreement into two bills, so that we can all pretend it's better than just one. Even though they were negotiated at the same time, released to the public at the same time, and will be voted on within minutes of each other.\r\nThe secretive, undemocratic, irresponsible process that produced this bill is a joke. But then again, so is the substance.\r\nIt's been like this for years now. Instead of actively setting and passing budgets to stay within  as we expect from any other organization  we make it up as we go along, in as abusive and dysfunctional a manner as the American people will let us get away with.\r\nThe last time Congress passed its respective appropriations bills  unbundled and on time  was in 1997.\r\nFor this Fiscal Year, we have already passed 2 continuing resolutions.\r\nNow, an omnibus bill in and of itself does not necessarily have to be a bad thing.\r\nAn omnibus could, in theory, be a decent legislative vehicle  if members of the House and Senate were given time to read it, and to debate and amend its different components.\r\nBut unfortunately, that is never the case anymore. These bills are written behind closed doors, by a small handful of leaders from the two parties  thousands of pages spending trillions of dollars and released to public scrutiny within a few hours of a government shutdown.\r\nThis we call bipartisanship.\r\nAnd like too much of what Washington calls bipartisanship these days, these spending bills are a fiscal dumpster fire.\r\nDiscretionary spending will be set at record-high levels in nearly every category.\r\nThis omnibus will add $2.2 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. By that time, we will be spending more on interest on the debt than we do on national defense.\r\nThis is embarrassing, Mr./Madam President.\r\nWhen we had a trillion-dollar deficit after the 2008 financial crisis, everyone admitted it was reckless and out of controleven President Obama. And now we are borrowing just as much at the top of the business cycle, with wages up and unemployment at record lows.\r\nIt's an awful, corrupt cycle on repeat. Congress breaks its own spending rules, creates new ones to spend more, and then breaks the new ones and tries to hide the evidence  racking up ever more national debt all the while.\r\nWhat's worse, we are willingly putting the brunt of the cost on future generations.\r\nGorging ourselves on debt  to the tune of another trillion dollars each year  means that we are saddling our children and our children's children with debt. And setting ourselves up for disaster come the inevitable next recession.\r\nJohn F. Kennedy famously said to govern is to choose. But Congress's defining dysfunction is that it doesn't choose. We don't budget. We don't reform. We don't prioritize. We just spend, and hope we're retired or working as lobbyists or consultants when the bill for our negligence and recklessness comes due. Not only does this package feature reckless spending, but it includes many bills that it should not  funding broken, inefficient, and even harmful programs.\r\nFor instance, this bill reauthorizes the National Flood Insurance Program  a program which subsidizes beachfront properties right in the middle of dangerous flood plains, and which is already in $20.5 billion in debt to American taxpayers  for a full year without a single reform.\r\nIt maintains the broken status quo for Overseas Contingency Operations, the Pentagon's increasingly unaccountable slush fund  insulated from scrutiny and unchecked by budget caps. The deal appropriates another $71.5 billion for OCO, a $4 billion increase from last year.\r\nThis only days after America learned that civilian and military leaders have been lying to the American people for years  across multiple presidential administrations  about our failures in Afghanistan.\r\nInstead of reform or oversight, these bills would put another $4.1 billion into the Afghanistan Security Forces Fund and limit our ability to negotiate peace and bring the war in Afghanistan to an end.\r\nIn an era of rampant fake news, even the media is outperforming Congress on this issue.\r\nThese bills include $495 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund  a 13% increase from the last fiscal year, and the highest appropriation it has had in 17 years  for a program that has been of particular detriment to my state of Utah.\r\nThe LWCF has been used as a tool for the federal government to greedily acquire more lands, even as it is failing to care for the ones it already owns, with a current maintenance backlog of $19.4 billion.\r\nWorse, in addition to funding broken programs, it funds blatant cronyism.\r\nThe bill reauthorizes the Export-Import Bank -- Washington's favorite corporate favor bank, which doles out taxpayer-backed loans to help American exporters  for a full seven years, without such much a word of debate.\r\nTheir biggest customer is Pemex  Mexico's famously corrupt, state-owned oil company. So corrupt, in fact, that its own employees collaborate with Mexico's cartels to facilitate the theft of the best of their oil.\r\nAnd ranked right after Pemex is the People's Republic of China, whose state-owned enterprises are granted generous American taxpayer-backed financing for purchases they could fund through their own communist government.\r\nThe reauthorization even includes provisions instructing the Bank to pretend it is helping American to compete against China, at the same time that it is sending that very government billions of dollars.\r\nAnd then there is the extension of the Brand USA Act: a 7-year reauthorization of a government- chartered non-profit, Brand USA, to use thousands of taxpayer dollars to advertise for tourism.\r\nTo top things off, a last-minute tax-extenders deal was added to the package late on Monday night  spending billions of dollars on central economic planning and picking winners and losers in the marketplace.\r\nOver the next 10 years, the package provides about $2.7 billion in tax benefits through programs that use the tax code to incentivize businesses to invest in government-selected communities, seeking to control the flow of investment instead of relying on the free market.\r\nAnd it includes naked handouts to cronyist, special interests.\r\nFor example, it spends over $2.1 billion on subsidies for the energy sector  awarding $113 million for coal production on Indian lands, $331 million for facilities to refuel alternative fuel vehicles, and $1.5 billion for biodiesel and renewable diesel tax credits, for instance.\r\nBeyond these, it hands out $187 million in write-offs for owners of motorsport entertainment complexes\r\n $18 million in tax breaks for the production of movies and TV shows\r\n and $3 million in tax credits for the purchasers of two-wheeled plug-in electric vehicles, to name a few examples.\r\nNo, it is safe to say that this package does not have the best interests of all Americans at heart.\r\nAnd not only that, but it features new levels of absurdity, too.\r\nThis deal actually includes a special-interest bailout to make up for the failures of a faulty pension plan while at the same time authorizing another pension plan to follow in its very same footsteps.\r\nCongress authorized a group of coal miners' multiemployer pension plans under problematic rules, allowing them to underfund the plans by over 70%.\r\nBut all the while, they still promised their workers full benefit -- setting up unreasonable expectations for their return on investment.\r\nInevitably, they have not made up the shortfall and now taxpayers are being forced to bail them out.\r\nAnd in this very same bill in which we are bailing them out, we are authorizing a select group of community newspapers to follow the same practice: allowing them to once again underfund their workers' pensions, while again promising them full benefits.\r\nWith this bill, we are rubberstamping the expectation that employers can raid from their workers' promised retirement benefits for short-term gain and setting the precedent that the government will reward this bad practice when it inevitably fails by bailing them out.\r\nThis bill, however, does include some good measures that I support  like repealing the medical device tax, fixing a tax provision that would inappropriately subject new churches to more taxes, and making retirement account reforms that allow Americans to access these funds in times of particular need.\r\nAnd sadly, I will be forced to vote against these measures that I do support because they have been lumped into this massive package as a whole.\r\nThe thing about these omnibuses is that they put us in a take-it-or-leave it situation. We are given no choice but to support or oppose the whole thing  good and bad measures alike.\r\nUnfortunately, just like every other episode in this squalid saga, Omnibus 2: The Bussening will come to a predictable, sorry ending. Congress will pass this mess  indulging in a process, substance, and long-term result that are all an affront to the viewers.\r\nBecause at the end of the day, the audience members are the real-life victims. I yield the floor.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/utah-priorities-included-end-year-funding-bills", "Utah Priorities Included in End of Year Funding Bills", "2019-12-19", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Utah Priorities Included in End of Year Funding Bills\n      \n            Includes provisions important for public health, national security, and rural communities\n      \n            Thursday, December 19, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today voted in favor of two Fiscal Year 2020 appropriations bills, which include legislation he fought for to reduce youth vaping, support Hill Air Force Base, repeal Obamacare taxes, and protect rural Utah communities.  \n     \nWhile this compromise legislation is far from perfect, it contains legislation I fought for that is important for Utah, our children's health, and our national security, Senator Romney said. Raising the legal tobacco age to 21 is a key step toward protecting kids from addiction, and an FDA review of vaping cartridges will help ensure vaping devices cannot being adulterated with hazardous substances. Additionally, this bill provides funding for critical programs at Utah's Hill Air Force Base and reauthorizes programs that support law enforcement, county services, and schools in Utah's rural communities.\n               \nRomney-backed provisions in the end-of-year funding bills:  \n  \nNational Security\n \n\t$1.87 billion in funding for at least 98 F-35s, with repairs and maintenance occurring at Hill Air Force Base.\n\t$557 million for modernization of our missile defense system, the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) program, which is managed at Hill Air Force Base.\n \n  \nHealth Care and Vaping\n \n\tTobacco to 21 Act, legislation that Senator Romney helped introduce earlier this year that prohibits the sale of all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.\n\tFDA review of e-cigarette cartridges, to ensure that vaping cartridges are tamper proof. Senator Romney introduced a similar provision as a part of the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, that he introduced with Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health.\n\tPermanent repeal of the medical device tax, which is critical to keeping U.S. health care companies globally competitive, safeguarding patient care, and protecting medical innovation in Utah.\n\tPermanent repeal of the health insurance tax, which Senator Romney pushed for earlier this year to lower health care costs for millions of Americans.\n\tTICK Act, cosponsored by Senator Romney to improve research, prevention, diagnostics, and treatment for vector-borne diseases.\n \n  \nRural Utah\n \n\tReauthorization and full funding for Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) and Secure Rural Schools (SRS), which Senator Romney cosponsored to provide long-term financial security for rural counties in Utah.\n\t$175 million for Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations Program, which supports wildfire management and prevention in Utah's rural communities.\n\t$20 million for the Central Utah Project, which provides water from the Colorado River for irrigation, municipal, recreational, and industrial use.\n\t$101.5 million for the Wild Horse and Burro Program, which will help the Bureau of Land Management achieve the ideal management level of wild horses and burros.\n\tIncludes an additional $2.25 billion for wildfire suppression activities.\n \n  \nImmigration\n \n\tFunding and reauthorization of the E-Verify Program. Earlier this year, Senator Romney introduced legislation to make the E-Verify program permanent, which is the first step in making the program mandatory nationwide.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-bishop-introduce-bill-protect-wilderness-illinois", "Romney, Bishop Introduce Bill to Protect Wilderness in Illinois", "2019-12-18", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Bishop Introduce Bill to Protect Wilderness in Illinois\n      \n            Wednesday, December 18, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Congressman Rob Bishop (R-UT) today introduced the bicameral Shawnee Wilderness Area Designation Act of 2019, legislation to lock up 289,000 acres of land in Illinois and make it part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Earlier this week, they condemned legislation introduced by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) that betrays an agreement to designate nearly one million acres in Emery County for multiple use, which was made as part of the Natural Resources Management Act, the public lands package signed into law earlier this year.  \n     \nSenators in the East shouldn't be telling people in the West what to do with our land, Senator Romney said. If wilderness is so important to Senator Durbin, he doesn't need to go all the way to Utah to designate it. Our bill would designate the 289,000 acres of national forest in Illinois as wilderness so he can save himself a trip across the country and enjoy the wilderness in his own backyard.\n           \nOne good deed deserves another. One bad bill demands another, Congressman Bishop said. This week, Senator Durbin (D-IL) introduced a bill to lock-up more than 8.2 million acres of land in Utah. Today, Utah members introduced a bill to designate 289,000 acres of wilderness in Illinois. The acreage should be larger, but only 1.1% of Illinois is federally owned compared to more than 65% in Utah. The new designation may not make sense for Illinois, but neither does Durbin's arbitrary bill. I look forward to both of them going nowhere.  \n                     \nBackground:  \nAn agreement and compromise made by conservation, recreation, mineral development, ranchers, and elected officials, the Emery County Public Land Management Act resolved a decades-long controversy over federal land designations in Emery County. It designates nearly one million acres in Emery County for multiple use including recreation, conservation, development, and grazing.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-introduces-clean-energy-incentivizing-invest-act/", "Curtis Introduces Clean Energy Incentivizing INVEST Act", "2019-12-17", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), introducedH.R 5409, theIncentivizing New and Valuable Energy Storage Technology(INVEST)Act,which promotes storage technology in the energy industry. Passage of this bill will accelerate broad deployment new energy storage technologies across all segments of the energy ecosystem  utilities, customers, and independent power producers  in a manner that is equitable and lowers the cost of the technology for all.\nMy time as mayor of Provo helped me understand how much a city and its inhabitants absolutely need reliable energy sources,said Curtis.I am proud to introduce the INVEST Act, a bill that will not only effectively encourage the production of clean energy and reduce carbon emissions, but invest in the American economy. Being good stewards of the environment through cleaner energy and putting money back into the pockets of Utahns need not be mutually exclusive.\nStatements of Support\nPat Reiten, Senior Vice President, Berkshire Hathaway Energy: As utilities seek to meet customer interest in cost-effective renewable generation, energy storage is an essential component to reaching that goal. We applaud Rep. Curtis for introducing theIncentivizing New and Valuable Energy Storage Technology (INVEST) Act.' This important bill provides an energy storage investment tax credit broadly usable by utilities and energy project developers. The ultimate aim is to scale up storage resource manufacturing and to bring the long-term cost of project deployment down for utility customers as we move to develop reliable, low cost, renewable energy.\nGary Hoogeveen, CEO, Rocky Mountain Power: The INVEST Act provides a time-limited opportunity to encourage energy storage projects that will benefit our customers and promote innovative energy breakthroughs. As the former leader of a municipal electric utility, Congressman Curtis likely understands better than anyone else in Congress just how critical reliable energy supply is to electricity customers. With increasing levels of low-cost renewable energy available in Utah and throughout the West, energy storage will be a critical part of our shared energy future.\nIBEW International President Lonnie R. Stephenson: It's vital that Congress provides a level playing field to public utilities when it comes to investing in new energy storage facilities. Allowing them to opt out of IRS tax-normalization rules involving ownership of new storage projects would help preserve good energy jobs and give renewable energy and storage technology a needed boost.\nBob Frenzel, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Xcel Energy: We applaud Rep. John Curtis for introducing this bill that, if passed, will both encourage the development of clean energy technologies and also ensure they are developed at the lowest possible cost to customers. It's a win-win and we encourage members of Congress to support H.R. 5409.\nDr. Zachary Kuznar, Managing Director of Micro Grid and Energy Storage Development, Duke Energy: We applaud Congressman John Curtis, a thoughtful leader in Congress on energy, for introducing a storage investment tax credit that will spur further energy storage growth, and puts the customer first by allowing them to realize the benefit of the credit. The acceleration of clean, critical infrastructure at grid-scale is important in the production of carbon-free generation.\nDave Robertson, Vice President for Public Policy, Portland General Electric: Our customers want us to lead the fight against climate change, and they want us to keep their monthly energy bills affordable while we do it. We're asking Congress to ensure tax policies don't sideline utilities like ours at this critical time in the clean energy transition by unintentionally tilting the field in favor of developers who don't share our accountability to meet climate goals or our commitment to keep customer prices low. We're grateful to Representative Curtis for introducing a bill to ensure utilities can be leaders in advancing energy storage as an important tool in our clean energy future.\nBackground\nH.R. 5409 provides an energy storage investment tax credit (ITC) that allows regulated utilities the ability to utilize a tax credit up front without having to spread out savings over the life of a major capital project. This is a necessary component of the storage ITC so that regulated electric utilities can pass the benefits of the tax credit to its customers quickly. By making this change, Congress will remove a barrier to energy storage investment facing regulated electric utilities and accelerate the deployment of clean, critical infrastructure.\n H.R 5409 establishes a new 30% investment tax credit (ITC) for owners of stand-alone energy storage property and  to ensure the greatest benefit to electricity consumers  contains critically important language to ensure that regulated utilities may use the ITC in the same manner as non-regulated entities.H.R 5409 will allow regulated electric utilities the ability to make meaningful investments in energy storage fleets and allow regulated electric utilities to pass the benefits of the tax credit to its customers quickly.H.R. 5409 will allow the broadest possible use of the ITC which will provide competition in the market place and drive down costs for consumers.By passing H.R. 5409, Congress will not only help reduce the per unit cost of energy storage for retail customers, but also stimulate investment in new energy storage technologies in the future. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://stewart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/stewart-votes-to-prioritize-national-defense-and-rebuild-the-military", "Stewart Votes to Prioritize National Defense and Rebuild the MilitaryRejects Additional Mandatory Spending", "2019-12-17", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Chris Stewart", "S001192", "stewart.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.  Today, Congress considered two separate Appropriations bills, H.R. 1865 and H.R. 1158. Congressman Stewart voted in favor of H.R. 1158, which prioritizes national security and continues to rebuild our military after years of neglect by the Obama Administration. Additionally, this bill protects vital defense projects in Utah and contains Mr. Stewart's amendment that ensures military war dogs are returned to the U.S. upon completion of their service.\nNoteworthy details include: \n Provides a 3.1 percent pay raise, the largest in a decade; and addresses child care and other quality of life issues critical to supporting our brave war-fighting men and women and their families\n\tFunds a total of 98 F-35s that are essential for the United States to maintain air dominance and superiority over China and Russia\n\tStrengthens our land-based nuclear defense systems by providing $557 million for Ground Based Strategic Deterrent modernization\n Today we sent a strong message to our adversaries that America is serious about our defense. The Federal government must keep the promises made to our citizens by providing a strong national defense while taking care of those who serve. This bill does both. Rep. Chris Stewart \nCongressman Stewart opposed H.R. 1865  Further Consolidated Appropriations Act.\nUnlike Defense, these programs are not the primary responsibility of the federal government. While there were many good things in the bill, I continue to fight to eliminate the debt and deficit. If we are going to get our fiscal house in order, Congress must get serious about our debt and, specifically, mandatory spending.  Rep. Chris Stewart", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=76F85A24-39C2-49AA-A952-E39166CE8E26", "December 17th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Duchesne County", "2019-12-17", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Duchesne  Duchesne County  Duchesne Town Hall  500 E. Main Street Duchesne, UT 84021  9:45 am  10:45 am", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-applauds-passage-defense-bill-critical-provisions-national-security-utahs-hill-air-force", "Romney Applauds Passage of Defense Bill with Critical Provisions for National Security, Utah\u2019s Hill Air Force Base", "2019-12-17", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Applauds Passage of Defense Bill with Critical Provisions for National Security, Utah's Hill Air Force Base\n      \n            Hill Air Force Base priorities include F-35 maintenance, modernization of our nuclear deterrent, and land transfer\n      \n            Tuesday, December 17, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today applauded Senate passage of the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which authorizes funding for our national defense, promotes the advancement of technological research, and provides for a pay raise for our troops. The NDAA also includes critical provisions Romney fought for to support Utah's Hill Air Force Base, and to protect the U.S. from the threat that China's Huawei poses to national security. The full text of the NDAA can be found here, and a summary of the bill can be found here.  \n     \nAt a time when we face complex threats around the globe, this legislation reaffirms our commitment to strengthening our alliances and partnerships, modernizing our equipment and missile defense, and advancing research in technology, Senator Romney said. Importantly, the legislation authorizes funding for F-35 maintenance and military construction projects at Utah's Hill Air Force Base, and includes a measure I authored to protect our national security from the growing threat that China poses.  \n      \nRomney-backed provisions in the NDAA:\nCountering the Threat China Poses\n \n\tProvision to prohibit the removal of Huawei from the Commerce Department's Entity List.\n\tProvision to restrict the purchase of rail cars and buses from Chinese state-owned enterprises.\n \n    \nSupport for the Acquisition and Maintenance F-35s at Hill Air Force Base\n \n\tIncludes $574 million for at least 90 F-35s, including 60 Air Force variants;\n\tRequires numerous reports to Congress on costs and processes around operating, maintaining, and sustaining F-35s, including a process to hold contractors involved in maintaining F-35s accountable;\n\tAllows DOD to negotiate multi-year contracts for supplying F-35 parts and to seek financial compensation for failure of suppliers to deliver parts on schedule.\n \n   \nSupport for Construction at Hill Air Force Base\n \n\tAuthorizes $114.5 million for construction on and acquisition of additional land around Hill Air Force Base, including $56.5 million for various missile storage facilities;\n\tAllows the transfer of 35 acres to the state of Utah to construct a new freeway interchange for I-15.\n \n      \nSupport for the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) Program at Hill Air Force Base\n \n\tRequires a report to Congress if the Air Force receives only one bid for the engineering and manufacturing development phase of the GBSD program.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/op-eds?ContentRecord_id=D2F02C7E-41A9-4BD7-9089-8EFFC46898B2", "Community can play a bigger role in public education", "2019-12-16", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "For three decades, education reformers have tried to improve our nation's schools by injecting choice into the public square. These debates often turn contentious, pitting advocates on one side of school choice against the other. It's time for a new chapter in how we think about education.\r\nAs laid out in a new report from the Joint Economic Committee, which I chair, the American school system would benefit from a greater degree of pluralism  switching from a default of government-provided education to one in which government dollars fund a wide diversity of educational approaches and philosophies.\r\nEducational pluralism is a fancy phrase for a simple concept  that we need to give parents more choices in tailoring their child's education to their family's needs.\r\nPluralism is not, however, simply a fancy way of saying school choice. It recognizes the vital roles that communities play in forming children in a way that framing education as a strictly individual choice does not. It points out the hollow myth of neutrality that the district school system promises, but can never deliver. And it recognizes the importance of maintaining high standards, ensuring that every child has the chance at a quality education.\r\nA pluralistic system of education changes the default  instead of presuming the traditional district model is right for every family, government would see its role as guaranteeing and funding, not necessarily providing, education. A pluralist system offers a wide degree of diversity in educational approaches and philosophies, empowering civil society groups to build strong, supportive communities around every child. It is accompanied by a framework of evaluation that ensures that every school, regardless of which sector of society is operating it, is successfully transmitting knowledge to the students who attend it.\r\nAmericans may be unfamiliar with our country's tradition of pluralist education, and may be unaware that the U.S. is in an outlier in our reliance on government provision of education compared with many other industrialized nations. Even in the days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, for example, cities of 50 families or more were required to hire schoolteachers so young colonists were not only literate but also familiar with scripture. Today in Sweden, each child's per-capita share of funding can be used at a public or private school, and many other countries offer public funds to a wide array of school types.\r\nThe U.S. reliance on near-monopolistic state provision of education, however, has not led to narrow achievement gaps between the rich and poor, nor has it elevated debates over curriculum and content above deep-seated divisions. A system developed in the age of the assembly line is ill-suited for an age of innovation.\r\nShifting our thinking from education as a state-delivered good to one that is state-guaranteed gives us the opportunity to engage religious and community groups in a more meaningful way. Decades of social science research have stressed the importance of functional, intergenerational communities that form a web of supportive relationships around every child.\r\nIn many communities, public schools are a great treasure and an invaluable source of social capital. Pluralism does not minimize the value of a great public school, but encourages us to think harder about devolving authority down to the lowest appropriate level, allowing more parents to feel like they have an ownership stake in the direction of the school. A truly pluralist system also implies a level of assessment and accountability that ensures more sectors of society can be engaged in the great work of forming the next generation of citizens.\r\nThis approach requires a shift in thinking, but new approaches are sorely needed. It would require policy reforms primarily at the state and local levels. Federal policy can promote it only at the margins, primarily by giving states more flexibility in how the spend federal education dollars.\r\nBut we should learn from other countries  and our past  in imagining a better way to engage communities and parents in building an education system in which every child has the chance to thrive.\r\nOp-ed originally published by the Deseret News", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-curtis-bishop-condemn-durbin-bill-harms-emery-county", "Romney, Curtis, Bishop Condemn Durbin Bill that Harms Emery County", "2019-12-16", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Curtis, Bishop Condemn Durbin Bill that Harms Emery County\n      \n            Legislation Betrays Agreement Made in Lands Package Enacted Earlier this Year\n      \n            Monday, December 16, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) with Congressmen John Curtis (R-UT) and Rob Bishop (R-UT) today condemned legislation introduced by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) that would undercut the Emery County Public Land Management Act that was agreed to as part of the Natural Resources Management Act, the public lands package signed into law earlier this year.  \n                       \nThe Emery County Public Land Management Act was an agreement and compromise made prior to passage between conservationists, recreationists, mineral developers, ranchers, and elected officials that resolved a decades-long controversy over federal land designations in Emery County. It designates nearly one million acres in Emery County for multiple use including recreation, conservation, development, and grazing.  \n      \nThe final lands package was based on a good faith agreement to bring certainty to thousands of acres of land in Emery County and ensure those lands would remain accessible to Utahns, Senator Romney said. The ink is barely dry on the lands package, and Senator Durbin and the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) are already reneging on that agreement by pushing this land grab. Emery County would not have agreed to the lands bill if commissioners had known they would be sold out, and they will hold Senator Durbin and SUWA accountable for this action, which severely undermines the potential for future such land agreements.\n         \nSenator Durbin's bill will have a chilling effect on good faith efforts to solve these difficult public land issues, Representative Curtis said. The bill feeds the narrative that some care more about profit from donor fundraising than preservation of the majestic landscapes of Utah they claim to care so much about. Unfortunately, Senator Durbin has refused to take a meeting with me or even get on the phone regarding this issue, proving his real intentions to raise money off of Utah wilderness as opposed to working collaboratively for the good of the land.\n         \nThere he goes again. For over 20 years, Dick Durbin has introduced a wilderness bill to buy support of groups like SUWA, Representative Bishop said. It never passes because it is a nonsensical bill designed only to con money from gullible donors. Part of this bill is already law. When informed of this error, Durbin, et al., said they didn't care. This is, again, only a propaganda bill. Utah is tired of being used for callous political purposes by eastern lawmakers who don't know what the hell they are doing. Enough already.\n  \nI'm very disappointed to see Senator Durbin introduce a bill which ignores the good faith efforts of Utahns across the political spectrum, Governor Herbert said. The right way to create public lands policy is at the local level, where people are immediately impacted by those policies and are in the best position to develop productive compromises. That's how the Emery County Public Lands Management Act came to fruition. Efforts by out-of-state Senators to create divisiveness and harm a good faith, common-sense collaboration by local residents are offensive and counterproductive. For those outside Utah who love our state's beautiful lands, I welcome and encourage their help in working with, not against, state and local leaders to improve public lands management in Utah.\n   \nEmery County officials are disappointed, but not surprised, that the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) supports legislation to designate an additional hundreds of thousands of acres of wilderness in Emery County. In taking this action, SUWA blatantly disregards the good-faith collaboration by so many stakeholders who labored for years to come to an agreement regarding wilderness designation in Emery County. Unfortunately, it is characteristic of SUWA's decision makers to thumb their nose at legislators, staffers, state and county officials and the myriad stakeholders who invested so much both professionally and personally to bring the Emery County Land Management Act (as part of the Dingell Act) to fruition, said the Emery County Commissioners and Public Lands Council.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-bennet-offer-path-bipartisan-compromise-refundable-credits-business-tax-fixes", "Romney, Bennet Offer Path to Bipartisan Compromise on Refundable Credits, Business Tax Fixes", "2019-12-15", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Bennet Offer Path to Bipartisan Compromise on Refundable Credits, Business Tax Fixes\n      \n            Sunday, December 15, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONAs negotiations over a potential legislative package of tax provisions continue, U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) have proposed a bipartisan compromise to support American families, workers, and businesses. The Bennet-Romney proposal represents one path toward a compromise over certain components of the ongoing negotiations.  \n   \nCongress is nearing another deadline without a clear plan to deal with dozens of fundamental responsibilities that the American people expect us to address, Romney and Bennet said. With its focus on helping families raising young children, protecting medical innovation for patients, and bringing certainty to workers and businesses, our plan should be considered on merit alone. And while the intent of our proposal is not to address every aspect of the current negotiations, we believe it is a compromise that can help clear a path forward and break the current logjam.  \n    \nThe Bennet-Romney proposal will:\n \n\tExpand and Reform Child Tax Credits\n\t\n\t\tCreate a New Young Child Tax Credit: Create a new tax credit of $2,500 per child for children up to age six. The first $1,500 would be fully refundable, meaning that every taxpayer receives that amount regardless of income (up to the current law phase-out levels of $200,000 for individuals and $400,000 for couples). The next $1,000 would phase in at a 15 percent rate beginning at the first dollar of income, and begin phasing down at current law income thresholds.\n\t\tReform Existing Child Tax Credit: Make critical reforms to a key measure that provides a $2,000 credit per child for children from age six up to age 17, including eliminating the current $1,400 cap on refundability, making the first $1,000 per child fully refundable regardless of income up to the phase-out threshold, and making the next $1,000 per child phase-in at a 15 percent rate starting at the first dollar income.\n\t\tThese changes would apply to tax years 2019 and 2020.\n\t\n\t\n\tMake Technical Corrections to 2017 Tax Law\n\t\n\t\tImplement the full list of needed technical corrections to the 2017 tax law.\n\t\n\t\n\tPermanently Repeal the Medical Device Excise Tax\n \n       \nIncluded in the Bennet-Romney plan are fiscally responsible bipartisan proposals to fund these changes, such as:\n \n\tPassing the Charitable Conservation Easement Program Integrity Act\n\tImplementing the Creating and Restoring Equal Access To Equivalent Samples (CREATES) Act\n\tPassing the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act\n\tReplacing stepped-up basis with a carryover basis, with a $1.6 million exemption for individuals and an additional $3.7 million exemption for spousal inheritance", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=5CBC1DE0-2A33-448C-8658-5272172BF93E", "Why Congress Must Reclaim Its War Powers", "2019-12-13", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "This week, The Washington Post published a bombshell report they are calling the Afghanistan Papers, reviewing thousands of internal government documents and private interviews relating to the war in Afghanistan. And it has exposed one of the most shameful political and military scandals in American history.\r\nAccording to the documents uncovered by the Post, military and civilian leaders from the last three administrations have engaged in a massive conspiracy to mislead the American public about the reality in Afghanistan. While they consistently painted a rosy outlook to the public about our success and progress in that country, behind closed doors they knew otherwise. These officials knew the war was going badly and that America had little if anything to gain from it. And they deliberately hid the evidence from the American people.\r\nIt has been a gross abuse of power and military force, wasting trillions of dollars and thousands of lives. It is, unfortunately, a perfect example of why we ought to be so cautious about spending our precious economic and human resources to engage our country in war.\r\nThis is exactly why the Founders were so careful in designing the war powers process that they did.\r\nAfter living under the tyranny of King George III of England, they knew that bad things happen when too few people exercise too much power. And they understood that nowhere is this more evident than in the power to declare war.\r\nUnder British rule, the King of England could send his country  and ours  into war, all by himself, regardless of whether it was in anyone else's interest.\r\nSo the Founders made a dramatic break from this model when they established our republic. Instead of vesting this power in the executive branch, with the President or a single official, where it would be more likely to be abused, they placed it squarely in the legislative branch.\r\nThey then further sought to disperse this power within the branches of Congress: the branch where open and public debate would happen; and the branch most easily accountable to the people at regular intervals through elections.\r\nAs James Madison put it to Thomas Jefferson in a letter in 1798, The constitution supposes, what the History of all Governments demonstrates, that the Executive is the branch of power most interested in war, and most prone to it. It has accordingly with studied care vested the question of war in the Legislature.\r\nUnfortunately, over the past several decades we have deviated far from our constitutional framework.\r\nFrom the North Korean war, to Vietnam, to Lebanon, to Somalia, and our various, ongoing entanglements in the Middle East, our presidents now routinely send our country to war unilaterally without congressional authorization.\r\nWhat's worse, Congress has consistently and deliberately chosen not do anything about it. Out of cowardice and self-interest, it has surrendered its constitutional responsibilities and willingly empowered the executive branch instead.\r\nAnd the American people  and their faith in our institutions  have suffered as a result.\r\nThat is why it is of the utmost importance that Congress reclaims its rightful role in foreign policy and war-making. If we follow our constitutional framework, we can ensure that if we go to war it is truly in the interest of the American people. And if we don't, debacles like the one in Afghanistan will only lead us further down a dangerous, unconstitutional, and immoral path.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=4F30BB07-84CE-4E6C-AD5F-2E65BA4B8A32", "Sen. Lee Congratulates PM Johnson on Election Results", "2019-12-13", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) issued the following statement Friday after Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative Party secured a new majority in the Parliament of the United Kingdom:\r\nPrime Minister Johnson is due a hearty congratulations after his party's historic win in yesterday's parliamentary elections. I am confident he will get Brexit done for the British people. The Senate should prepare to do its part, too, by passing the United Kingdom Trade Continuity Act, a bill designed to promote economic stability and growth as the United Kingdom transitions out of the European Union.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=25340C62-30CA-43D4-9DC2-DAA1EB70E8A1", "A Bigger Role for Community in Public Education", "2019-12-13", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "For three decades, education reformers have tried to improve our nation's schools by injecting choice into the public square. These debates often turn contentious, pitting advocates on one side of school choice against the other. It's time for a new chapter in how we think about education.\r\nAs laid out a new report from the Joint Economic Committee, which I chair, the American school system would benefit from a greater degree of pluralism  switching from a default of government-provided education to one in which government dollars fund a wide diversity of educational approaches and philosophies.\r\nEducational pluralism is a fancy phrase for a simple concept  that we need to give parents more choices in tailoring their child's education to their family's needs.\r\nPluralism is not, however, simply a fancy way of saying school choice. It recognizes the vital roles that communities play in forming children in a way that framing education as a strictly individual choice does not. It points out the hollow myth of neutrality that the district school system promises, but can never deliver. And it recognizes the importance of maintaining high standards, ensuring that every child has the chance at a quality education.\r\nA pluralistic system of education changes the default  instead of presuming the traditional district model is right for every family, government would see its role as guaranteeing and funding, not necessarily providing, education. A pluralist system offers a wide degree of diversity in educational approaches and philosophies, empowering civil society groups to build strong, supportive communities around every child. It is accompanied by a framework of evaluation that ensures that every school, regardless of which sector of society is operating it, is successfully transmitting knowledge to the students who attend it.\r\nAmericans may be unfamiliar with our country's tradition of pluralist education, and may be unaware that the U.S. is in an outlier in our reliance on government provision of education compared with many other industrialized nations. Even in the days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, for example, cities of fifty families or more were required to hire schoolteachers so young colonists were not only literate but also familiar with scripture. Today, in Sweden, each child's per-capita share of funding can be used at a public or private school, and many other countries offer public funds to a wide array of school types.\r\nThe U.S. reliance on near-monopolistic state provision of education, however, has not led to narrow achievement gaps between the rich and poor, nor has it elevated debates over curriculum and content above deep-seated divisions. A system developed in the age of the assembly line is ill-suited for an age of innovation.\r\nShifting our thinking from education as a state-delivered good to one that is state-guaranteed gives us the opportunity to engage religious and community groups in a more meaningful way. Decades of social science research have stressed the importance of functional, intergenerational communities that form a web of supportive relationships around every child.\r\nIn many communities, public schools are a great treasure and an invaluable source of social capital. Pluralism does not minimize the value of a great public school, but encourages us to think harder about devolving authority down to the lowest appropriate level, allowing more parents to feel like they have an ownership stake in the direction of the school. A truly pluralist system also implies a level of assessment and accountability that ensures more sectors of society can be engaged in the great work of forming the next generation of citizens.\r\nThis approach requires a shift in thinking, but new approaches are sorely needed. It would require policy reforms primarily at the state and local levels. Federal policy can promote it only at the margins, primarily by giving states more flexibility in how the spend federal education dollars.\r\nBut we should learn from other countries  and our past  in imagining a better way to engage communities and parents in building an education system in which every child has the chance to thrive.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-joins-colleagues-introducing-bill-support-computer-science-students-and-educators", "Romney Joins Colleagues in Introducing Bill to Support Computer Science Students and Educators", "2019-12-13", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Joins Colleagues in Introducing Bill to Support Computer Science Students and Educators\n      \n            Friday, December 13, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) joined Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) in introducing the bipartisan, bicameral Teacher Education for Computer Science Act (Teach CS Act), legislation that would support teacher training and schools in educating students in the area of computer science. The senators introduced this bill during Computer Science Education Week, which is observed each year during the week of December 9th, to raise awareness about and encourage students to explore computer science. This week Governor Herbert called on state legislators to invest $10.2 million of the state's budget in order for every school in Utah to have a computer science offering in their curriculum by 2022.  \n                                  \nWe need to make sure our kids have the tools they need to succeed in the 21st century global economy, Senator Romney said. Our legislation will strengthen computer science curriculums in Utah and around the country and create more opportunities for students to gain important skills which our changing workforce demands. I appreciate Governor Herbert's commitment to prioritizing computer science for every student in our state, and I'm proud to support similar efforts in the Senate.\n                         \nAs a former computer programmer, I understand firsthand the value in computer science and how education in this field can open doors for students who are looking to pursue a career in STEM, Senator Rosen said. I'm working to extend educational opportunities to our students in Nevada and across the country, and that's why I'm helping introducing the bipartisan Teach CS Act, a bill that will provide teachers and schools with the resources and preparations needed to provide our children with a 21st century education.\n               \nAddressing America's critical shortage of computer science graduates starts in the classroom, Senator Wicker said. This legislation would make targeted changes to existing teacher education programs to place more qualified computer science instructors in our schools.\n \nIn the 21st century innovation economy, proficiency in computer science can be a real asset for young people preparing to enter the workforce  so it's critical that educators have the knowledge and training to help students learn computer science, Senator Hassan said. In honor of Computer Science Education Week, I am proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to strengthen STEM education in New Hampshire and across the country.  \n       \nBackground:\n \n\tThe Teach CS Act would amend the Higher Education Act (HEA) to include computer science education eligibility for multiple teacher preparation grants and graduate fellowships, and authorize a new program for competitive grants for eligible institutions of higher education to establish centers of excellence in teacher education programs for computer science.\n\tEarlier this year, Representatives Derek Kilmer (D-WA) and Tom Reed (R-NY) introduced a similar version of the Teacher Education for Computer Science Act in the House of Representatives.\n \n\n      \n  \n    Issues", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-colleagues-introduce-bill-imposing-sanctions-drug-cartels", "Romney, Colleagues Introduce Bill Imposing Sanctions on Drug Cartels", "2019-12-12", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Colleagues Introduce Bill Imposing Sanctions on Drug Cartels\n      \n            Thursday, December 12, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) along with Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Josh Hawley (R-MO), David Perdue (R-GA), and Ben Sasse (R-NE) introduced the Significant Transnational Criminal Organization Designation Act, legislation that would subject certain foreign criminal organizations like drug cartels to sanctions, including immigration, financial, and criminal penalties. The process would be similar to the system used for designating entities as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs).  \n        \nBy providing a new tool to designate significant transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), subject them to financial and criminal penalties, and bar their members from the United States, this legislation will better equip us to meet the threats our nation faces from violent cartels and other foreign criminal networks, Senator Romney said. Our legislation also requires the president to submit a full report to Congress regarding the horrific attacks against Americans in Mexico last month, including whether the organization responsible should be designated as a Significant Transnational Criminal Organization and sanctioned under our legislation.\n    \nCriminal organizations and drug cartels like the one responsible for last month's attack in Mexico ought to be treated just like terrorist groups in the eyes of the U.S. government. This bill would help stop cartel violence by ensuring these groupsand anyone who helps themface dire consequences for their actions, Senator Cotton said.  \n   \nDrug cartels function at a high level of sophistication. It is imperative that they be subject to repercussions that appropriately correspond to their criminal activity. This legislation seeks to give law enforcement the tools needed to penalize their crimes, Senator Blackburn said.  \n     \nFrom narcotics and human trafficking to fuel theft and money laundering, transnational criminal organizations don't care who they hurt by their single-minded focus on turning an enormous profit from corrupt dealings, Senator Cornyn said. This legislation would provide law enforcement additional tools to keep Americans safe and shut down the Cartel networks. \n  \nThough the camera crews have left, Texans and all Americans regularly face the consequences of an unsecured southern border, Senator Cruz said. Violent gang members and drug cartels terrorize communities both abroad and along the Texas-Mexico border. This bill gives the president expanded options to label and take action against those cartels. This is an important step in safeguarding the American people.\n      \nMexican cartels are a national security and law enforcement threat, Senator Graham said. It is time to update our laws to give us more tools to fight against this scourge. I fully support Senator Cotton's efforts so we can effectively deal with the transnational criminal activity emanating from Mexico.\n  \nViolent Mexican cartels have gotten rich by flooding our communities with addictive drugs that are ruining lives and tearing families apart. Unfortunately, the Mexican government has been unwilling or unable to stop these criminals. Enough is enough. This bill will beat back the cartels by freezing their assets, removing them from the country, and sanctioning anyone who helps sustain their criminal enterprises, Senator Hawley said.  \n   \nCartels are the worst of humanity. As we saw in last month's horrific attack in Mexico, they terrorize innocent families and exploit children in order to fuel the drug trade and other illicit activity. These criminal organizations must face severe financial consequences for the terror they inflict in the United States and across the world. We have to put the cartels out of business once and for all, Senator Perdue said.  \n   \nWe need a smart, full-scale offensive against the cartels that have turned parts of our southern border into a violent wasteland, Senator Sasse said. This designation would give federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies the tools they need to go after the butchers who blur the line between drug trafficking and terrorism. Cartels have slaughtered innocent American children, blackmailed their way to the top, and flooded our country with drugs. Let's crush these sickos.  \n      \nBackground:\n \n\tThe Significant Transnational Criminal Organization Designation Act enables the federal government to impose on the most significant Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) the same sanctions that apply to FTOs including:\n\t\n\t\tBarring organization members and their immediate families from admission to the United States.\n\t\tFreezing assets.\n\t\tSeeking civil and criminal penalties against Individuals providing material assistance or resources to the organization.\n\t\n\t\n\tThe bill also requires the President to submit a report to Congress with the government's findings on the November 4, 2019 attack on U.S. citizens in northern Mexico once the investigation is completed, including whether the organization responsible should be designated a Significant TCO.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-pushes-paid-family-leave-white-house-summit", "Romney Pushes for Paid Family Leave at White House Summit", "2019-12-12", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today participated in the Child Care & Paid Leave Summit at the White House, where he joined several colleagues to discuss potential solutions to provide paid family leave for American families. In March, he teamed up with Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) to introduce the New Parents Act to give parents an option for paid parental leave after the birth or adoption of a child.  \n       \nBelow are excerpts of his remarks, and video of the summit is available here and here.  \n       There's no question that in the life of a couple, that the birth of a child is perhaps the most momentous thing they will ever experience, and both the mom and the dad want to be part of that experience. Also in the life of a child, the first months of the child's life have enormous impact on the health of their brain, on the development of their entire life's course ahead, so allowing both parents, if both parents are together, to have participation in those early months with a child, is really criticalboth for the child and for the parents. I would note that Senator Rubio and my legislation that he crafted, which is called the New Parents Act, is focused on providing for both the mom and the dad, if there are two parents involved in the home, to be able to pull retirement benefits from their Social Security benefits to bring them forward at a time that they can pay for up to three months of being able to stay home. I would also note that there are some employers that will provide this on their own, which we highly encourage. As has just been negotiated, the government is going to provide this for government employees, and we hope that many, many private employers do the same thing. But for those that don't, allowing individuals to pull from a future benefit, such as Social Security, to provide for their financial needs while the child comes home is an enormous benefit. We'd like to see it happen for both moms and dads.\n\n\n  I know this is an important issue for people in all states, but my state happens to have the youngest population in the entire country and the highest birth rate, and so we have a lot of families. I have 24 grandkids, so I know personally what is happening with a lot of kids. It is an extraordinary burden for young families in many, many cases to be able to care for the children at the time they come home from the hospital, and as Senator Capito indicated, at other times when they are sick as well. All of us on this stage have proposed legislation that does not cost the government more money, that does not require new taxes, does not require mandates. It allows individuals the flexibility to bring forward a future benefit which they are entitled to under government law. They can bring forward that future benefit at a time when they need it most, which is when I child is coming home or when a child is sick. This is an extraordinary opportunity we have, and we have different views about how much money, and how it should be administered and so forth, but I'm convinced we can all come together on a bipartisan basis, and now is the time.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-miracle-mountain-bill-sails-through-committee/", "Curtis Miracle Mountain Bill Sails Through Committee", "2019-12-11", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Rep. John Curtis (R-UT), Deputy Republican Leader of the National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands Subcommittee, released the following after his bill, H.R. 722, designating a mountain in the State of Utah as Miracle Mountain passed the House Natural Resources Committee unanimously last week.\nVideo of Mayor Ellis' testimony and questioning by Rep. Curtis\nAlthough last year's fire season was one of our worst, it brought out the best of Utah and our communities. I am pleased to have Elk Ridge City Mayor, Ty Ellis, with us here this morning. Recognizing that he had witnessed a miracle, shortly after the fire was contained, Mayor Ellis reached out to me to see if we could have the peak named Miracle Mountain.' I am grateful to Mayor Ellis, as well as all of the courageous federal, state, and local firefighters that worked tirelessly to battle the blaze. Naming the peak Miracle Mountain' is a fitting gesture of gratitude.\nStatements of Support\nElk Ridge City Mayor Ty Ellis joined the hearing as a witness. His prepared remarks are available: [HERE].\nThe Congressman invited Mayor Ty Ellis as a witness at the hearing, shown here with his wife Cindi\nAs Mayor of Elk Ridge, I testify that the Bald Mountain fire had the potential to devastate our little city and to disrupt the lives of our residents far beyond the inconvenience of being evacuated. Many residents have adopted the name Miracle Mountain simply due to the unexplainable events that occurred during this time of uncertainty. I appreciate our Honorable Congressman John Curtis for his dedication to and sponsorship of this bill.\nChief Victoria Christiansen of the United States Department of AgricultureForest Service also was a witness. Her full testimony is available: [HERE].\nBackground\nIn early September 2018, the Pole Creek and Bald Mountain Fires burned roughly 20,000 acres in Utah. Elk Ridge City and Woodland Hills, located in Utah County, were nearly victims of this fire. Miraculously, due to a change in wind direction, on September 13 the fire suddenly halted, stayed behind a mountain peak, and spared the community. Since the fire, the unnamed peak has been referred to as Miracle Mountain' by many constituents.\nIn November 2018, Mayor Ellis wrote anop-edin the Daily Herald about the experience and detailed his request for Rep. Curtis to propose the legislation.\nWe are extremely grateful that Congressman Curtis, who was with us during the dark hours of the fire and during the aftermath, was so willing to quickly take up this cause. We express our sincere gratitude to the rest of Utah's House congressional delegation, Representatives Bishop, Stewart and Love, for all joining Curtis in introducing the bill to name Miracle Mountain. We also appreciate Gov. Herbert's support of the formal designation as well.\nIt is our hope that with this official naming of Miracle Mountain, it will become a permanent memorial, not only for the residents of Elk Ridge and Woodland Hills who were spared from disaster, but also for all Utahns as a tribute to our wildland firefighters and as a powerful reminder that miracles do happen. It is our hope that Congress will pass Congressman Curtis' bill and send it to the president for enactment.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://robbishop.house.gov/media/press-releases/bishop-applauds-passage-defense-bill-0", "Bishop Applauds Passage of Defense Bill", "2019-12-11", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Rob Bishop", "B001250", "robbishop.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Today, the House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020. As Utah's only representation on an Armed Services Committee and a conferee involved in negotiating the bill, Congressman Bishop helped secure: a 3.1-percent pay raise for our troops, language ensuring survivors of deceased service members receive the benefits they deserve, the establishment of the United States Space Force, and the continued rebuilding of the military.\nImportantly, Congressman Bishop also secured the following provisions, which have particular impact at Hill Air Force Base (HAFB):\nLand Transfer - HAFB to Utah MIDA\nBishop language directs the Air Force to transfer approximately 35 acres of land to the Utah Military Installations Development Authority to facilitate a new entrance gate aimed at improving traffic flow in and around Hill AFB and Davis County.\nGround Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD)\nTo respond to the nation's deteriorating nuclear infrastructure and the aging Minute Man III (MMIII) weapons system, the military has prioritized nuclear modernization as critical to maintaining America's continued military dominance. GBSD, the replacement for the MMIII, is the first major acquisition project based out of Hill AFB. Bishop fought against the partisan draconian cuts to the program and helped secure funding for the program.\nF-35\nBishop pushed for authorization to purchase 90+ Joint Strike Fighter aircraft, enabling the forces to modernize and equip themselves with the most advanced and capable fifth-generation aircraft. Hill AFB is the home to all F-35A maintenance and should expect increased workload based on this authorization. This bill perpetuates HAFB's proud tradition of servicing our nation's fighter aircraft.\nUpon voting for the National Defense Authorization Act, Congressman Bishop stated,\nThis year's NDAA continues to rebuild our military in a bipartisan and bicameral way to repair our military from the detrimental cuts by the past administration. The positive policies promoted in this legislation will buoy up our warfighters, support our dedicated civilian workforce, and continue to place the country in a position of strength. To top it off, Hill AFB will continue to play an extremely vital role in our nation's defense. The only sad part of this whole situation is that Speaker Pelosi's lack of leadership led us to delaying passage of this annual bill until the final moment. It could have been done months ago, but House Democrats have been purely focused on the circus of impeachment.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://stewart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/stewart-combats-fisa-abuse", "Stewart Combats FISA Abuse", "2019-12-11", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Chris Stewart", "S001192", "stewart.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.  Today, Congressman Chris Stewart (UT-02) introduced the FISA Improvements Act. This legislation is a response to the findings of Michael Horowitz, the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Inspector General (IG), which catalogued numerous abuses of powerful surveillance tools. Representative Stewart's bill will stop these abuses by amending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)adding significant requirements on the FBI, the Department of Justice, and on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC). These requirements will also give Congress critical new insight to perform oversight of the FISA powers.\nThe deceptive actions of a few high-ranking officials within the FBI and Department of Justice have eroded public trust in our federal institutions. They flattened internal guardrails, deceived the FISA court, and irreparably damaged the reputation of an innocent American. Collectively, the actions of these individuals has diminished strong bipartisan Congressional support for critical national security tools. My legislation will restore support in these tools by establishing new requirements on future FISA applications.  Rep. Chris Stewart\nMore about FISA Improvements Act: \nThis legislation requires:\n \nAmicus Curie be assigned to all cases where a US Person in involved.\n \nThis amicus curie will act as an attorney representing a FISA target who is a U.S. person. The amici will be there to ensure that constitutional rights are not violated and that the government's claim meet the threshold for probable cause.\n \nDepartment of Justice (DOJ) to disclosure of any usage of unverified information in the application.\n \nThis amends the requirements for submitting an application to the FISC by requiring that the DOJ discloses to the court any information in the application that the US government has not substantiated and to disclose to the court all details of the government's attempts to verify such information.\n \nForeign Intelligence Surveillance Courts maintain a transcript of all proceedings.\n \nThe House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) investigation into the FISA surveillance order on Carter Page was stymied by a complete absence of the orders proceedings before the court.\n \nDOJ to maintain a record of all interactions with the court.\n \nBefore presenting a FISA application to the FISC, DOJ officials communicate\n \nThat extensions of a FISA order be heard or denied by the same judge (as practicable).\n \nThis provision ensures that the government is not able to obfuscate details an expiring order's newly gathered evidence to support renewal of a FISA order.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/committee-approves-romney-bill-confront-rise-china", "Committee Approves Romney Bill to Confront Rise of China", "2019-12-11", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Committee Approves Romney Bill to Confront Rise of China\n      \n            Legislation would require the U.S. to partner with allies around the world\n      \n            Wednesday, December 11, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON The Senate Foreign Relations Committee today voted to approve the Indo-Pacific Cooperation Act of 2019, legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) and cosponsored by Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Todd Young (R-IN), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Chris Coons (D-DE), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) that would require the U.S. to partner with allies in the Indo-Pacific region, Europe, and elsewhere, to develop a unified approach to address the rise of China.  \n                       \nIt is past time for us to construct a comprehensive strategy to confront China's growing aggression, Senator Romney said. Together with our allies in the Indo-Pacific, Europe, the Americas, and elsewhere, we must develop an approach to address the threat China poses to our freedom here and around the world. I want to thank the committee for voting in favor of our legislation today and urge its swift passage when it comes before the full Senate.  \n            \nThe full text of the legislation can be found here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/health-care-deal-includes-romney-provisions-combat-vaping-crisis", "Health Care Deal Includes Romney Provisions to Combat Vaping Crisis", "2019-12-11", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Health Care Deal Includes Romney Provisions to Combat Vaping Crisis\n      \n            Legislation includes measures to ban e-cigarettes in schools, raise federal tobacco age to 21\n      \n            Wednesday, December 11, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), today released the following statement after a bipartisan, bicameral agreement on health care legislation was reached. The agreement includes provisions from the Smoke-Free Schools Act and the Tobacco to 21 Act  legislation backed by Senator Romney  to address the youth vaping crisis. Romney has led efforts to reverse this epidemic, repeatedly raising the issue in HELP Committee hearings, meetings with the president, and with the FDA nominee during his confirmation process. The legislative package now awaits consideration by both the full House and Senate.  \n                               \nWhile our work is far from finished, I'm encouraged that the health care deal takes a significant step to address the youth vaping crisis by raising the federal smoking age to 21 nationwide and banning the use of e-cigarettes in schools, Senator Romney said. In light of last week's data showing an increase in the number of young people vaping, the Administration and Congress must act further to ban flavors that appeal to kids and prevent vaping cartridges from being adulterated with harmful substances.Background:\n \n\tSenator Romney recentlyparticipated in a White House meeting on the vaping epidemic with the President, industry representatives, and health advocates where he urged action to ban flavors that entice youth.\n\tAt Dr. Hahn's confirmation hearing, Senator Romney urged him to support a flavor ban. He met with Dr. Hahn earlier in the month to discuss the issue.\n\tIn September, Senators Romney and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.\n\tIn June, Senators Romney and Mark Udall (D-NM) introduced the Smoke-Free Schools Act of 2019 to ban e-cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities.\n\tIn April, Romney helped introduce the bipartisan Tobacco to 21 Act, legislation that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-expresses-concern-about-500-fee-increase-obtain-genealogy-records", "Romney Expresses Concern about 500% Fee Increase to Obtain Genealogy Records", "2019-12-11", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Expresses Concern about 500% Fee Increase to Obtain Genealogy Records\n      \n            Proposed fee hike would greatly inhibit Utahns' access to family history records\n      \n            Wednesday, December 11, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today expressed his concern about a rule proposed by the Department of Homeland Security that would place a 500% fee increase on the delivery of family history records obtained through U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. This rule would greatly inhibit Utahns' access to these records.  \n             \nThe full text of his letter to Acting Secretary Wolf and Acting Director Cuccinelli is below.  \n      \nDear Acting Secretary Wolf and Acting Director Cuccinelli:\n     \nI am concerned about the Department's November 14, 2019 proposed rule to raise fees significantly for the Genealogy Program administered by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.\n        \nThe Genealogy Program is essential for genealogists, family historians, and other researchers who acquire citizenship and alien records of deceased immigrants who arrived in the United States between the late 19th and mid-20th centuries. These records allow Americans to trace their roots for a better understanding of who they are, and where they came from.\n  \nAny increase in the Genealogy Program's two separate user fees should be done after careful consideration that it would not unduly burden those who rely on the records. The Genealogy Index Search Request (search fee) is used to determine whether USCIS possesses any records on the requested immigrant and, if such records exist, to capture the identifier of each record. The second fee is the Genealogy Records Request (records fee), which is used to obtain copies of USCIS's historical records.\n \nWhen the Genealogy Program began in 2008, its initial fees ranged from just $20 to $35. In 2016, USCIS raised both fees to $65. DHS's proposed rule would raise the search fee 269% from $65 to $240, and the records fee 492% from $65 to $385. If this rule takes effect, a family historian would need to pay $625 to search and obtain a single file on a relative.\n   \nI understand USCIS's budget relies primarily on user fees, and the southern border crisis continues to strain the agency's ability to fulfill its mission. However, I am concerned that drastically raising the Genealogy Program's fees would harm genealogists across the United States without addressing your budgetary concerns. While interest has grown over the last few years, genealogy research remains primarily a hobby sensitive to financial constraints. In fact, after raising fees to $65 in 2016, total requests fell by nearly 30%. The proposed rule's prohibitive fees could make it nearly impossible for an average person to access the Genealogy Program, leading to fewer requests and ultimately mitigating the proposed rule's intention to fund the USCIS.\n\nWith these concerns in mind, I am requesting answers to the following by no later than December 18, 2019:\n \n1. What is the annual amount of user fees collected by the Genealogy Program from 2015-2018?\n \n2. Please provide the budgets for the Genealogy Program from 2015-2019.\n\n3. Please identify any changes to the Genealogy Program's expenses since 2015 and, explanations for why those expenses changed.\n\n4. Are fees collected by the Genealogy Program used to support USCIS functions other than expenditures for the Genealogy Program?\n\nThank you for your attention to this matter.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-articles-make-impeachment-vote-a-rather-easy-decision/", "Curtis: Articles Make Impeachment Vote A Rather Easy Decision", "2019-12-10", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Rep. John Curtis (R-UT) released the following statement after House Democratic Leadership announced the articles of impeachment drafted against President Trumpas1. abuse of power and 2. obstruction of Congress. The Congressman will be voting against both of them.\nI've tried throughout this process to keep an open mind, but the articles of impeachment before me have made this vote a rather easy decision. I will be voting against these two charges. That said, my decision should not be inferred to mean that I'm happy with all of the President's actionsbut that is not the vote at hand. I'm being asked to help remove a duly elected President and I do not feel that his actions have met that high standard.\nAs referenced in the video, the Congressman was asked about impeachment in his Utah 3rdCongressional District Debate in his past election. See [HERE] for his views on impeachment, see [HERE] for his answer regarding former President Bill Clinton's impeachment.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/federal-agency-accepts-romney-bennet-request-review-usdas-emergency-watershed-protection-program", "Federal Agency Accepts Romney, Bennet Request to Review USDA\u2019s Emergency Watershed Protection Program", "2019-12-10", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Federal Agency Accepts Romney, Bennet Request to Review USDA's Emergency Watershed Protection Program\n      \n            Following Senators' Letter, Government Accountability Office Will Review Implementation and Effectiveness of Program\n      \n            Tuesday, December 10, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Michael Bennet (D-CO), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry's Subcommittee on Conservation, Forestry, and Natural Resources, today announced that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has accepted their request to review the effectiveness and implementation of the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP).  \n                       \nAdministered by the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), EWP is an important tool designed to reduce financial strain and help communities across the West address imminent threats following a wildfire. However, communities often face challenges when attempting to use EWP to support recovery efforts, including after fires in Colorado and Utah in 2018. The GAO review, which will commence in the coming months, will lead to recommendations to improve EWP and more effectively assist communities recovering from wildfires across the West.  \n              \nIt is welcome news that the Government Accountability Office has accepted our request in a timely manner, Senator Romney said. As the review process moves forward, I will continue working with our state and federal partners to ensure that communities across Utah have the support they need as they recover from the damage of wildfires.\n     \nI'm glad the Government Accountability Office heard our concerns and will quickly take up this review, Senator Bennet said. We look forward to working with the GAO and stakeholders across Colorado to ensure the federal government is an effective partner to communities across our state as they recover from the damage left behind by wildfires.  \n             \nIn their letter to GAO Comptroller General Gene Dodaro, Romney and Bennet requested that the GAO focus on a number of specific items, including:\n \n\tApproval processes under the program, including eligibility requirements that may limit entities such as water districts and ditch companies from qualifying for the program;\n\tExigent project timelines and challenges, including opportunities to improve exigent projects in rural areas;\n\tOpportunities to expand eligible projects, such as weather monitoring and alert systems to warn of post-fire floods;\n\tAgency and stakeholder views on program improvements to better meet the goals and intent of EWP.\n \nThe full text of Romney and Bennet's letter is available here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-rubio-collins-help-secure-inclusion-huawei-provision-final-defense-bill", "Romney, Rubio, Collins Help Secure Inclusion of Huawei Provision in Final Defense Bill", "2019-12-10", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Rubio, Collins Help Secure Inclusion of Huawei Provision in Final Defense Bill\n      \n            Legislation would protect U.S. from threat China's Huawei poses to national security\n      \n            Tuesday, December 10, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Susan Collins (R-ME) today welcomed the inclusion of legislation in the annual defense authorization bill that would ensure that Huawei is not removed from the entities list until it no longer poses a threat to national security. The final version of the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) reflects provisions from the Huawei Prohibition Act of 2019, introduced by Romney, Rubio, and Collins that Huawei Technologies, Co. Ltd. is not removed from the Commerce Department's Entity List of sanctioned companies until the Secretary of Commerce certifies that the company no longer poses a national security threat. The senators had urged the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee to include the legislation in the final NDAA.  \n               \nI appreciate the efforts of conferees and our colleagues, including Senator Cotton, who helped push for these provisions that will protect our national security, Senator Romney said. China poses a critical threat to our national security, intellectual property, and technology, and it is vital that Huawei does not continue have access to our critical telecommunications infrastructure. I look forward to seeing the defense bill, which also authorizes other policy and programs critical to our national security, passed and signed into law soon.\n        \nAdding Huawei to the Commerce Department's banned Entity List was one of the most important moves by the Trump Administration in America's long-term strategic competition with the totalitarian Chinese government and Communist Party, Senator Rubio said. I welcome the inclusion of language in the FY2020 NDAA to restrict the ability to remove Huawei and its affiliates from the Entity List unless the Commerce Department can certify to Congress that certain criteria are met. Huawei is a malign Chinese state-directed telecommunications company that poses a clear and growing threat to the economic and national security of the U.S. and our allies.\n           \nProducts manufactured by Huawei Technologies pose a serious national security threat, Senator Collins said. I am pleased that the final NDAA includes our amendment, which would continue to prevent Huawei Technologies from doing business with U.S. companies until Congress receives concrete assurances that it is no longer a threat to U.S. infrastructure or engaged in intellectual property theft.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=D3FF3210-6C93-4FE8-BB91-68399DE98CD3", "December 9th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Rich County", "2019-12-09", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Garden City  Rich County  Garden City Town Offices  69 N. Paradise Parkway, Bldg B. Garden City, UT 84028  2:00 pm  3:30 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-colleagues-warn-national-security-and-public-health-risks-posed-chinas-influence-over-drug", "Romney, Colleagues Warn of National Security and Public Health Risks Posed by China's Influence Over Drug Supply Chain", "2019-12-09", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Colleagues Warn of National Security and Public Health Risks Posed by China's Influence Over Drug Supply Chain\n      \n            Foreign Imports Account for 80% of U.S. Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients\n      \n            Monday, December 9, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today joined Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Tim Kaine (D-VA), in sending a letter to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper raising concerns about the national security risks posed by U.S. reliance on foreign-manufactured pharmaceutical products. The senators' letter follows the publication of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission's 2019 Annual Report that highlights the nation's \"growing reliance\" on products critical to the manufacturing of drugs, which are primarily made in China. The full text of the letter can be found here.  \n  \nIn recent years, China has come to dominate the global market for pharmaceutical products, particularly active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), which are necessary to manufacture pharmaceutical products such as generic drugs and vaccines. Despite the critical role of APIs in drug production, the United States only makes about 20% of the APIs used in domestic pharmaceutical production, with the remaining 80% coming from foreign sources.  \n  \n\"Millions of Americans, including servicemembers, rely on drugs to stay healthy-yet the United States imports a significant portion of these drug components from China,\" the senators wrote. \"It is critical that DoD, along with other key federal agencies, address the dangers posed by this reliance on foreign drug makers.\"  \n  \nIn their letter, the senators warned that an interruption in the delivery of APIs would impact the production of medicines and ultimately military readiness, noting that DoD provides servicemembers and their families with drugs that can contain ingredients from China. The senators also observed that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not consistently conduct tests to verify the contents of APIs or drugs that enter the United States, nor does it measure their quality, even after APIs that have been traced back to China have caused numerous public health crises in the United States and across the world.  \n  \n\"...overreliance on Chinese API exports raises the possibility that China could terminate or raise the cost of prescription drugs that millions of Americans, including servicemembers, rely on every day in the event of escalating geopolitical tensions,\" the senators continued. \"It is essential the United States develop strategies to avoid over- or sole-reliance on China for its critical drugs and drug ingredients.\"  \n  \nTo address their concerns, the senators asked Secretary Esper to answer a series of questions about the potential national security risks posed by U.S. reliance on Chinese pharmaceutical products and DoD's role in addressing these risks, and requested a briefing on the matter. They requested a response to their letter by December 20, 2019.  \n  \nSenators Warren, Cotton and Kaine are all members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Senators Romney and Kaine serve on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://stewart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/stewart-protects-religious-freedom-and-lgbt-individuals", "Stewart Protects Religious Freedom and LGBT Individuals", "2019-12-06", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Chris Stewart", "S001192", "stewart.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.  Today, Congressman Chris Stewart (UT-02) introduces the Fairness for All Act (FFA), H.R. 5331. This legislation aims to protect everyone's dignity in public spaces. It harmonizes religious freedom and LGBT rights by amending the Civil Rights Act, protecting religious freedom in the workplace, protecting the rights of LGBT individuals, and preserving 1st amendment rights.\nAll of God's children, regardless of sexual orientation or religion, deserve dignity, respect, and the right to pursue happiness. This legislation allows us to settle the legal questions and get back to the business of loving our neighbors.  Rep. Chris Stewart\nStatements of Support:\nThe Seventh-day Adventist Church endorses this balanced and principled piece of legislation because it affirms two essential components of our belief system: honoring God and loving our neighbor. Seventh-day Adventist Church\n\"The Fairness for All Act ensures robust federal protections for the free and open exercise of religion and establishes, for the first time, basic civil rights for LGBT Americans. Having spent years working across the country to secure religious freedom rights, I commend Rep. Stewart on his drafting a smart, balanced bill that extends basic rights to LGBT Americans while providing the strongest possible religious freedom protections. We urge Congress to pass this historic bill.\"  Tim Schultz, Religious Freedom Advocate, President, 1st Amendment Partnership\nThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints commends the introduction of federal legislation that seeks to preserve religious freedom and protect LGBT individuals from discrimination. We're grateful for the leadership of Utah Representative Chris Stewart and other congressional supporters of this cause. The nation is more united when diverse individuals and groups can work cooperatively to advance sound policy. Alongside other religious organizations and denominations and important leaders of the LGBT community, the Church endorses this balanced approach that fosters greater fairness for all.  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints\nThe Center for Public Justice is committed to seeking solutions founded in principled pluralismsolutions that respect the rights and beliefs of all, while not limiting a person's or organization's core convictions The Fairness for All legislation does just that. We urge Congress to pass this legislation that offers a way forward so that all citizens, regardless of religious beliefs or sexual orientation, can live side-by-side as good neighbors.  Stephanie Summers, CEO, Center for Public Justice\nThe Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU) supports Fairness for All as a solution-based approach that addresses the cultural tension surrounding religious freedom and LGBT rights. Without compromising the orthodox Christian convictions held by Christian colleges and universities, Fairness for All underscores that all persons are created in the image of God,implying dignity, value, and worth. This approach represents civic pluralism at its best, in a society where people with differences can live alongside each other with respect and understanding. The CCCU urges Congress to pass this bill, which would balance the rights of both religious and LGBT communities in a comprehensive, balanced, and enduring way.  Shirley V. Hoogstra, President, Council for Christian Colleges & Universities\nAmerican Unity Fund fully endorses Fairness for All. We know this is the right solution for such a complex problem that urgently needs to be solved. Fairness for All acknowledges that we live in a diverse society. We believe basic civil rights should be guaranteed for everyone regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, or religion. Those rights can be fully protected while safeguarding religious freedom. Fairness for All is a lasting and balanced approach that will advance more freedom and liberty for all Americans, codifying significant protections for freedom of religion and freedom of speech. We urge the House to pass this historic legislation and prove that both sides of the aisle can find common ground and mutual respect for one another.  American Unity Fund\n\nMore about Fairness for All: \nFFA is the largest expansion of religious freedom and LGBT civil rights under federal law in a generation. It continues what began in Utah and builds upon existing protections for both religious and LGBT Americans in federal, state, and local law.\nNo American should lose their home or job simply for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. All religious persons should be free to live, work or serve their community in ways that are consistent with their faith.\nFFA preserves the Religious Freedom Restoration Act so it can continue to protect the First Amendment right of all persons to freely exercise their religion.\nFFA protects LGBT people from discrimination in employment and housing. It also prohibits LGBT discrimination in a place of public accommodation and significantly expands the definition of a public accommodation under federal law.\nThis bill protects the tax-exempt status of religious organizations and religious colleges and universities. It also protects the right of religious colleges and universitieslike Brigham Young University, Bethel University and Catholic Universityto uphold their religious standards without jeopardizing the ability of their students to get Pell Grants or of their professors to compete for federal research contracts.\nFFA protects the owners of small businesses whose religious and moral principles prevent them from participating in activities that are contrary to their conscience and beliefs.\nIt protects LGBT Americans from discrimination in jury selection, credit and federally assisted programs.\nLastly, this legislation protects religious adoption and foster care agencies so they can continue to serve vulnerable children and willing couples, while at the same time ensuring the ability of LGBT persons to adopt and foster children too. Putting the interests of needy children first, the FFA Act expands adoption and foster care by including all qualified potential parents.\nCoalition support: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, American Unity Fund, Center for Public Justice, 1st Amendment Partnership, The Seventh-day Adventist Church, Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, and others. \n\nCosponsors: Fred Upton (MI-06), Elise Stefanik (NY-21), Rob Bishop (UT-01), John Curtis (UT-03), Mark Amodei (NV-02), David Joyce (OH-14), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), and Mike Simpson (ID-02). \nFOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT: FAIRNESSFORALL.ORG", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=B5F07159-49FE-49DC-A4AC-8F80A268AA8A", "A Better Head Start", "2019-12-06", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Nothing is more important to the future of our society  nor more critical to fulfilling our national commitment to equal opportunity  than the care and upbringing of the next generation. That is why it is so important that we make sure the resources we devote to raising the next generation are being spent as wisely as possible. Unfortunately, the science shows our current Head Start dollars are not being spent wisely. Launched in 1965 and greatly expanded through its 2007 reauthorization, Head Start is one of the longest-running programs designed to help underprivileged children. Despite the program's good intentions, Head Start has failed to produce positive results. A Head Start study released by HHS in October of 2012 demonstrated that any advantages gained through Head Start are short-term and undetectable by the time a Head Start participant reaches the 3rd grade. In many cases, Head Start even has a statistically significant unfavorable impact on grade advancement among Head Start participants. The study also found that participants in Head Start had higher rates of behavioral problems than similar children who did not participate. The best way to help children living below the poverty line is to redirect the billions of dollars the federal government spends on this failing program to the states and give them the full flexibility and freedom to control where, and how this money is spent on pre-K programs. This would allow those closest to the children and families being served to design their own programs  rather than spending all their time complying with onerous, one-size-fits-all federal mandates  and designate eligible public and private preschools to receive grants. That is why I introduced the Head Start Improvement Act of 2019 this week. This legislation eliminates the federal Head Start bureaucracy and block grants its full $10 billion budget to the states. States would be authorized to spend these funds on pre-K education for underprivileged children, including through school choice programs that would help defray the costs of private pre-school tuition. Few decisions are more intimate than how a family chooses to care for their young. Some may opt for a public program, while others seek out a private day care facility. And, of course, many rely heavily on help from family, friends, and neighbors. Washington should respect these decisions and empower parents, communities, and states by making it easier to develop and tailor these unique solutions. The Head Start Improvement Act is a step in that direction.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=3EF54B64-A3AA-4CE0-9C4D-409CC10F7C41", "Making Welfare Reform Great Again", "2019-12-06", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Our welfare programs need to provide a hand up, not a hand-out. We must pair government assistance with the tools for work-capable individuals to achieve self-sufficiency. When welfare reform first inserted work requirements into our welfare system in 1996, some on the left predicted doom for America's most vulnerable families. Sen. Patrick Moynihan (R-NY) predicted we would find children sleeping on grates, picked up in the morning frozen. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) said we would see children begging for money, children begging for food, eight- and nine-year old prostitutes. And Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) called the bill legislative child abuse. But guess what? None of those hysterical prognostications came true. Between 1996 and 2000 single-mother welfare caseloads fell by 53 percent, their employment rate increased by 10 percentage points, and their poverty rate fell by 10 percent. And the consumption-based poverty rate among single-parent families has continued to fall since then: from 23 percent in 1995, to 15 percent in 2000, to 9 percent in 2010. Unfortunately, previous administrations have since created loopholes in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly known as food stamps, that undermined the work requirements at the heart of welfare reform. The number of SNAP recipients used to rise during recessions and then quickly fall as the economy recovered. But due to eligibility loopholes instituted by the last administration, that didn't happen after the most recent recession. A full ten years after the recession ended in 2009, the proportion of the U.S. population receiving SNAP is 40 percent higher now than when the recession began in 2007. We as a nation can and should do better. There are currently an estimated 1.3 million jobs open in our thriving economy, and we must do all we can to move more Americans to self-sufficiency. Towards that end, the Trump Administration finalized a new regulation this Wednesday designed to close one of the largest loopholes some states are using to undermine welfare reform. Under current regulations, states can request full or partial waivers from work requirements if they can show that an area has an unemployment rate of 10% or a rate 20% higher than the national average. In 2018, five states and the District of Columbia used this loophole to avoid work requirements and as a result, 44% of able-bodied adults without dependents lived in an area in which the work requirement were not in effect. Work requirements have a proven record of success in moving people from welfare to self-sufficiency. In 2015, Maine began enforcing work requirements for food stamps despite partial waiver eligibility and saw an 80 percent drop in its work-capable caseload in just three months. Thirteen counties in Alabama saw similar results when they implemented work requirements for food stamps in 2017. Additionally, the Joint Economic Committee's Social Capital Project has found that work is a critical source of social capital for struggling communities. Many individuals consider work a source of meaning and purpose, belonging, pride, friendship, and community. The Administration has taken laudable steps to improve work in SNAP, but it is Congress that should be doing more. That is why I plan reintroduce the Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act this Congress, which will make changes to the law to strengthen work and protect the integrity of our safety net. I hope that my colleagues will join me in pursuing the goal of getting more Americans off of the sidelines and back to work.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-lee-applaud-senate-confirmation-utah-judge", "Romney, Lee Applaud Senate Confirmation of Utah Judge", "2019-12-06", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Lee Applaud Senate Confirmation of Utah Judge\n      \n            Wednesday, December 4, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Mike Lee (R-UT) today released the following statement regarding the confirmation of David B. Barlow of South Jordan to serve as United States District Judge for the District of Utah. In July, Romney and Lee introduced Barlow at his nomination hearing before the Judiciary Committee.  \n   \nWe have full confidence David will serve Utah and the country with honor and integrity, faithfully applying the law and our Constitution to all matters and parties that come before him. We wish him well as he begins this next chapter of service to our nation as a U.S. District Judge for the District of Utah.\n      \n  \n    Issues", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=687D6EB5-700C-4D56-BDF1-026E2931DBE8", "Sens. Lee, Cruz, Blackburn, and Scott Introduce Head Start Improvement Act", "2019-12-05", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced the Head Start Improvement Act of 2019 Thursday, a bill that would improve the Head Start program by eliminating much of the program's federal bureaucracy and giving the money directly to states through block grants. Nothing is more important to the future of our society  nor more critical to fulfilling our national commitment to equal opportunity  than the care and upbringing of the next generation, Sen. Lee said. Washington should respect the proven ability of communities and states to develop unique solutions for their children. Our Head Start Improvement Act is a step in that direction. How It Works:\r\n \r\nBlock grants the Head Start funds directly to states, territories, and federally recognized Indian Tribes\r\nEligible grantees receive an allotment of the Head Start funds in proportion to the number of children aged 3-5 from families with incomes below 100% of the poverty line residing within the State\r\nRequires states to provide a 20% match to all federal funds granted\r\nAllows states to use funding for state school choice programs\r\nRequires all funds to be used for prekindergarten education, administration of the programs, and to provide direct technical assistance, oversight, monitoring, research and training\r\nDirects the Comptroller General to submit a report to Congress comparing the different approaches used by the grant recipients", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=909EA06C-8228-4D91-A531-F0D1C0FFF91B", "Let's encourage self-sufficiency by reforming our safety net", "2019-12-05", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "When welfare reform first inserted work requirements into our welfare system in 1996, some on the Left predicted doom for America's most vulnerable families. New York Democratic Sen. Patrick Moynihan predicted that we would find children sleeping on grates, picked up in the morning frozen. New Jersey Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg said that we would see children begging for money, children begging for food, 8- and 9-year-old prostitutes. And Massachussets Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy called the bill legislative child abuse.\r\nFortunately, none of those hysterical prognostications came true. Between 1996 and 2000, single-mother welfare caseloads fell by 53%, their employment rate increased by 10 percentage points, and their poverty rate fell by 10%. And the consumption-based poverty rate among single-parent families has continued to fall since then  from 23% in 1995, to 15% in 2000, to 9% in 2010.\r\nIt goes to show that we can be compassionate and smart at the same time. Our welfare programs need to provide a hand up, not a handout. We must pair government assistance with the tools for work-capable individuals to achieve self-sufficiency.\r\nUnfortunately, previous administrations have created loopholes in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly known as food stamps, that undermined the work requirements at the heart of welfare reform.\r\nThe number of SNAP recipients used to rise during recessions and then quickly fall as the economy recovered. But due to eligibility loopholes instituted under President Barack Obama, that didn't happen after the most recent recession. A full ten years after the recession ended in 2009, the share of the U.S. population receiving SNAP is 40% higher now than when the recession began in 2007.\r\nThere are an estimated 1.3 million jobs currently open in our thriving economy. We, as a nation, can and should do better in moving more Americans to self-sufficiency.\r\nTo that end, the Trump administration finalized a new regulation this Wednesday designed to close one of the largest loopholes some states are using to undermine welfare reform.\r\nUnder current regulations, states can request full or partial waivers from work requirements if they can show that an area has an unemployment rate of 10% or a rate 20% higher than the national average. In 2018, five states and the District of Columbia used this loophole to avoid work requirements, and as a result, 44% of able-bodied adults without dependents lived in an area in which the work requirements were not in effect.\r\nWork requirements have a proven record of success in moving people from welfare to self-sufficiency. In 2015, Maine began enforcing work requirements for food stamps despite partial waiver eligibility. It saw an 80% drop in its work-capable caseload in just three months. Thirteen counties in Alabama saw similar results when they implemented work requirements for food stamps in 2017.\r\nAdditionally, the Joint Economic Committee's Social Capital Project has found that work is a critical source of social capital for struggling communities. Many individuals consider work a source of meaning and purpose, belonging, pride, friendship, and community.\r\nThe Trump administration has taken laudable steps to improve work in SNAP, but Congress should be doing more. That is why I will reintroduce the Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act this Congress, which will make changes to the law to strengthen work and protect the integrity of our safety net. I hope that my colleagues will join me in pursuing the goal of getting more Americans off of the sidelines and back to work.\r\n\r\nOp-Ed originally published by the Washington Examiner", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-murphy-announce-bipartisan-working-group-student-athlete-compensation-related-issues", "Romney, Murphy Announce Bipartisan Working Group on Student Athlete Compensation & Related Issues", "2019-12-05", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Murphy Announce Bipartisan Working Group on Student Athlete Compensation & Related Issues\n      \n            Thursday, December 5, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) today announced the formation of a bipartisan working group to facilitate ongoing discussions about student athlete compensation and related issues. The working group will provide an informal setting for discussions among members, and also with collegiate partners, athletes, and experts who wish to engage lawmakers. Additional members of the working group include Marco Rubio (R-FL), David Perdue (R-GA), and Cory Booker (D-NJ).  \n               \nUniversities and colleges in Utah are grappling with potential changes related to compensating student athletes and so are schools across the nation, Senator Romney said. It's not fair for student athletes, especially those coming from low-income families, to give so much time and energy to their sport without any kind of compensation. We need to find a way to resolve this inequity while preserving the integrity of collegiate sports. This working group will serve as a forum for an ongoing bipartisan dialogue as we evaluate potential solutions.\n                   \nCollege athletes are being used as commodities to make money for the NCAA, colleges and corporations, while not being compensated for the work they do, nor given the appropriate health care and academic opportunities they deserve. That's plain wrong, Senator Murphy said. The majority of executives and coaches who are getting rich off college athletics are white, while the majority of the players at the big time sports programs are black. This is a civil rights issue, and I'm glad to launch this bipartisan working group to fix the inequities in this broken system.\n          \nI look forward to continuing our work to ensure both athletes and college sports can continue to thrive, Senator Rubio said. Having 50 different state laws for compensating student athletes on their name, image, likeness would result in chaos and endless litigation. This bipartisan working group has a tough task ahead of us, but it is clear Congress must address this important issue.\n       \nHaving spent a portion of my career working in the athletic industry, I know how important it is to preserve the collegiate sports experience while promoting equality for student athletes across all 50 states, Senator Perdue said. The NCAA is right to address student athlete compensation, and the only way to find a balanced solution is to ensure all stakeholders have a seat at the table. This bipartisan working group will provide an informal setting for these discussions and will hopefully produce solutions to prevent any state, school, or student from being at a disadvantage.\n          \nAs a former student-athlete, so much of my life was shaped by football, and I know how hard it is to balance the demands of education and athletics, especially for student-athletes for whom an athletic scholarship is the only way they can finance their education, said Senator Booker, a former high school All-American and Division 1 football player at Stanford. Student-athletes  especially black athletes, who are disproportionately represented in revenue-generating sports  are a massive source of revenue for colleges and media companies, yet they aren't allowed to share in the enormous value they create. And these injustices perpetuate longer after students' playing days are over in the form of student debt and a life time of injuries. This system is deeply unfair and unjust  it needs to change. I'm excited to join this working group to help identify solutions to end this exploitation of college athletes.\n      \n  \n    Issues", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-peters-introduce-bipartisan-bill-fight-spread-opioids-through-mail", "Romney, Peters Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Fight Spread of Opioids Through the Mail", "2019-12-05", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Peters Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Fight Spread of Opioids Through the Mail\n      \n            Thursday, December 5, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), a member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to combat the circulation of opioids, including fentanyl, through the mail. Illicit trafficking of drugs has fueled the deadly opioid epidemic, and many drug traffickers take advantage of shipping and mailing organizations like the United States Postal Service (USPS) and private shipping companies to move their products. The U.S. Postal Service Opioid & Illicit Drug Strategy Act would require USPS to develop and publish a comprehensive organizational strategy to combat the use of the mail in illicit drug distribution, allowing the agency to identify areas for improvement, enhance coordination across departments, and proactively meet emerging challenges.  \n             \nUtah continues to have a higher opioid overdose death rate than the national average, and our rural communities  particularly Carbon and Emery counties  are disproportionately harmed. As we work on solutions to the opioid crisis in our state and the nation, we must develop a multi-front approach that combats the illicit flow of opioids into our neighborhoods, Senator Romney said. After finding that the U.S. Postal Service does not have in place an overarching strategy to combat illicit drug distribution, we are introducing legislation that will fix that and help USPS be proactive and accountable in reducing the distribution of opioids.\n        \nEvery year, thousands of Michiganders lose their lives to the opioid epidemic. We must fight the opioid crisis on all fronts, which includes stopping drug traffickers from exploiting our Postal Service to distribute deadly narcotics into our communities, Senator Peters said. This commonsense bill would ensure that the Postal Service does everything it can to help address this epidemic and stay one step ahead of drug traffickers as the opioid threat continues to evolve.\n           \nUPMA is proud to stand with Senator Peters and Senator Romney to address the opioid epidemic. Opioids addiction and treatment is a serious challenge in the communities where we live and work; impacting the lives of our friends, families, neighbors and customers, said Daniel Heins, National President of the United Postmasters and Managers of America. To the extent criminals can use the mail to improperly distribute these dangerous substances is something all of us should be seriously working to prevent. This legislation is a smart step in the right direction of confronting this important issue.\n               \nSheriffs see first-hand the effect of opioids, methamphetamines, and other illicit drugs ravaging their communities across the country, said Jonathan Thompson, CEO and Executive Director of the National Sheriff's Association. We look forward to continuing to work with USPS to better combat the mailing of illicit drug distribution.\n                 \nCADCA is proud to support the U.S. Postal Service Opioid and Illicit Drug Strategy Act of 2019. Working to develop and implement strategic plans and priorities that ensure the U.S. mail can no longer be used for illicit drug distribution is timely, necessary and a high priority for our over 5,000 coalition members, said General Arthur T. Dean, Chairman and CEO of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America. These communities know firsthand how critically important it is to stem the flow of fentanyl and other deadly drugs into our nation currently moving through our postal system.\n        \nThe potency and proliferation of fentanyl and carfentanyl have robbed so many Americans of their chance at recovery. As the national professional association representing the interests of addiction counselors, educators, and addiction-focused health professionals, NAADAC recognizes the importance of combating the distribution of these deadly substances and others through the mail, said Cynthia Moreno Tuohy, BSW, NCAC II, CDC III, SAP, and Executive Director of the Association for Addiction Professionals. The U.S. Postal Service Opioid & Illicit Drug Strategy Act takes critical steps to improve our recognition of emerging trends and to respond to the threat they pose to our communities. NAADAC proudly supports the legislation and looks forward to working with Senator Gary Peters to advance the bill.  \n                 \nBackground:\n \n\tFrom 2013 through 2018, more than 98,000 people nationwide died of synthetic opioid-related overdoses, the majority of them related to fentanyl consumption. From 2001 to 2018, nearly 6,000 Utahns died from opioid overdoses. USPS and private carriers, in partnership with law enforcement agencies, are responsible for ensuring that the mail is not used to distribute deadly fentanyl, opioids, and other dangerous illicit drugs.\n\tThe U.S. Postal Service Opioid & Illicit Drug Strategy Act would help strengthen the federal government's response to the opioid crisis by requiring USPS to publish a comprehensive organizational strategy to combat the use of the mail in illicit drug distribution. The legislation would mandate that the strategy be updated every two years to address new illicit drug threats and emerging trends. USPS would be required to submit the strategy to Congress and to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, and provide annual briefings to Congress about the status of their efforts.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-statement-latest-vaping-data", "Romney Statement on Latest Vaping Data", "2019-12-05", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Statement on Latest Vaping Data\n      \n            CDC report shows more than 27 percent of high schoolers and 10.5 percent of middle schoolers reported vaping in the last month\n      \n            Thursday, December 5, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today released the following statement after the CDC published data revealing an increase in e-cigarette use by high school and middle school students:  \n          \nThe latest data released today by the CDC shows that the vaping crisis is worsening, with more than one quarter of high schoolers and 10.5 percent of middle schoolers reporting they have vaped in the past 30 days. To reverse this deadly trend, the Administration and Congress must act without any more delay to ban flavors that appeal to kids and prevent vaping cartridges from being adulterated with substances that kill. A continued failure to act in the face of this data would be unconscionable.Background:\n \n\tTwo weeks ago, Senator Romney participated in a White House meeting on the vaping epidemic with the President, industry representatives, and health advocates where he urged action to ban flavors that entice youth.\n\tAt Dr. Hahn's confirmation hearing, Senator Romney urged him to support a flavor ban. He met with Dr. Hahn earlier in the month to discuss the issue.\n\tIn September, Senators Romney and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.\n\tIn June, Senators Romney and Mark Udall (D-NM) introduced the Smoke-Free Schools Act of 2019 to ban e-cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities.\n\tIn April, Romney helped introduce the bipartisan Tobacco to 21 Act, legislation that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://stewart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/stewart-urges-president-trump-to-finalize-e-cigarette-flavor-ban", "Stewart Urges President Trump to Finalize E-Cigarette Flavor Ban", "2019-12-03", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Chris Stewart", "S001192", "stewart.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.  Today, Congressman Chris Stewart (R-UT) joined colleagues Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) and Rep. Peter King (R-NY) in sending a bipartisan letter urging President Trump to ban kid-friendly e-cigarette flavors.\nE-cigarettes have quickly become an epidemic among our youth. Banning flavored e-cigarettes, especially those targeted towards children, is an important start in solving this public health crisis.- Rep. Chris Stewart\nFive million children are now vaping, including one in four high school studentsan increase of 135 percent over the past two years alone. Between 2017 and 2018, America saw a 78 percent increase in the number of high-school children using e-cigarettes, and a 48 percent increase in the number of middle-school children using these addictive and dangerous products.\nThe letter is supported by: The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Truth Initiative, Parents Against Vaping e-Cigarettes (PAVe), Center on Addiction, Respiratory Health Association, American Association for Respiratory Care, Academy of General Dentistry, National Association of Elementary School Principals, Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, American Association for Cancer Research, American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, American Association of Women Dentists, Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs, Oncology Nursing Society, National Association for Secondary School Principals, National Alliance for Hispanic Health, Eta Sigma Gamma, The Society of Thoracic Surgeons, American Student Dental Association, Society for Public Health Education, American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Dental Association, American Association of Endodontists, and American College of Cardiology", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-fda-nominee-must-put-public-health-above-political-interest", "Romney: FDA Nominee Must Put Public Health Above Political Interest", "2019-12-03", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney: FDA Nominee Must Put Public Health Above Political Interest\n      \n            Tuesday, December 3, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), today voted in support of advancing Dr. Stephen Hahn's nomination to serve as FDA Commissioner but stressed that if confirmed, Dr. Hahn must put public health above political considerations in addressing the youth vaping epidemic. The Committee advanced the nomination by a vote of 18-5.  \n       \nDr. Hahn committed under oath that if he was confirmed, he would use science and data to guide his decisions on the youth vaping crisis, Senator Romney said. I am counting on him to follow through on that commitment, and I will insist that if confirmed, he will keep this committee and the nation informed about how his decisions are being made. We have a massive public health emergency, with five million kids in high school who are vaping and becoming addicted to nicotine, and we must place the interest of public health above political interest. At the same time, Congress must work on vaping legislation in the immediate future and create a national standard to protect our young people.Background:\n \n\tTwo weeks ago, Senator Romney participated in a White House meeting on the vaping epidemic with the President, industry representatives, and health advocates where he urged action to ban flavors that entice youth.\n\tAt Dr. Hahn's confirmation hearing, Senator Romney urged him to support a flavor ban. He met with Dr. Hahn earlier in the month to discuss the issue.\n\tIn September, Senators Romney and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.\n\tIn June, Senators Romney and Mark Udall (D-NM) introduced the Smoke-Free Schools Act of 2019 to ban e-cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities.\n\tIn April, Romney helped introduce the bipartisan Tobacco to 21 Act, legislation that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-joins-colleagues-urging-review-chinas-corporate-social-credit-system", "Romney Joins Colleagues in Urging Review of China\u2019s Corporate Social Credit System", "2019-12-02", "2019", "2019-12", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Joins Colleagues in Urging Review of China's Corporate Social Credit System\n      \n            Monday, December 2, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today joined his colleagues in sending a letter to United States Trade Representative (USTR) Ambassador Robert Lighthizer outlining their concerns with the Chinese government's efforts to develop and deploy its Corporate Social Credit System (Corporate SCS). The Corporate SCS represents China formalizing a system to punish American companies and workers for speaking out against the Chinese government. In the letter, the senators ask Ambassador Lighthizer to prioritize research and analysis into the Corporate SCS and the implications such a system may pose for American workers, companies, and investors.  \n        \nThe full text of the letter is below.  \n         \nDear Ambassador Lighthizer:  \n      \nWe write to express grave concern over the Chinese government's continued efforts to develop and deploy its Corporate Social Credit System (Corporate SCS), and the implications such a system may pose for American workers, companies, and investors. Specifically, we ask that the Administration include research and analysis of China's Corporate SCS in future reports produced about China and the conditions of commerce between our two nations.  \n      \nIn 2014, the Chinese Communist Party issued its Planning Outline for the Construction of a Social Credit System (2014-2020), which telegraphed the Party's efforts to create a unified algorithmic system to grade both domestic and international firms against more than 300 state-determined criteria, with the goal of building a Socialist harmonious society. In practice, we worry that many of the criteria envisioned under the Corporate SCS could be used to:\n \n\tCoerce the onshoring of research and development by U.S. companies within China's borders;     \n\tRequire technology transfer or otherwise make it easier for Chinese interests to steal American intellectual property; and\n\tCoerce American corporate support to China's industrial and foreign policies (like Made in China 2025, the upcoming 14th Five-Year Plan, and policies towards Taiwan).\n \nIndeed, all corporate data collected and processed through the Corporate SCS will travel through basic infrastructure, databases, and algorithms managed by a consortium that includes Taiji Computer, Huawei, Alibaba, Tencent, and VisionVera. Key criteria informing the algorithms of the system could also be implemented in a manner that allows the Communist Party to extraterritorially pressure compliance with party doctrine and to suppress dissent. An August 2019 report prepared by the European Chamber of Commerce in China stresses that the [Corporate SCS] will fundamentally change how business is done in China for every company and stakeholder in the Chinese market.  \n       \nOnce the Corporate SCS is fully operational, firms with scores below a certain state-determined threshold will face an interlocking series of sanctions across multiple Chinese government agencies, including restrictions on procurement and business licenses, less favorable interest rates, higher inspection rates, and even potential debarment from the Chinese market. Scores can be affected not only by the actions of the company and its employees, but also by the actions of supplier or partner companies, extending the threat of Chinese retaliation to any American firm with a presence, or supplier, in China. In short, the Corporate SCS raises fundamental questions about whether promised market openings and regulatory reforms on paper will yield a level playing field in practice for American firms doing business in and with China.   \n       \nEqually, if not more concerning, penalties under the Chinese Corporate SCS could extend to the employees of American firms, including U.S. nationals. As a punishment for individuals representing companies deemed untrustworthy, the Chinese government envisions levying travel restrictions, tax discrimination, personal sanctions, and other retributions. In this respect, there are few punishments that can be ruled off the table, as the Communist Party's disregard for the rule of law, checks and balances, transparency, and a free press could result in a broad array of unjustified punishments.  \n         \nWhile the Corporate SCS is still in development, the skeleton of the system is coming online and already presenting serious challenges for U.S. companies. In September, news reports indicated that the Chinese Communist Party threatened to reduce the social credit scores of American companies unless those companies acknowledge Macau, Hong Kong, and Taiwan as part of China.  \n         \nWhat our country witnessed recently with respect to the National Basketball Association (NBA) over a tweet by one American team's general manager is not an aberration, but the latest in a litany of attempts by China to deploy its state and economic power to bend American entities to its will. It seems the SCS is designed, in part, to further and formalize this practice. For these reasons, formal U.S. government research, reporting, and analysis about China's Corporate SCS is critical to examining the terms of competition for our companies operating in and competing with China. Given the high stakes for open markets and our free market system, we urge you to ensure that this system is closely examined and considered in all relevant U.S. government reports.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=1F19DF8D-DDB0-4D8D-8630-38B4EA786D21", "November 25th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Cache County", "2019-11-25", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "North Logan  Cache County  North Logan City Hall  2067 N 1200 E North Logan, UT 84341  3:00 pm  4:30 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=5B598485-1D07-4271-8432-D715EE132266", "Fighting for Utahs Fair Share", "2019-11-22", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "There are many things unique to life in Western states. One of the special benefits is of our beautiful lands and landscapes. Unfortunately, these same lands are also often subject to federal ownership, which means that the federal government often controls how and who can enjoy it. For many years, the federal government has collected royalties from onshore oil and gas development on public lands. At first, the federal government split this revenue 50/50 with the host states where the development of this land takes place. But in 1993, the federal government began to take away 2% from the states and imposed it as a collection fee  meaning that the federal government now receives 52% of the revenue from these mineral royalties, and the states receive only 48%. This might seem like a relatively small sum, but it adds up in western states like Utah, Wyoming, and New Mexico, to name a few. In fact, this surcharge shortchanges our states to the tune of millions of dollars each year  money that was promised to and rightfully belongs to the states. For example, in just FY2019, Utah lost about $3 million in revenue due to this surcharge. This robs us of precious funds needed for local schools, infrastructure, law enforcement, and various needs in our local communities. That's why this week, during a bill markup by the Energy and Natural Resource Committee, I offered an amendment that would remove eliminate the 2% surcharge so that the original ratio is restored and states can collect their own mineral royalties, fair and square.\r\nSome of my Democratic colleagues were concerned by the phrasing of my proposed amendment, which required the Secretary of the Interior to convey right, title, and interest to the 2% percentage to the states. Because this terminology often is used for the transfer of property itself, they were worried that the amendment would therefore not just transfer money to the states, but would allow transfer of federal land as well. Thankfully, we were able to work together to draft new phrasing to assuage my colleagues' fears. While I expected the amendment to adopted along party lines, because we were able to collaborate on the new language, it was in the end adopted with bipartisan support. The federal government should not be snatching up mineral royalties that rightfully belong to the states. States are best equipped to collect these mineral revenues, and to determine how those funds should be spent for the good of their communities. If our amendment is included with this bill and passes through Congress, it will mean millions of dollars for states across the West that can help them do just that. I'm grateful that our work in the markup this week was a step in the right direction.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=FBE1992A-F816-433E-B646-24874D5292AA", "Why Work Matters", "2019-11-22", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "What makes work meaningful doesn't depend on its inspirational nature or on it having a transformative effect on the world, Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow Oren Cass told the Joint Economic Committee this week. Work is meaningful because of what it means to the person performing it, what it allows him to provide to his family, and what role it establishes for him in his community. Cass went on to document the many ways work has proven to be so important to people's lives. Unemployed Americans are twice as likely to be depressed than Americans with jobs. Unemployment doubles the risk of divorce. Communities that lack work have higher rates of crime and addiction. Work relationships represent a crucial source of social capital, establishing a base from which people can engage in the broader communitywhether it's playing on a softball team, organizing a fund-raising drive, or hosting a field trip for the local preschool, Cass testified. Unfortunately for many men, work is no longer a part of their lives. The employment-to-population ratio of working-age men  those between the ages of 25 and 54  not working, are near levels not seen since the Great Depression. According to the most recent data, 18 percent of working age men are not working, a number higher than anytime during the 1990 and 2001 recessions. In its report, Inactive, Disconnected, and Ailing: A Portrait of Prime-age Men Out of the Labor Force, the Project found that disconnected men are more socially isolated and less happy than their employed peers. At the community level, the disappearance of work can lead to depopulation, brain drain, and the decline of other institutions of civil society. If we are to expand opportunity by strengthening families, communities, and civil society, we must devote our attention to worka means of supporting ourselves and our families, a source of meaning and purpose, and a site for affirming and satisfying relationships. Cass and fellow witness Dr. Veronique de Rugy, a Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center, identified a number of policy changes that could increase the percentage of men that have jobs. Dr. de Rugy noted that local zoning regulations increase the cost of housing in many good job markets, thus making it harder for lower-income workers to access those jobs. Federal subsidies designed to increase home ownership, but also drive up the cost of housing, make this access to jobs problem even worse. Many industries that employ low-skill workers, like manufacturing and energy development, face stringent environmental regulations that decrease employment in these sectors. A country consistently seen as the second-best location for a new factory will watch as factories get built in other places, and the researchers and suppliers and distributors followand soon it won't even be the fifth best location, Cass explained. Immigration, especially from poorer countries, can also make it less likely American men will have jobs, Cass argued. When policies dramatically expand the supply of workers able to meet existing demand, domestic workers will suffer Entrepreneurs gain access to a vastly larger and cheaper supply of labor, while imperatives vanish to build businesses that use the existing domestic labor supply or make investments in improving domestic workers' capabilities. This effect swamps the smaller uptick in demand for less-skilled American labor that those workers might expect to see from the poorer countries' consumers. There is no one silver bullet that can provide a job for every American that wants one. But in the coming months, the Joint Economic Committee will be developing a number of policy reforms that should make it easier for anyone who wants a job to find one.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-meets-president-youth-vaping-epidemic", "Romney Meets with President on Youth Vaping Epidemic", "2019-11-22", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Meets with President on Youth Vaping Epidemic\n      \n            Friday, November 22, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today released the following statement after attending a White House meeting on the vaping epidemic with the President, industry representatives, and health advocates:  \n         \nI appreciated the President's efforts to bring together stakeholders and experts to discuss proposals to solve the youth vaping epidemic. Everyone agrees that this is a serious problem, but it's clear there are differing views about the best way to develop responsible guidelines to protect our kids. While I hope the Administration will act without further delay on its prior proposal to ban flavors that appeal to kids, I will also continue to push for my legislation that bans flavors, ensures that vaping cartridges are tamper-proof, and bans e-cigarettes from schools.           \n      \nVideo of the meeting can be found on CBS News' website here.  \n                                              \nBackground:\n \n\tAt a hearing earlier this week, Senator Romney urged Dr. Stephen Hahn, the nominee to serve as Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, to support a flavor ban. He met with Dr. Hahn earlier in the month to discuss the issue.\n\tIn September, Senators Romney and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.\n\tIn June, Senators Romney and Mark Udall (D-NM) introduced the Smoke-Free Schools Act of 2019 to ban e-cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities.\n\tIn April, Romney helped introduce the bipartisan Tobacco to 21 Act, legislation that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-advocates-for-als-patients-on-house-floor/", "Curtis Advocates for ALS Patients on House Floor", "2019-11-21", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Rep. John Curtis (R-UT) addressed his colleagues on the House Floor as he fought for better treatment options for ALS patients. He highlighted that theRight to Try Actshould not be the end of the conversationand urged the FDA to swiftly approve the groundbreaking and life-saving treatments already approved internationally.\nI applaud the enactment of theRight to Try Act allowing some people another option to receive the treatments they need. However, this should not be the end to the conversation, and it's important to acknowledge that the passage of this act has not opened all of the doors we expected and many are still denied access to treatments Delaying approval of this treatment, commonly known as NurOwn, is putting lives at risk. I urge the FDA to prioritize its approval and give access to thousands of ALS patients.\nFull text of the speech, as prepared for delivery, can be found below:\nMadam Speaker, I rise to share my concerns with patient access to groundbreaking and life-saving ALS treatments. This is a very personal issue to me as some of my close friends and neighbors have been affected by this difficult disease. \nI applaud the enactment of theRight to Try Act allowing some people another option to receive the treatments they need. However, this should not be the end to the conversation, and it's important to acknowledge that the passage of this act has not opened all of the doors we expected and many are still denied access to treatments.\nThe FDA's lengthy approval process continues to limit patient access  at times forcing my constituents to spend large sums of money traveling overseas for treatment or more commonly, forfeit treatment all together.\nThe use of stem cells to treat ALS, widely used and deemed safe in other countries, has been studied in the U.S. for over 12 years but has yet to be approved, despite its fast-tracked status.\nDelaying approval of this treatment, commonly known as NurOwn, is putting lives at risk. I urge the FDA to prioritize its approval and give access to thousands of ALS patients.\nI yield back the balance of my time.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-introduces-bill-to-increase-export-of-us-clean-energy/", "Curtis Introduces Bill to Increase Export of US Clean Energy", "2019-11-21", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Rep. John Curtis (R-UT) released the following statement after introducing his new bill,The Exporting Clean Energy Act.The legislation will increase the amount of clean energy being sent abroad to contribute to a more environmentally friendly world while also better enabling US companies to build up and empower developing countries.\nAmerican clean energy technology is known for being the most efficient and environmentally friendly around the world. As emissions from outside the US quickly approach 90% of world emissions, exporting US clean energy technology will is an important tool to uplift developing countries out of poverty while reducing global emissions,said Curtis.The Exporting Clean Energy Act will benefit US national security by strategically deploying US energy technology throughout the world, as opposed to having that void filled by China and Russia, while also improving environmental stewardship.\nStatements of Support\nRich Powell, ClearPath Action Executive Director: Low-cost, high-performing technologies are the backbone of efforts targeting rising carbon emissions in the developing world, and the United States is poised to capitalize on tremendous opportunities to export American clean energy technology. Rep. Curtis's bill provides solutions to help affordably meet growing global demand for reliable and lower-carbon power.\nHeather Reams, Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions, Executive Director: CRES applauds Congressman Curtis' vision for increasing support for the export of US clean energy technology and infrastructure. The US must maintain its global leadership, and the Export-Import Bank should leverage its resources to help US exporters, especially in competition against strategic competitors.\nBackground\nAs the official export credit agency of the United States, the Export Import Bank's purpose is to promote the export of US goods and services to help create and sustain jobs in the United States. Over the last 10 years, EXIM financed more than $255 billion in US exports.\n This legislation will:Create a congressional mandate for the Export-Import Bank to focus on energy financing when a US strategic competitor is bidding for a contract or when the US is capable of providing lower emissions than a competitorCreate a process to form a temporary quorum of Board of Directors to approve loans when a strategic competitor is bidding on an energy contract \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=6A9329EE-DF78-423C-BD44-B0CA433593FF", "November 21st, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Tooele County", "2019-11-21", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Grantsville  Tooele County  Grantsville City Library  42 Bowery St Grantsville, UT 84029  1:30 pm  3:00 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=EBEA9846-4B18-4B32-9B3D-1D275E89BD30", "November 21st, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Tooele County", "2019-11-21", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Tooele  Tooele County  Tooele City Hall  Second Floor Large Conference Room   90 North Main Street Tooele, UT 84074  3:30pm  5:00pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-votes-against-spending-bill", "Romney Votes Against Spending Bill", "2019-11-21", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Votes Against Spending Bill\n      \n            Thursday, November 21, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today released the following statement regarding the short-term spending bill, known as a continuing resolution, which the Senate voted on today:  \n                        \nI promised the people of Utah I would vote against these kinds of last-minute, short-term spending bills. We passed a bill like this in September, and here we are again, and in four more weeks will do this all over again. This is no way to govern. The longer Congress continues to rubber-stamp spending bills without addressing the drivers of our debt, the worse our country's fiscal challenges get. That is why I voted against this spending bill.  \n                                       \nBackground:\n \n\tRomney recently introduced the Time to Rescue United States' Trusts (TRUST) Act, which would create congressional committees specifically tasked to develop legislation to restore and strengthen endangered federal trusts funds. Two-thirds of our federal spending is automatic, associated with our entitlement programs. And our entitlement programsSocial Security, Medicare, our Highway Trust Fundwill go broke within 13 years unless Congress acts.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-administration-must-follow-through-flavor-ban", "Romney: Administration must follow through on flavor ban", "2019-11-20", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTONAt a confirmation hearing today for Dr. Stephen Hahn to serve as the next FDA Commissioner, U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) urged him to put public health ahead of politics in taking action to address the vaping epidemic. Romney, who is leading legislative efforts to reduce youth vaping and nicotine addiction, issued the following statement after the hearing:  \n       \nWhile I appreciate that Dr. Hahn agrees that bold action is needed to reduce youth vaping, I believe he should have affirmed the need for a flavor ban based on the evidence seen so far, which is that flavored e-cigarettes are drawing more and more kids into vaping and they are becoming addicted to nicotine without knowing it. We have a health emergency on our hands, and the Administration must follow through on its commitment to ban flavors that entice our youth. With over five million high schoolers vaping and becoming addicted to nicotine, we cannot afford to wait any longer.  \n     \nPartial highlights of Senator Romney's exchange with Dr. Hahn can be found below:  \n    \nROMNEY: Just three days after this Committee heard from the FDA and CDC officials that flavored e-cigarettes are driving youth vaping rates, we learned from news reports that the Administration may no longer act on banning flavors. A number of us have bills that relate to banning these productsbanning flavorssome include menthol, some don't, some have a sunset provision, some don'tbut this is a really critical issue. And the first question I'd ask, is the FDA, under your leadership, able and willing to take action which will protect our kids whether or not the White House wants you to take that action?  \n   \nHAHN: As a physician, I took a pledge many years ago to uphold the ethics of medical practice and to always put the patient first. Senator, I take that pledge very seriouslyPatients need to come first, and the decisions that we make need to be guided by science and data concurrent with the law.  \n     \nROMNEY: I would note that Dr. Schuchat last week in her testimony indicated that flavors are they key driver in leading us into this youth vaping epidemic where we have millions and millions of high schoolers and middle schoolers that are now addicted to nicotine ... I can't imagine a reason for holding off on immediately banning these kind of flavors. Do you see a reason for holding off on that?  \n      \nHAHN: Senator I have also seen the data that you described, suggesting that flavors are a significant affect for children using e-cigarettes, and I am alarmed by those data, completely alarmed. I think it's a serious issue, and I think it requires bold action to keep these out of the hands of kids. We do not want to see another generation become addicted to tobacco and nicotine.  \n                             \nBackground:\n \n\tSenator Romney met with Dr. Hahn earlier this month ahead of his confirmation hearing before the HELP Committee.\n\tIn September, Senators Romney and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.\n\tIn June, Senators Romney and Mark Udall (D-NM) introduced the Smoke-Free Schools Act of 2019 to ban e-cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities.\n\tIn April, Romney helped introduce the bipartisan Tobacco to 21 Act, legislation that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-introduces-state-sponsored-immigration-program/", "Curtis Introduces State Sponsored Immigration Program", "2019-11-19", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), released the following statement after introducing the State Sponsored Visa Pilot Program Act of 2019. The bill would create a new state-sponsored temporary worker visa pilot program.\nEach state has unique industries and employment opportunities, and our current immigration system doesn't fully recognize these differences. I am excited to take another step towards fixing our broken immigration system by empowering States with the ability to customize a visa program to fit their unique needs. My State Sponsored Visa Pilot Program Act will provide an additional tool to connect workers with industries that are most in need, and allow visa holders the flexibility to move throughout their sponsoring state,or states,as employment demands and opportunities shift,said Curtis.While every state is unique, neighboring states share commonalities that don't end at lines on a map. We see this in the West, particularly in the agriculture and tourism sectors, where some seasonal operations stretch across multiple states. My bill will allow states to enter into agreements with each other to share workers and give employers the stability to retain the same workers, regardless of where their operation takes them.\nStatements of Support\nUtah Governor Gary Herbert: The bill allows state leaders to design visa programs customized to the economic needs of their individual states. The benefits of the bill are obvious. Each state is different. Each state has a different mix of industries, different educational emphases, different employment needs, and different regulatory regimes. And of course those factors change over timeAs a governor, I would jump at the opportunity to design a work visa program that would allow Utah to sponsor the migrant workers, investors, and entrepreneurs that we need.(full letter here)\nRon Gibson, President of the Utah Farm Bureau Federation: The Utah Farm Bureau Federation supports your State-Sponsored Visa Pilot Program Act. As a grass roots organization, we fundamentally believe in the value of locally driven solutions. This bill allows states to customize programs to address the needs of employers and workers in the agricultural sector. Utah agriculture has not been able to adequately access and retain labor under the current federal visa program.(full letter here)\nDerek B. Miller, President & CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber: We appreciate that this bill, in the spirit of the Utah Compact, will allow us and other states to create a program that goes beyond one-size-fits all to allow what I believe are laboratories of democracy the ability to create workable solutions to fit unique workforce and economic requirements. In this way we can all learn and benefit while focusing on respective needs closet to home.(full letter here)\nBackground\nThe legislation will:\n Create a pilot program at the Department of Homeland Security for states to opt in and sponsor three-year visas.Allow states the flexibility to customize their visa allocations based on each state's unique economy and needs.Incentivize states to comply with program rules in order to earn additional visas the next year.Encourage states to enter into compacts, giving additional flexibility to visa holders and employers to move seasonal workers between them as needed. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=1B5AC2CD-D220-461A-A5DF-094B32D82DEA", "Fairness for Family Leave", "2019-11-15", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Strong marriages and families are the bedrock of our society. But to form that foundation, they need the time and flexibility, especially during critical times  like the birth of a new baby, the unexpected illness of a family member, or the aging of a parent.  The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was established to provide for these very needs. Signed into law by President Clinton in 1993, it provides unpaid, job-protected leave for specific family and medical reasons. Unfortunately, the FMLA restricts the amount of leave that married couples who work for the same employer can take. Under current law, these couples are limited to taking a total of 12 weeks of combined leave to care for a new baby or sick family member. In other words, the FMLA is currently penalizing married couples  unfairly punishing them if they happen to work for the same employer. The federal government should not be in the business of punishing marriage. That's why this week, I joined with Sens. Joni Ernst (R-IA), Krysten Sinema (D-AZ), and Tina Smith (D-MN) to introduce the Fair Access for Individuals to Receive Leave Act, or FAIR Leave Act. This bill would fix this glitch in the law and restore equal benefits to married couples, regardless of their employer. It would enable eligible spouses to instead take 12 weeks of unpaid leave each, or 24 weeks total, in a 12-month period for the birth of a new child; the placement and adoption of a child; and the care of a parent with a serious health condition. And not only that, but the bill would boost our military families as well. The FAIR Leave Act would allow eligible spouses to each take 26 weeks of leave to care for a covered servicemember  a spouse, parent, son, daughter, or specified blood relative  with a grave injury or illness.  It's far past time that we modernize the Family and Medical Leave Act to make sure it addresses the needs of today's families during the times they need it most. This bill would make sure that the law does so in a comprehensive, fair, and effective manner. American parents and families deserve no less.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=755959E8-ADE7-4F04-B34B-9B91A16A729A", "Angels in Adoption", "2019-11-15", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "The family is the first and most important institution of our society. It is where we learn the first and deepest lessons that inform our behavior and shape us as adults.\r\nBy teaching us what it means to live with duties and obligations toward others, the family prepares us for citizenship and teaches us how to live as members of a community.\r\nBut not all of us are lucky enough to be born into a stable family. Some children suffer through traumatic experiences like abusive or neglectful parents, or they may have even been orphaned.\r\nOthers may have been born to a mother who knew, for whatever reason, that being a parent was not the best choice for her at that time. And God bless those mothers who choose life and bring such joy and happiness to other families by doing so.\r\nThere are few acts that personify God's love better than adoption. The love and sacrifice present when a family extends itself to include an adopted child is one of the most inspiring things Americans do.\r\nThat is why it was such a pleasure to meet with Doug and Janet McLain who were honored as Angels in Adoption by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute this week. Not only have the McLain's been foster parents for eight years and adopted six children, but they have provided support and training to other foster families through The Adoption Exchange and Utah Foster Care.\r\nWe love fostering and our children have been a huge blessing in our lives, Janet told CCAI. They have changed our hearts for the better and we are very blessed to have them in our family.\r\nJanet knows first-hand just how much of a blessing adoption is for kids as well. She was in foster care from the ages of 2 to 4 and then again from 14 on.\r\nAs rewarding as adoption is for many families, it is often hard to find new families willing to take the leap of faith needed to open their home. That is why the Department of Health and Human Services proposed rule ending President Obama's ban on many faith-based foster care and adoption agencies is so important.\r\nWe've reversed the rule implemented in the closing days of the last administration that jeopardized the ability of faith-based providers to serve those in need by penalizing them for their deeply held religious beliefs, Vice President Pence said at this year's National Adoption Month Celebration. We will stand for the freedom of religion and we will stand with faith-based organizations to support adoption.\r\nThe Obama administration had issued a rule in 2016 banning any faith-based group that held a traditional view of marriage from receiving any federal adoption or foster care support. The new HHS rule would overturn that rule, thus allowing faith-based groups to fully cooperate with federal adoption and foster-care promotion efforts.\r\nAs the Joint Economic Committee's Social Capitol Project has thoroughly documented, so many of the foundational institutions of civil society, the connective tissue that facilitates voluntary cooperation, has eroded. Church attendance is down. Americans are less likely to get married and start families and when they do they are doing so later in life. Much of this is due to the changing nature of work in America, but some of it is also due to federal policies that make it harder for voluntary associations, like faith-based groups, to be active in civil society.\r\nWe need to find, recruit, and support more heroes like Doug and Janet McLain. Ending the ban on federal support for faith-based foster care and adoption organizations should make that easier.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-announces-nonpartisan-house-gis-working-group/", "Curtis Announces Nonpartisan House GIS Working Group", "2019-11-14", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCYesterday, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), announcedthe creation of the House GIS (Geographic Information System)Working Group, a nonpartisan staff-led resource available for staff to learn about geospatial policy, how data is being used in the executive branch, and ways that each Congressional Office can use the technology.\nRep. Curtis speaks at the GIS Day event.\nAs geospatial data becomes more and more integral to the planning and decision-making process at almost every agency, Congress has an obligation to learn and understand this technology and how it is being used. I am excited to announce the House GIS Working Group, a nonpartisan staff-led resource available for staff to learn about geospatial policy and how data is being used in the federal government. I am looking forward to working with my colleagues, including Rep. Pete Aguilar who has also dedicated a staff member to co-lead this working group, to improve GIS policies and continue to learn how geospatial data is helping map our world.\nBackground:\n Geospatial data has transformed the way that the United States government works. Agencies and private companies are using GIS technology to prepare for and mitigate natural disasters, as well as track population shifts, border crossings, and even find the quickest route to deliver packages. From the Census Bureau to the National Park Service, and Homeland Security to the Highway Administration, geospatial data is becoming integral to the planning and decision-making process.States and local governments have been leading the way in using GIS and this group will enable the federal government taking on a larger role in the GIS space. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=829AE143-80AF-45A6-BF94-B04D925174E7", "Sens. Lee, Durbin Introduce Smarter Sentencing Act", "2019-11-14", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and others introduced legislation Wednesday that would modernize federal drug sentencing polices by lowering certain mandatory drug sentences. Our current federal sentencing laws are out of date and often counterproductive, said Sen. Lee. The Smarter Sentencing Act is a commonsense solution that will greatly reduce the financial and, more importantly, the human cost imposed on society by the broken status quo. The SSA will give judges the flexibility and discretion they need to impose stiff sentences on the most serious drug lords and cartel bosses, while enabling nonviolent offenders to return more quickly to their families and communities. Mandatory minimum penalties have played a large role in the explosion of the U.S. prison population. These mandatory minimums have too often led to sentences that are unfair, fiscally irresponsible, and a threat to public safety, Durbin said. The First Step Act was a critical move in the right direction, but there is much more work to be done to reform our criminal justice system. The Smarter Sentencing Act gives federal judges the authority to conduct individualized reviews to determine the appropriate sentences for certain nonviolent drug offenses. I will keep fighting to get this commonsense, bipartisan legislation through the Senate with my colleague, Senator Lee. Lee and Durbin first introduced the Smarter Sentencing Act in 2013. Several important reforms from the Smarter Sentencing Act were included in the landmark First Step Act, which was enacted into law last year. The central remaining sentencing reform in the Lee-Durbin legislation would reduce mandatory minimum penalties for certain nonviolent drug offenses. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that implementation of this provision would save taxpayers approximately $3 billion over ten years.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-and-bennet-request-review-usdas-emergency-watershed-protection-program", "Romney and Bennet Request Review of USDA\u2019s Emergency Watershed Protection Program", "2019-11-14", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney and Bennet Request Review of USDA's Emergency Watershed Protection Program\n      \n            Senators seek to improve program, better serve communities recovering from wildfires\n      \n            Thursday, November 14, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) called on the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP).  \n      \nThe EWP is an important tool for post-fire recovery in the West. Recently, Utah and Colorado received EWP funding following fires in 2018 that damaged watersheds and led to unprecedented evacuations. However, communities often face hurdles and added burden when attempting to use EWP to support recovery efforts. A GAO review would help improve EWP to more effectively serve communities across the West as they recover from devastating wildfires.   \n     \nWhile communities can implement a number of steps to reduce damage and mitigate risk following wildfires, these measures place undue financial strain on property owners and state and local governments, the senators wrote in their letter to Comptroller General Gene Dodaro. Over the past few years in Colorado and Utah, post-fire flooding and erosion has caused millions of dollars in damage and required significant investments from state and local partners.  \n       \nThe Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) administers the EWP to reduce financial strain and help communities address imminent threats following a wildfire. Despite the valuable assistance these funds have provided, concerns remain with the implementation of EWP, including its eligibility requirements and approval processes.  \n      \nWhile the funding has helped some of these communities recover, there is concern with how NRCS approves and completes projects, and other hurdles that communities face in the process of receiving EWP funds, the senators wrote. Therefore, we request the GAO conduct a review of the Emergency Watershed Protection Program, specifically its implementation and effectiveness in helping communities in the aftermath of damaging wildfires.  \n    \nRomney and Bennet requested that the GAO focus on a number of specific items, including:\n \n\tApproval processes under the program, including eligibility requirements that may limit entities such as water districts and ditch companies from qualifying for the program;\n\tExigent project timelines and challenges, including opportunities to improve exigent projects in rural areas;\n\tOpportunities to expand eligible projects, such as weather monitoring and alert systems to warn of post-fire floods;\n\tAgency and stakeholder views on program improvements to better meet the goals and intent of EWP.\n \nThe text of the letter is available here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-meets-utah-angel-adoption-honoree", "Romney Meets with Utah Angel in Adoption Honoree", "2019-11-14", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Meets with Utah Angel in Adoption Honoree\n      \n            Thursday, November 14, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today met with Bonnie Hilton from Herriman, who he nominated to be Utah's 2019 Angel in Adoption Honoree for her advocacy on behalf of children in the state. During their meeting, Ms. Hilton shared with Senator Romney her child welfare story, and Senator Romney awarded her with an honorary pin and certificate on behalf of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI). Ms. Hilton works at Heart to Heart Adoptions in Sandy, and she and her husband have adopted five children.Background:  \nThe Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute's Angels in Adoption Program honors individuals and organizations making contributions in adoption, permanency, and child welfare. Every year, the Angels in Adoption awardees travel to Washington, D.C., to celebrate their dedication to the issues and participate in events designed to engage them in using their personal experience to effect change on behalf of children in need of families.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-huffman-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-highlight-dangers-of-unauthorized-drones-near-wildfire/", "Curtis, Huffman Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Highlight Dangers of Unauthorized Drones Near Wildfire", "2019-11-13", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCThis week, Representatives John Curtis (R-UT) and Jared Huffman\n(D-CA) introduced the AerialIncursion Repercussion (AIR) Safety\nAct, bipartisan legislation to raise awareness on issues interfering with\nwildfire fighting by directing the Bureau of Land Management and the USDA\nForest Service to conduct a study on how drone trespassing has affected\nwildfire suppression and costs. \nWhen wildfire breaks out, our brave firefighters need to protect\nlives and property. When unauthorized drones enter a wildfire area,\nfirefighters must ground helicopters and their own dronesboth critical\ncomponents to wildland firefightinguntil the drone is removed. This means that\nfar too often valuable time and resources are spent removing civilian drones\ninstead of containing and suppressing fire, said Curtis. That is why I am proud to introduce the\nAerial Incursion Repercussion (AIR) Safety Act with my friend Mr. Huffman, to\nstudy how private drones flown near wildfire hinders suppression efforts and\nstart looking at solutions that will help deter and remove unauthorized drones.\nI am confident that this will spur a much needed discussion on the state of our\nforests and how we can better manage them to reduce the risk of fire and the\ndamage they cause.\nWildfires\nhave caused enormous devastation to families, businesses, and communities in my\ndistrict. The idea that anyone would interfere with the heroic efforts of\nfirefighters and other first responders is unthinkable, said Huffman. The AIR Safety Act is an important step in addressing the challenges\nand safety risks posed by unlawful drone interference and ensuring first\nresponders are able to do their jobs and protect lives and homes.\nStatement of Support:\nGreg Josten, National Association of State Foresters President; South Dakota State Forester: We already know that flying personal drones\nwherewildland firefighters are\nactivelysuppressingwildfiresputs the civilian operator,\ntheirneighbors, and wildland firefighting personnel in danger.The\nslogan is true, and state forestry agencies know it all too well:If you fly, we can't. Now, it's time\ntoquantifyallthe deleterious effects of drone incursions\nonwildfire fighting airspace. With hard numbers to support\nneededchange, we'll be better positioned toprevent costly delays\nand shutdownsand protectbothproperty andlives.\nBrian Cottam, Utah State Forester: In\nUtah, we have seen drone incursions continue to endanger firefighter and public\nsafety. Congressman Curtis's AIR Safety Act is a step in the right direction to\nreveal the extent of drone disruption in wildfire suppression and help put a\nstop to this dangerous behavior.\nBackground:\n The Federal Aviation Administration sets Temporary      Flight Restrictions (TFRs) around wildfires. Although laws exist      prohibiting interference with wildfire fighting, many people fly their      private drones within TFRs to take pictures and videos of the fire.When unauthorized drones enter TFRs, events known as drone incursions, all aerial firefighting tools  including helicopters dropping flame retardant  must be grounded, resulting in valuable time and money being wasted that could otherwise be used to      suppress the fire and save lives and property. The bipartisan AIR Safety Act will bring attention to this issue and help determine the best ways to avoid future drone incursions. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-statement-on-day-one-of-public-impeachment-proceedings/", "Curtis Statement on Day One of Public Impeachment Proceedings", "2019-11-13", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), released the following statement in regards to today's impeachment inquiry proceedings:\nFrom the onset, I have advocated for transparency, openness, and fairness, and while the current rules do not completely meet that standard, I am glad that the whole country can now watch the public hearings themselves. It is my hope and plea that Congress and the public can set aside prejudgment and political bias and instead consider facts presented by both Democratic and Republican witnesses, should Democratic Leadership allow it. My constituents have elected me to be their eyes, ears, and eventually their voice, and I will reserve my comments and judgment until it's time to vote on the House Floor. I commit to Utah's third district that I will listen to all the evidence presented over the proceedings with an open mind and a pragmatic rationale.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/what-utahns-are-saying-about-trust-act", "What Utahns are Saying About the TRUST Act:", "2019-11-12", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "What Utahns are Saying About the TRUST Act:\n      \n            Tuesday, November 12, 2019\n\n      \n            UTAHSupport grew across Utah this week for the TRUST Act, bipartisan and bicameral legislation introduced by Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) which would create committees specifically tasked to develop legislation to rescue endangered federal trust funds.  \n           \nWhen I ran for Senate, I talked with folks across our state to learn about their concerns and priorities. I repeatedly heard concerns about out of control federal spending, our skyrocketing national debt, and the risks they pose to future generations. We Utahns place a high priority on fiscal responsibility and living with our means, and I pledged to bring those values to Washington, said Senator Romney. Two-thirds of our federal spending is automatic, associated with our entitlement programs. And our entitlement programs and trust fundsSocial Security, Medicare, our Highway Trust Fundwill go broke within 13 years unless Congress acts. If these trust funds go broke, middle-class Americans will face steep benefit cuts or massive tax hikesboth of which are unacceptable. I've teamed up with colleagues on both sides of the aisle, in both chambers, on the TRUST Act. We introduced this legislation to help rescue our federal trust funds because it's irresponsible for Congress to keep ignoring a preventable crisis.\n\nThe Utah Taxpayers Association wholeheartedly supports the TRUST Act and salutes the efforts of Senator Romney to actually do what voters send elected officials to Washington to do - solve problems and make America stronger. The TRUST Act would take critically needed action on our country's dire trust fund situation. Without action, taxpayers will face massive tax hikes or dramatic cuts to these programs if nothing is done. The Utah Taxpayers Association  \n\nFor too long, Congress has neglected its responsibility as a steward of public funds. Increasing budget debt and deficits, if not addressed, threaten to weaken the strength of the U.S. economy and erode public confidence. The TRUST Act will help reverse this troubling trend. It will strategically address the most precarious, yet essential programs to Americans. It will restore solvency in these programs and ensure their long term viability. It will also better manage federal spending and restore more prudent budgeting of federal dollars. Robert Spendlove, Economist and Utah State Representative (District 49)  \n\n\"Too many in Congress have kicked the proverbial can down the road for far too long, burdening our children and grandchildren with the costs of their cowardice. I applaud Senator Romney's courageous leadership in addressing a potentially devastating crisis before it's too late. He is delivering on his promise to take fiscally conservative Utah approaches to Washington, at a time when it is needed more than ever. David Damschen, Utah State Treasurer  \n\n\"The St. George Area Chamber of Commerce fully supports this bi-partisan effort to bring greater accountability, transparency, and fiscal responsibility to our Nation's Trust Funds. Our Chamber of Commerce believes that governmental spending without the maintenance of balanced budgets for vital programs threatens their stability and the economic wellness of our local businesses and our citizens. We stand with those willing to take this decisive and corrective action.\" St. George Area Chamber of Commerce  \n\n\"In business, your word is your bond. The bipartisan TRUST Act will help the federal government keep its word to Americans young and old.\" Rona Rahlf, President and CEO, Utah Valley Chamber of Commerce", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=B18A1CF4-ADD6-4034-8E33-BE26283505AA", "Preventing Another Pension Bailout", "2019-11-08", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "As more and more print newspapers are struggling to stay afloat in today's predominantly digital media world, they are trying to come up with creative ways to cut costs. And some of them have found a potential lifeline in their workers' pensions. In the name of saving a small group of community newspapers, a provision of a bill called the SECURE Act allows these newspapers to reduce their contributions to their workers' pension plans while still promising the same benefits. The problem? You can't reduce compensation costs without reducing actual compensation. In the end, this measure hurts the very workers it purports to help. Under current law, if a pension plan is failing to meet its funding target, the plan sponsor must eliminate the funding shortfall through additional plan contributions and associated interest at a discounted rate over 7 years. The SECURE Act, however, changes that time period to 30 years and allows plans to use a higher discount rate for contributions. As a result, it would decrease the amount that these newspapers are required to contribute each month; and, because of the longer payback window, would also make it less likely that they would ever make up the shortfall. In other words, it grants a special-interest bailout to these newspapers by allowing them to raid their workers' pensions. This is both bad policy and bad precedent. It's true that this strategy might help prolong the life of these community newspapers in the short term. But it would do so at the expense of their employees, the government's Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBGC), and all the other private pension plans that are not afforded this special treatment. Because when the pension plans of these select newspapers inevitably become insolvent, they will most likely end up in the PBGC  a federally chartered organization that provides pension insurance through premiums paid by private companies, half of which are small companies with fewer than 25 pension participants. So, in the long run, all the companies required to pay into the PBGC  but which do not receive a special bailout from Congress  will be forced to bear the brunt of the cost. This is neither helpful nor fair. That is why I am offering an amendment that strikes this provision from the bill. We should not be providing special treatment to a select group of community newspapers at the expense of others. And we should not be setting a precedent that struggling companies can offload their costs onto their workers and other companies by shortchanging pensions, failing to pay them back, and getting bailouts from Congress.  We can find better ways to help keep struggling newspapers alive without raiding hardworking Americans' retirement money. This amendment would ensure just that.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=C241BC4C-DF6B-4E84-9046-5C860FAD46E1", "Making It Easier to Work Together", "2019-11-08", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Government, Democrats often say, is simply the name we give to the things we choose to do together.\" And while it is true there are many things we do together through government - national defense, interstate highways, and law enforcement to name a few  there are far more things we do together that do not require government programs: producing food, making cars, building homes, and most importantly  raising a family. These activities are all best accomplished by voluntary interactions between citizens. As Alexis de Tocqueville wrote, I often saw Americans make great and genuine sacrifices for the public, and I remarked a hundred times that, when needed, the almost never fail to lend faithful support to one another. Our federal government has long recognized the importance of voluntary coordination which is why the charitable deduction has been a part of the tax code for decades. But the nature of how Americans practice charity is changing and there are some policy changes we should consider to make it easier for all Americans to give to causes they believe in. First the good news, charitable giving has risen from 1.6 percent of gross domestic product in 1978 to 2.1 percent in 2018. Unfortunately, while total giving has increased, the percent of Americans giving has decreased from 66 percent in 2000 to 56 percent in 2014. And the drop has been most pronounced among lower-income Americans. Today, just 38 percent of households making $50,000 or less gave o charity, compared to 87 percent of households making more than $150,000. There are two big reasons we should be concerned that lower-income Americans are giving less while higher-income giving is making up a higher percentage of overall giving. First, high-income and low-income Americans give to different charitable causes. High-income Americans are far more likely to give to elite educational institutions (like Harvard and Stanford) that provide no value to most Americans. Low-income Americans are far more likely to give to organizations that actually help the poor like the Salvation Army and the United Way. Second, charitable giving itself helps bind people into a larger community. As the Joint Economic Committee recently wrote in its The Wealth of Relations report, Individual investment in social capital often creates benefits for the entire community, such as norms of trust and reciprocity. In other words, when people give to their church or local service organization, they are more emotionally invested in that organization, and are more likely to participate in the public goods that organization provides to the community. There are some steps we should consider taking to make it easier for more Americans to participate in charitable giving. The Joint Economic Committee released a new report this week, Reforming the Charitable Deduction, that identifies two such options. One reform option, the report explains, is to make the charitable deduction more widely available. Perhaps the most common proposal for reform is moving the deduction above the line, making it available to both itemizers and non-itemizers. Other above-the-line deductions already exist, such as those for retirement account contributions and student loan interest payments; this reform would simply give the same treatment to the charitable deduction. A second option for reform, the report notes, would be to transform the deduction into a credit worth some percent of the value of a taxpayer's total giving. For example, with a 25 percent credit, someone's tax liability would fall by 25 percent of the value of all donations, regardless of tax rates or the size of the donations. Each of these options comes at a cost in federal revenues, so there is still much to debate. But, if we are serious about rebuilding our civil society by making federal policy more friendly to voluntary cooperation, these are two policy proposals we should consider.\r\nReforming the Charitable Deduction\r\nThe Wealth of Relations", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-backs-legislation-ban-tsp-board-steering-federal-retirement-savings-china", "Romney Backs Legislation to Ban TSP Board from Steering Federal Retirement Savings to China", "2019-11-07", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Backs Legislation to Ban TSP Board from Steering Federal Retirement Savings to China\n      \n            Thursday, November 7, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) joined a group of his colleagues led by Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) in introducing the bipartisan, bicameral Taxpayers and Savers Protection (TSP) Act, which would prevent the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB) from steering federal retirement savings to China. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Mike Braun (R-IN) co-sponsored the bill, and U.S. Representative Mark Meadows (R-NC) will be introducing the companion bill in the House.  \n    \nDeliberately choosing to invest the retirement savings of hardworking Americans in state-owned and state-directed firms in China effectively funds the Communist Party's efforts to undermine our economic and national security, Romney said. Congress must act now to prevent the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board from steering the retirement savings of our federal employees and military members into the hands of China's Communist Party.\n   \nToday makes clear that a bipartisan, bicameral coalition in Congress will not sit on the sidelines and allow the TSP Board to funnel the federal retirement savings of U.S. service members and federal employees to the Chinese Communist Party, Rubio said. America's investors should never be a source of wealth funding Beijing's rise at the expense of our nation's future prosperity, and the TSP Board should not force U.S. service members and federal employees to unwittingly undermine the American national security interests that they work hard every day to protect.\n  \nIt is unacceptable that the hard-earned savings of our U.S. service members and public servants could be invested without their knowledge in Chinese companies that undermine the very strategic national interests they're sworn to protect. If the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board is going to drag its feet on reversing the decision that would allow this dangerous policy to go into effect, then Congress must act, Shaheen said. This isn't complicated  investments of our federal workers and armed forces should not fund companies that could help the Chinese government carry out nefarious attacks, from spying on U.S. citizens to committing gross human rights abuses.\n                  \nHardworking Americans should not be forced to give a cent of their retirement savings to foreign adversaries' firms that may be complicit in activities that harm our national security, Gillibrand said. Our federal and military employees should know that their savings are being invested responsibly. That's why I'm proud to support the Taxpayers and Savers Protection Act, which would ban the investment of thrift savings funds of our service members and federal workers in Chinese companies that may defy American oversight rules. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation to protect Americans' retirement savings.\n             \nThis bipartisan legislation ensures that our servicemembers' retirement savings will not flow to companies with close ties to the Chinese Communist Party, Hawley said. The U.S. government has no business pursuing an investment strategy that undermines our national security and underwrites the Chinese military.\n              \nThere's absolutely no reason we should be using U.S. taxpayer dollars to prop up companies under the control of Communist China, which continues to steal our technology, abuse human rights and build up its military to compete with us, Scott said. We have to take a stand against Communist China, and I'm proud to co-sponsor the Taxpayers and Savers Protection (TSP) Act to protect the retirement savings of federal employees from investments tied to China. No one should be doing business with Communist China, and the TSP Act is a logical step.  \n           \nBackground:\n \n\tThe TSP Act would conditionally ban the investment of Thrift Savings Plan funds in securities listed on mainland Chinese exchanges. In particular, it would prohibit investment in issuers listed on foreign securities exchanges where America's Public Company Accounting and Oversight Board (PCAOB) has not issued an audit inspection and where the PCAOB is prevented from conducting such inspections.\n\tThe TSP Act would also stop the FRTIB from moving forward with a short-sighted decision to shift the Thrift Savings Plan's International Fund Index to the MSCI All Country World ex-U.S. Investable Market Index that includes Chinese companies under U.S. sanctions and U.S. export bans. The FRTIB currently plans next year to begin investing the retirement assets of federal government employees, including members of the U.S. Armed Forces, in opaque Chinese firms engaged in human rights abuses and a wide range of military-related activities, effectively funding the Chinese government and Communist Party's efforts to undermine U.S. economic and national security. The move would also place federal savers and their beneficiaries at risk by directing their savings into Chinese firms that fail to live up to the accounting and financial disclosure levels that are standard in developed markets.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=4F5863FF-4C1B-486E-9092-84601A6D60C7", "November 6th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Sevier County", "2019-11-06", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Central Valley  Sevier County  Central Valley Community Center  50 West Center  Central Valley, UT 84754  10:45 am  12:00 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=C1DA13DC-8E7B-456D-8CB1-11B71F7A8772", "November 6th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Kane County", "2019-11-06", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Kanab  Kane County  Kanab City Hall  26 North 100 East  Kanab, UT 84741  6:00 pm  7:00 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=F68A228C-4005-4B12-AC4E-7CAA54A1847B", "November 6th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Garfield County", "2019-11-06", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Panguitch  Garfield County  Garfield County Courthouse  2nd floor Conference Room  55 South Main  Panguitch, UT 84759  3:45 pm  4:45 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-discusses-vaping-crisis-fda-nominee", "Romney Discusses Vaping Crisis with FDA Nominee", "2019-11-06", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Discusses Vaping Crisis with FDA Nominee\n      \n            Hahn expresses support for Romney proposal to ensure vape cartridges are tamper-proof\n      \n            Wednesday, November 6, 2019\n\n      \n              WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today met with Dr. Stephen Hahn, nominee to be Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Following their meeting, Senator Romney released the following statement:  \n                    As a physician specializing in lung cancer, Dr. Hahn understands the urgency in addressing the vaping epidemic that continues to put our nation's young people at serious risk of nicotine addiction. He expressed to me his support for protecting our youth from harmful tobacco products and our proposal to ensure e-cigarettes and vape devices cannot be adulterated with harmful substances. I am encouraged by his commitment to prioritizing research into the long-term effects of nicotine and look forward to working with him to solve this public health crisis.  \n        Background:\n In September, Senators Romney and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.\n\tIn June, Senators Romney and Mark Udall (D-NM) introduced the Smoke-Free Schools Act of 2019 to ban e-cigarette use in educational and childcare facilities.\n\tIn April, Romney helped introduce the bipartisan Tobacco to 21 Act, legislation that would prohibit the sale of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to anyone under the age of 21.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-joins-bipartisan-climate-solutions-caucus", "Romney Joins Bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus", "2019-11-06", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) has joined the newly-formed bipartisan Senate Climate Solutions Caucus, led by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Mike Braun (R-IN), which is bringing an equal number of Republicans and Democrats to craft and advance bipartisan solutions to address climate change. Additional members include Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Angus King (I-ME), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Michael Bennet (D-CO).  \n                               Addressing climate change is going to require significant private sector investments and a major global breakthrough in innovation and technology. To that end, Congress should explore ways to incentivize the research, development, and deployment of clean technologies. We also need to consider solutions that will sustain communities that may be impacted by changes in energy technology, and I will continue to meet with folks from our rural and coal mining communities in Utah to hear their perspectives, Romney said. This caucus will serve as a starting point for a productive bipartisan dialogue as we work toward potential solutions for addressing climate change.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/speeches?ContentRecord_id=E7A93796-0C1F-4647-B54C-4F673BF4AEAB", "Remarks on the Retirement of General Burton", "2019-11-05", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Mr./Madam President,\r\nI rise today to honor Major General Jeff Burton, Adjutant General of the Utah National Guard, for his many years of devoted service to our nation and the great state of Utah.\r\nAs he closes a long chapter of 37 years of military service, he leaves behind a tremendous legacy as an American patriot and a true servant-leader. And so I would like to take a moment to pay tribute to that legacy today.\r\nFrom a young age, General Burton knew that he wanted to follow in his family's footsteps by serving his faith and his country. He served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on a Canadian Indian reservation, braving harsh conditions that would well-prepare him for his military service.\r\nAs soon as he returned home, he enrolled at Brigham Young University, where he enlisted in the National Guard as an artillery field soldier. He joined BYU's ROTC program, receiving a commission as a Second Lieutenant in 1984.\r\nHe completed tours with the U.S. Army Military Police Corps in Alabama; with the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado; and with the 7th U.S. Corps in Germany, where he witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall.\r\nIn 1991, General Burton left the army and returned home to join the Utah National Guard, where he served in a variety of distinguished leadership positions over the next decade.\r\nChief of among them was commanding the 1457th Engineer Combat Battalion during Operation Iraqi Freedom as part of the initial ground war.\r\nHe and his troops were tasked with searching for and eliminating explosives, improving embassy security, and responding to bombings. They were often the first ones on the scene of an explosion. In honor of his heroic service there, he was awarded the Bronze Star.\r\nGeneral Burton was appointed assistant adjutant general of the Utah Guard in 2008, promoted to brigadier general just a few months after, and then made major general and adjutant general in 2012.\r\nIn this role, General Burton has trained and equipped more than 7,000 soldiers under his command to respond to challenges in both military and civilian life.\r\nHe has prepared them not only to fight our nation's wars and provide military support to our troops throughout the world, but to combat wildfires, respond to natural disasters, and ensure law and order in our communities. Under his leadership, they have performed at an exceptional caliber.\r\nWhen the 100,000-soldier surge in Afghanistan ended in 2012, General Burton was also responsible for overseeing the needs of the soldiers returning home from the war. He rose to the challenge, tending to both the physical and emotional needs of these warriors and their families with the utmost care.\r\nAs he himself has once said, May we make a silent promise to keep the faith with our battle buddies and wingmen May we be strong for one another, and unashamedly rush to the aid of those in need. May we remember those who have suffered grievous wounds in the defense of liberty, and may we never forget those who have given the ultimate sacrifice within our formations so that we might live in freedom.\r\nGeneral Burton has lived by these words over his long and dedicated career.\r\nEvery day, he keeps a note tucked into the band of his hat that lists the names of the men who were killed in combat or during 9/11 under his command.\r\nHe has led by example, never asking of his men something he himself has not done; and he has led in order to serve, striving always to protect the welfare of his command and our country.\r\nAnd so it is only fitting that we honor him today.\r\nOn behalf of our nation and all Utahns, I thank General Burton for the sacrifices he has made to secure the freedoms we hold dear. I congratulate him on this occasion, and wish him many happy years ahead with his wife Charn and their children.\r\nI yield the floor.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-honors-major-general-jeff-burton", "Romney Honors Major General Jeff Burton", "2019-11-05", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today honored Major General Jeff Burton, Adjutant General of the Utah National Guard, who will be retiring this week following a career dedicated to public service.  \n              \nRomney's remarks on the Senate floor can be found below.  \n           \nMr. President, I wish to congratulate Major General Jeff Burton, a man of remarkable achievement and character on a career dedicated to public service. After seven years serving as the Adjutant General of the Utah National Guard, Major General Burton is passing the torch of leadership. He leaves behind a distinguished legacy.\n     \nMr. President, the Utah National Guard provides military forces ready to assist both state and federal authorities in times of emergency and in times of war. It is comprised of 7,300 soldiers and airmen from the Utah Army National Guard and the Utah Air National Guard. As Adjutant General, Major General Burton oversaw the training and military preparation of soldiers and airmen throughout the state.\n    \nHe is a principled and dedicated leader who has set a high standard of conduct for the men and women under his command. Major General Burton and his wife, Charn, have always cared for and supported Guard members and their families, particularly in the tragic times of loss. Their devotion to the servicemen and servicewomen of Utah cannot be overstated.\n     \nMajor General Burton's life of service extends beyond his time as Adjutant General. He was an assistant professor at both Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University, where he has taught military science. He was awarded the Bronze Star for his exceptionally meritorious service as the commander of the 1457th Engineer Combat Battalion during Operation Iraqi Freedom, where his unit played a significant role in the initial ground war. Under his leadership, his unit also helped to rebuild the country devastated by conflict.\n         \nOur great state of Utah owes Major General Burton a debt of gratitude for his decades of service. We wish the honorable general all the best in his next chapter. Thank you, Major General Burton, for your service to our state and to our nation.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=107B836F-F7D6-4111-846C-28BD3BC050F6", "Bringing Fairness to Labor Law", "2019-11-01", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Our jobs are an incredibly important part of our lives. They allow us to provide for ourselves and our families, to contribute to society at large, and are crucial to our dignity as human beings. So it's a huge problem when we experience injustice in the workplace  whether through unfair labor practices, contract disputes, or collective bargaining issues in unions. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), an independent federal agency, was established in the 1930s with the intention of speedily resolving these kinds of problems in the workplace. Consisting of a general counsel and five political appointees, the NLRB has the power to investigate, prosecute, and rule on labor cases. But unfortunately, the NLRB has consistently abused these court-like powers over the years  proving to be unfair, inconsistent, and ineffective in carrying out its intended goal. First, the structure of the NLRB is poorly suited to ensure due process for either employers or employees. It in effect operates as a sham court, failing to follow normal procedural standards  like rules of evidence  that protect the involved parties in the court system. And because its membership is politically appointed, it tends to cave to political pressures and considerations.  On top of that, the frequent turnover of the NLRB membership means that its decisions and rules are constantly changing  issuing partisan, controversial, and disruptive opinions. For example, in 2015 the NLRB upended more than 30 years of settled law in determining how franchises, franchisees and employers interact in the Browning-Ferris Industries decision. The NLRB then overruled this standard in another case in 2017, but in February of 2018 reversed those standards again and re-established the Browning-Ferris decision. This unpredictable and capricious process damages the economy and stalls employers from making decisions that would otherwise to lead to job growth. And finally, the NLRB fails to quickly and effectively resolve complaints, operating under a bureaucratic labyrinth of rules. That's why this week, I introduced the Protecting American Jobs Act  a bill that would strip the NLRB of its power to hear and adjudicate labor disputes, and would return this power back to federal courts. Under the bill, the NLRB would retain the power to conduct investigations but would not be allowed to adjudicate them. There is no need for a politically charged federal agency to have the power to act as judge, jury, and executioner for labor disputes in our country. By returning these powers to the courts, where they rightfully belong under the system established by the Constitution, we can finally restore fairness and accountability to our labor laws, and effectively ensure justice in the workplace.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=9FDBE129-F583-41A3-8040-8D705CDE62A2", "No More Unearned Privilege for the American Bar Association", "2019-11-01", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Since 1953 the American Bar Association has provided evaluations of the professional qualifications of nominees to the Article III federal courts. These evaluations are given to the Senate as the Senate considers confirmation of each judicial nominee. According to the ABA, these evaluations focus strictly on professional qualifications: integrity, professional competence and judicial temperament of each nominee. The ABAB claims it does not consider a nominee's philosophy, political affiliation or ideology. Nothing could be further from the truth. Just look at the ABA's recent 11th hour partisan hatchet job on Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals nominee Lawrence VanDyke. Submitted just hours before Mr. VanDyke's confirmation hearing (the timing itself a clear violation of the ABA's own rules), the evaluation of Mr. VanDyke asserted he was an arrogant, lazy, ideologue that lacks humility and does not have an open mind. Worse, the letter asserted without any foundation, that Mr. VanDyke would not say affirmatively that he would be fair to any litigant before him, notably members of the LGBTQ community. Essentially the ABA asserted Mr. VanDyke was Not Qualified for the bench because he was a homophobic bigot. If the ABA's evaluation of Mr. VanDyke was not so unfounded and inflammatory it would almost be humorous. What the evaluation failed to mention was that the lawyer who led Mr. VanDyke's interview had donated to his political opponent when Mr. VanDyke ran for the Montana Supreme Court in 2014. In other words, the evaluation was nothing but a politically motivated fact-free hit job from the start. And this is not the first time the ABA has resorted to such biased partisan tactics. A 2012 Political Research Quarterly study of all formal ABA ratings from 1997 through 2008 found clear statistical evidence that the ABA ratings reflect a bias in favor of Democratic nominees. This ongoing fraud most stop. The time has come for the White House and the Senate to suspend the unique access that the American Bar Association has in the judicial confirmation process. This does not mean that the ABA and its members don't have every right to whatever opinion they want to express about judicial nominations. They have every right as American citizen to formulate opinions on judicial nominees and share those opinions with the public. But that does not mean that they deserve an official privileged seat at the table. In fact, as the VanDyke case shows, they should be given no privileged role at all.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-backs-legislation-strengthen-early-childhood-education", "Romney Backs Legislation to Strengthen Early Childhood Education", "2019-11-01", "2019", "2019-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Backs Legislation to Strengthen Early Childhood Education\n      \n            Bipartisan legislation would invest in school leadership programs\n      \n            Friday, November 1, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) this week joined Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Doug Jones (D-AL) in introducing the Creating Early Childhood Leaders Act, which would ensure that school leaders are able to effectively support early education teachers and provide children with high-quality early learning programs. Specifically, this legislation would amend Title II of the Higher Education Act by adding provisions to encourage recipients of Teacher Quality Partnership Grants to include training on early childhood development and effective instructional leadership for children ages zero through eight.  \n        \nThe importance of early childhood education cannot be overstated, Senator Romney said. It is absolutely essential that our teachers are adequately prepared to provide the best instruction to our children. This legislation will ensure that Utah's public school leaders receive the support needed to guide and evaluate those who teach our youngest people, at such a critical stage in their development.\n      \nInvesting in early childhood education is a benefit to both our students and our economy. When children learn more earlier, they earn more later, Senator Casey said. The Creating Early Childhood Leaders Act will ensure that we equip our school leaders and teachers with the tools and resources they need to effectively support the emotional, social and academic development of young children in Pennsylvania and across the Nation.\n                        \nAlabama has a nationally recognized pre-k program that is hailed for its high quality, and it's important that the educators that serve those classrooms are well-trained. This bipartisan legislation will encourage training to help guide kids through this crucial time in their development, Senator Jones said.  \n                \nBackground:  \nThe Creating Early Childhood Leaders Act would ensure that principals and school leaders are able to effectively support pre-kindergarten teachers and programs and assist pre-kindergarten students through the transition from pre-K through second grade. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other organizations, critical brain development occurs in a child's first years.\n      \n  \n    Issues", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-votes-no-on-resolution-that-is-out-of-harmony-with-normal-justice-and-impeachment-precedents/", "Curtis Votes No on Resolution That Is Out of Harmony with Normal Justice and Impeachment Precedents", "2019-10-31", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, RepresentativeJohn Curtis released the following statement after voting no on the impeachment inquiry on the House Floor this morning.\nI believe we could all support a careful and balanced look at wrongdoing. Unfortunately, the vote we took today does not do that. Similar to Speaker Pelosi's self-proclaimed impeachment inquiry, which we have been moving forward with for over a month, this new impeachment inquiry is out of harmony with normal justice and impeachment precedents that protect against political and personal bias. Should one party have veto power over the other subpoenaing witnesses or over questions that can be asked? Of course not. Should the Chairman of any Committee have the power to deny the President's legal counsel in the room? Again, of course not,said Curtis.Let's be honestit seems to me that a combination of the President's style and a predetermined goal to remove him from office, set this impeachment in motion on the day after the election. The American people want to know the truth, and so do I. I will support a process that leads to more transparency, without the influence of politics, but today's vote does the opposite.\nBackground:\nSince Speaker Pelosi announced her original impeachment inquiry, Representative Curtis has called for transparency for the American people, all Members of Congress to be able to attend and participate in a fair investigation, and for the President to be provided due process and the protections that impeachment precedents set.\nHe has sponsored or cosponsored the following:\n H.Res 593  Expressing that the whistleblower should be transmitted immediately to the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives. (Read more)H.Res. 633  Disapproving of the way that Dem Leadership is conducting impeachment matters behind closed doors; requires that all impeachment related hearings, witness interviews, and communications be done in the public view.H.Res. 630  Condemns and censures Chairman Schiff for making misleading statements and fabricating information about the President's phone call with Ukrainian President Zolensky in a hearing  thus politicizing the Committee and hindering its ability to conduct proper oversight.H.Res. 657  Changes House Rules to require that transcripts of classified hearings are available to all members, instead of a select few. (More info here)Letter to Adam Schiff  Asking for clarity on how many pages of transcripts and testimonies Members are expected to read in less than 70 hours and asking when the resolution would be made public. (Read letter here) \nThe resolution voted on today:\n Has no actual requirement for the Intelligence Committee to hold open and public hearings;Disallows Representative Curtis from continuing to attend and participate in impeachment-related depositions and hearings, eliminating one of Utah's voices in the process;Further restricts which Members are allowed into the SCIF;Allows Chairmen Schiff and Nadler to veto subpoenaing Republican witnesses and the questions that witnesses are asked;Gives Chairman Nadler authority to dismiss the President's legal counsel; andContinues to undermine and politicize both the House Intelligence and the House Judiciary Committees. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://stewart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/stewart-votes-against-continuing-impeachment-inquiry", "Stewart Votes Against Continuing Impeachment Inquiry", "2019-10-31", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Chris Stewart", "S001192", "stewart.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.  Today, Congressman Chris Stewart (UT-02) voted NO on the House Resolution to continue the impeachment investigation into President Donald Trump (H. Res. 660). Following the vote, Rep. Stewart released the following statement:\nSo far the Democrats have held hearings behind closed doors while selectively leaking soundbites in order to mislead the public. Now, more than 35 days since the beginning, Speaker Pelosi is rushing to retroactively legitimize her flawed investigation. \nOnly through a bipartisan process, in which both sides are given the opportunity to investigate, can we reach a conclusion that will be broadly accepted and factually sustained. This resolution fails to meet this standard and doesn't follow the precedent of past impeachment investigations. - Rep. Chris Stewart \nH. Res. 660 contains built-in advantages for the House Majority. Unlike previous impeachment proceedings, Democrats have rejected any bipartisan coordination by maintaining complete control and discretion throughout the process. During the Clinton and Nixon impeachment proceedings, the Democrat ranking member could request witnesses at any time. Under the Democrats' resolution, the Republican ranking member on House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) must provide a detailed written justification of the relevance of the testimony and receive the permission of Chairman Adam Schiff.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/speeches?ContentRecord_id=3DACED20-32C9-4551-9AC6-2E57A3FA03F2", "A Response to Sen. Durbins Call for a Hearing on S.386", "2019-10-31", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "I would like to speak briefly about Sen. Durbin's recent request for a hearing about the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act.\r\nThe Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act is a bill that many senators have worked on for nearly a decade, and has long been a top priority of mine. I have introduced this bill in the Senate every Congress since I was first elected in 2010. During that time it has been the subject of widespread debate and attention both on and off the Hill, and other members, including Senator Schumer, have sought to pass the bill, as I am doing, by unanimous consent.\r\nThis year, we have come closer to making this important and bipartisan reform a reality than we ever have before.\r\nIn early July, the House of Representative passed the bill on the suspension calendar by a wide, bipartisan margin of 365 to 65. Around that same time, I negotiated an agreement with Senator Grassley to help advance the bill in the Senate by adding provisions drawn from the Durbin-Grassley H-1B reform bill.\r\nSenator Grassley had, for many years, openly and publicly made it known that he had concerns with the bill. I was therefore very pleased that we were able to sit down and work out an agreement to address those concerns while keeping the bill narrow and focused on the immediate problem I am trying to solve  eliminating country-of-origin discrimination in our employment-based green card system. I thank Sen. Grassley for working with me.\r\nThe process by which I have tried to advance this bill this Congress has been open and straightforward. I have sought and continue to seek unanimous consent to pass the bill on the floor. If any member has raised a concern about the bill, I have been willing to work with them quickly and in good faith to address it. That is why, after reaching an agreement with Sen. Grassley, I also worked with other members to address their concerns.\r\nFor much of the past few months, I did not know who, if anyone, on the democrat side of the aisle, had concerns with the bill. We were told that there may be holds on the democrat hotline, but were not told who was holding the bill, and no one approached me with objections.\r\nI certainly had no reason to think that Sen. Durbin would have concerns with the bill. As I have explained before, he was a leading co-sponsor of the bill in a previous Congress. What's more, the only substantial difference between the bill he supported and the bill I have put forward this Congress is the addition of the amendment that I negotiated with Sen. Grassley, which is drawn almost entirely from provisions of the Durbin-Grassley H-1B reform bill.\r\nIn September, I learned that Sen. Durbin did in fact have concerns with the bill this Congress. As I have with other members, I am ready and willing to work with him in good faith to quickly and reasonably resolve any objection he may have while preserving the bipartisan support the bill has long enjoyed.\r\nAs I have said before, I do not believe that any further factual development about this bill is necessary. Indeed, at this point, I believe a hearing can serve no purpose other than to delay speedy action on this important reform, and jeopardize our ability to act before the end of the year. For that reason, I do not support Sen. Durbin's calls for a public hearing.\r\nEvery day that we delay action on this bill is another day the suffering experienced by immigrants stuck in the green card backlog continues and, indeed, intensifies. That is why I will continue to work to pass this bill at the earliest possible date.\r\nThe Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act arguably has wider and more bipartisan support than any other immigration bill that has been considered in this body in recent years. The reason for that is because it is focused on a single, serious problem that I think we can all agree needs to be solved. Whatever other reforms you think need to be made to our immigration system, we can all agree that America should not treat immigrants differently based on their country-of-origin. There is no reason for this bill to become yet another casualty to the polarized, partisan divisions that plague immigration policy.\r\nI look forward to working with Sen. Durbin to resolving any concerns he may have about the bill.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/speeches?ContentRecord_id=D7345226-B305-4254-9835-10F5D3EB0608", "Land Acquisition Amendment to Minibus", "2019-10-31", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Mr./Madam President, There is no doubt that we are blessed with beautiful, useful, and fruitful lands in our nation. And there is no doubt that some of them should be preserved as national treasures. But unfortunately, the federal government owns far more of these lands than it should  and far more than it can feasibly take care of.\r\n\r\nThe amount is staggering. In fact, it owns more than 640 million acres of land  a total larger than the entireties of France, Spain, Germany, Poland, Italy, the U.K., Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands combined. With such a vast estate, it's no wonder there is currently a $19.38 billion maintenance backlog on these lands. Of that backlog, $11.92 billion is on lands owned and managed by the National Park Service. In fact, there are NPS backlogs in every single state in the country. On one end of the spectrum, there is a $1.3 million backlog on the national park properties in Delware, and the backlog for parks in Rhode Island is just under $1 million. On the other hand, California alone has 1.8 Billion dollar maintenance backlog, just on it's national parks. In just one state!\r\n\r\nWhat does this mean? It means that damage from wildfires, ill-kept roads and trails, and neglected facilities have actually kept citizens from accessing our national treasures. National Treasures like Yosemite and Yellowstone, our National Mall and the Grand Canyon. The visitors who come from far and wide to see them are either unable to see them at all, or don't have a good experience when they do. All the while, Washington continues to purchase ever more land and, so, the maintenance backlog rises each year.\r\n\r\n  Mr./Madam President, this must not continue. If we continue on this path, we will only do greater disservice to our citizens and to the lands themselves. That's why I have introduced an amendment that would stop the federal government's use of taxpayer dollars to acquire more lands for the next year. Specifically, it would prevent the money currently going to the Land and Water Conservation fund, the range improvement funds, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service from being used to acquire new lands that the federal government cannot properly care for. This amendment would not reduce the dollar amount being given to any of these programs. It would simply re-prioritize the money to ensure it is being used to care for the lands we already own and which need it so desperately. While some of my colleagues disagree with me and believe that we should continue growing the federal estate, I ask that  at least for this year  we think of our current lands and national parks. These lands won't be national treasures for everyone if we don't take proper care of them. If we continue this pattern of neglect, they will be treasures for no one. For now, at the very least, we ought to ensure that they are safe and accessible for generations to come. Our lands and our citizens deserve no less. I yield the floor.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/bold-and-brave-support-grows-trust-act", "\u201cBold and Brave\u201d: Support Grows for TRUST Act", "2019-10-31", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Bold and Brave: Support Grows for TRUST Act\n      \n            Our debt and deficit challenges have been ignored by our national leaders for far too long\n      \n            Thursday, October 31, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONSupport grew this week for the TRUST Act, bipartisan and bicameral legislation introduced by Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) which would create committees specifically tasked to develop legislation to rescue endangered federal trust funds.  \n         \nThis is an effort which has been undertaken in the past unsuccessfully, and a lot of people say it can't be done now. But it's got to be done now because if it's not done now, the burden that will fall on our seniors eventually will become extraordinary. And the burden that will fall on the next generation as they don't know whether their Social Security and Medicare can be depended upon is unthinkable, Senator Romney said yesterday in a speech on the Senate floor. I hope we get great support of people who are willing to sponsor this effort, to be a part of these rescue committees, to go to work to resolve the impending challenges that we have in these trust funds, and in our overall financial status.\n     \nSome of the federal government's most important trust fund programs are headed toward insolvency. The TRUST Act offers renewed hope that we can address these imbalances before it is too late. Senators Romney and Manchin deserve great praise for taking on a challenge that far too many ignore, by proposing to establish a process to achieve bipartisan solutions. The commissions established under the TRUST Act would be charged with securing programs like Social Security, Medicare, and the highway fund so that they are stronger, more effective, and continue to be there for current and future generations. The bill wouldn't force policymakers to agree, but it would force them to try to work together. That goal should have unanimous support. Maya MacGuineas, President, Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget  \n               \nThe first step in any recovery is to admit there is a problem. The TRUST Act represents a good faith effort to start a long overdue conversation about how we secure America's future for families, retirees and generations to come, as many of the programs Americans have come to rely on lurch toward financial insolvency. Tackling these problems will require political courage from leaders of all stripes. We're hopeful that the TRUST Act will help refocus both parties on the gravity of this looming crisis and the need for solutions. Americans for Prosperity, and it's network of activists across the country, look forward to being a part of this important conversation in the coming months. Russ Latino, Vice President of Economic Opportunity, Americans for Prosperity  \n                  \nOur debt and deficit challenges have been ignored by our national leaders for far too long. It's good to see that some members of Congress still care about our country's fiscal future. Bipartisan Policy Center Action  \n            \nThe budget debate in Washington has hit an all-time low since President Trump took office, with Congressional Republicans passing a $2 trillion deficit-financed tax cut and some on the far left proposing tens of trillions of dollars in new spending without a plan to pay for it. The TRUST Act bucks this harmful trend and starts an important conversation about what tax increases and spending cuts will be needed to secure the future of Social Security and Medicare, as well as fund critical public investments in our nation's ageing infrastructure. Congress must strengthen these and other important programs for Americans of all ages. Ben Ritz, Director of the Progressive Policy Institute's Center for Funding America's Future  \n                     \nCongress has long delayed facing this fiscal crisis. The TRUST Act is a bold and brave step toward solving the problem before it becomes a calamity for our nation. Kevin R. Kosar, Ph.D., Vice-President of Policy for R Street Institute  \n                   \nThe journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Addressing long-term federal budget shortfalls is going to take many bold actions by our political leaders and the problem is so big that it often seems unclear where even to start. Senators Romney, Manchin, Young, Jones, and Sinema, and Representatives Gallagher, Case, Timmons and McAdams have shown how Congress can take that first step and take it a long way in the right direction. Addressing the federal trust funds in a bipartisan manner is a promising way to make a down payment on long-term fiscal reform.  Bill Gale, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution  \n             \nThis proposal could prompt bipartisan action on key trust fund depletion dates that threaten indiscriminate across-the-board cuts to vital programs within the next 15 years. It is, in effect, a responsible call to repeal and replace the irresponsible Do Nothing Plan. Robert L. Bixby, Executive Director of The Concord Coalition  \n               \nCongress cannot continue kicking the can down the road. America's fiscal situation is unsustainable, and it is time to begin treating it with the seriousness it deserves. The TRUST Act is not a silver bullet, but it does take a necessary first step toward addressing the looming fiscal crisis that taxpayers face. Jason Pye, Vice President of Legislative Affairs for FreedomWorks", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-bipartisan-house-members-introduce-farm-workforce-modernization-act/", "Curtis, Bipartisan House Members Introduce Farm Workforce Modernization Act", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Rep.John Curtis joined a group of bipartisan colleagues to introduce theFarm Workforce Modernization Act,a compromise solution for American agriculture. The bill was introduced with the strong bipartisan support of 24 Democrats and 20 Republicans.\nTheFarm Workforce Modernization Act, which was negotiated over several months with input from agricultural stakeholders and labor organizations, makes meaningful reforms to the H-2A agricultural guestworker program and creates a first-of-its-kind, merit-based visa program specifically designed for the nation's agricultural sector.\nI am pleased to lead, with a bipartisan group of my colleagues, a pragmatic and realistic proposal to address the immigration reforms that our agriculture sector desperately needs. TheFarm Workforce Modernization Actcreates a pathway to legal status for the dedicated farmworkers who have helped provide food for our nation for decades, and it ensures that Utah's farmers and ranchers will have the year-round workforce they need to be successful,said Curtis.There is no quick fix to our broken immigration system and while this is not yet a perfect bill, I am excited to be a part of real progress being made and look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to make meaningful change and advance immigration policy we can all get behind.\nStatements of Support:\nThe bill has garnered the wide-spread support of nearly 250 agriculture groups and labor organizations.\nNeil L. Bradley, Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer, United States Chamber of Commerce: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which would take important steps to address the growing struggle of agricultural employers to meet their workforce needsThe Farm Workforce Modernization Act seeks to provide workforce stability for agricultural workers by allowing unauthorized farm workers to earn legal status in the U.S. This legislation also would address future agricultural workforce needs by updating the temporary agricultural worker program, most notably providing eligibility to employers who have year-round labor needs, which is critical for dairy and livestock. Furthermore, the bill would enhance domestic security by making the use of E-Verify mandatory for employers seeking to hire temporary agricultural workers.\nArturo S. Rodriguez, President Emeritus of United Farmworkers & Spokesperson of UFW Foundation: After months of negotiations, the UFW and UFW Foundation are enthusiastic about passing legislation that honors all farm workers who feed America by creating a way for undocumented workers to apply for legal status and a roadmap to earn citizenship in the future without compromising farm workers' existing wages and legal protections. Understanding that compromise is required to meaningfully improve the lives of immigrant field laborers, it is our hope this will be the first time the House of Representatives, under the leadership of either party, will approve an agricultural immigration bill.\nJim Mulhern, President and CEO of National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF): We have supported numerous efforts to address dairy's acute labor needs. Passing legislation in the House is a critical step in the process. We urge the Senate to work with us on this important issue so we can get an ag worker bill across the finish line in this Congress. The bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act provides an important starting point for badly needed improvements to agriculture immigration policy. NMPF would like to thank Chairwoman Lofgren and Congressman Newhouse for their bipartisan leadership, and we look forward to continuing to work with them as this important legislation moves forward.\nChuck Conner, President & CEO of National Coalition of Farm Cooperatives: The legislation points the way towards achieving many of the long-standing immigration reform goals of NCFC and others in agriculture. While there are provisions that are problematic, on balance it is a good starting point for the legislative process. It provides an opportunity to obtain an earned legal status for the current workforce in agriculture; it codifies many of the reforms that the Trump Administration has made to the current H-2A program and provides some certainty over labor costs; and it authorizes a limited number of year-round visas for those farmers with year-round labor needs, such as those in dairy and livestock. We look forward to working with Chairwoman Lofgren, Congressman Newhouse and the other co-sponsors as the bill moves forward to ensure that the bill leads to a solution that ensures agriculture producers have access to a legal and stable workforce.\nBackground:\nFarmers and ranchers across the United States are in desperate need of a high-quality, reliable workforce, and the current H-2A guestworker program is in need of meaningful, bipartisan reform. TheFarm Workforce Modernization Actcreates a workforce solution for America's agriculture industry by providing stability, predictability, and fairness to one of the most critical sectors of our nation's economy.\nThe bill will:\n Establish a program for agricultural workers in the United States toearn legal status through continued agricultural employmentand contribution to the U.S. agricultural economy.Reform the H-2A program to provide more flexibility for employers, while ensuring critical protections for workers. The bill focuses on modifications to make the program more responsive and user-friendly for employers andprovides access to the program for industries with year-round labor needs.Establishmandatory, nationwide E-Verify system for all agricultural employmentwith a structured phase-in and guaranteed due process for authorized workers who are incorrectly rejected by the system. \nThe full list of cosponsors includes:Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV-07); Rep. James Baird (R-IN- 04); Rep. Anthony Brindisi(D-NY-22); Rep. Susan W. Brooks (R-IN-05); Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24); Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-CA-29); Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA-27); Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK-04); Rep. Luis J. Correa (D-CA-46); Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA-16); Rep. TJ Cox (D-CA-21); Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN-02) Rep. John Curtis (R-UT-03); Rep. David Scott (D-GA-13); Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL-13); Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL-25); Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH-11); Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-TX-29); Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-OH-07); Rep. Josh Harder (D-CA-10); Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA-01); Rep. Al Lawson (D-FL-05); Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA-05); Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-MI-10); Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA-04); Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA-22); Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-20); Rep. Collin C. Peterson (D-MN-07); Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY-23); Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA-38); Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-OR-05); Rep. Kim Schrier (D-WA-08) ; Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID-02); Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI-08); Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA-07); Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-19); Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY-21); Rep. Steve Stivers (R-OH-15); Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA-35); Rep. Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM-02); Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI-06); Rep. Filemon Vela (D-TX-34); Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR-02); Rep. Don Young (R-AK- At Large)\nClick here for a one-pager.\nClick here for bill text.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-taipei-act-sails-through-foreign-affairs-committee/", "Curtis TAIPEI Act Sails Through Foreign Affairs Committee", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and Nonproliferation, released the following statement after his bill, theTaiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act,passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously. \nThebipartisan legislation was introduced earlier this month (see here) and is intended to strengthen Taiwan's standing around the world and comes in response to increased Chinese pressure intended to restrict Taiwan's international space and global diplomatic recognition.\nI am so pleased to see the TAIPEI Act quickly move through the committee. It's an honor for me to put this bill forward and I hope it's a very clear message to our friends in Taiwan to say that friendship is reciprocated and that we appreciate their friendship over the many decades. Our relationship with Taiwan is an important alliance and we must do all we can to empower their democracy and free-market economyI am hopeful that we can soon vote on the House floor in support of this crucial legislation.\nStatements of support given during the markup:\nTaiwan Caucus Co-Chair Steve Chabot (R-OH): As the founder and one of the Co-Chairs of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus, I want to voice my strong support for Mr. Curtis's TAIPEI Act. Taiwan is a critical ally in the pacific and ought to be a role model for other nations across the globe. Last month the Solomon Islands and Kiribati switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing. The TAIPEI Act seeks to discourage other countries from making that same mistake.\nAsia Subcommittee Ranking Member Ted S. Yoho (R-FL): I want to voice my support for the following measures, which I am proud to cosponsor H.R. 4754, the Taiwan Allies International Protection Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act of 2019. The U.S. government should support Taiwan in strengthening its official diplomatic relations. We have witnessed countries like Panama, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, the Solomon Islands, and Kiribati fall victim to China's coercion and bribery. Due to this pressure, Taiwan currently maintains full diplomatic relations with only 15 nations around the world.\nBackground\nThe TAIPEI Act recommends a US strategy to engage with governments around the world to support Taiwan's diplomatic recognition or to strengthen unofficial ties with Taiwan, calls on the State Department to exercise a range of diplomatic and assistance options with regard to any government that takes adverse actions with regard to Taiwan, and articulates a clear US policy to support Taiwan's participation in appropriate international organizations. The bill also calls on the Administration to immediately begin negotiations on a USTaiwan Free Trade Agreement.\nThe Congressman has also fought to protect Taiwan from being treated unfairly on the international stage.In September, he introduced legislation to addresses politically-motivated abuse of the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) by autocracies[Click HERE to read more].He also led a bipartisan letter with 46 of his colleagues to US Attorney General William Barr and Secretary Pompeo regarding Taiwan's lack of participation in Interpol[SEE HERE].In May, two of Rep. Curtis' bills passed the house:H.R. 2002 To foster security in Taiwan, and for other purposes andH. Res. 273 Reaffirming the United States commitment to Taiwan and to the implementation of the Taiwan Relations Act. Click[HERE]to read more.\nYesterday, the Senate passed the bill unanimously.\nFull text of the bill can be found[HERE].\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://robbishop.house.gov/media/press-releases/bishop-honors-retiring-major-general-burton", "Bishop Honors Retiring Major General Burton", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Rob Bishop", "B001250", "robbishop.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON On November 7th, Major General Jefferson S. Burton will retire from the Utah National Guard where he has served as Adjutant General since October 2012. To honor the occasion, Rep. Rob Bishop (UT-01) delivered remarks from the House floor.\n\nCLICK HEREfor video\n\nTRANSCRIPT:On November 7th, Utah will honor a soldier's soldier. For the past seven years the men and women of the Utah National Guard have been inspired by Major General Jefferson S. Burton. He was chosen for his battle tested grit and resolve.\n\nYou see, in 2003 this [fifth-generation] Utahn lead the 14-57thEngineer Battalion into Iraq. Living under constant threat of IED's and ambush, General Burton was even tasked with luring the hyenas and bears and lions of the Baghdad zoo back into their enclosures after the Iraqi Republican Guard released them onto the streets.\n\nHis troops tell me General Burton is a leader who takes the time to teach and mentor others, helping them recognize their own potential.\n\nGeneral Burton is highly educated, is kind, is deeply spiritual, but what he values most is his wife Charn, whose support has allowed him to serve.\n\nGeneral Burton often tells his soldiers, \"I'm asking a lot but we will accomplish the mission.\" And after 37 years of service, we say to General Burton, \"Mission accomplished.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=C345F921-86BB-4568-8BAD-E1CE6BE0BE21", "October 30th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Uintah County", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Vernal  Uintah County  Vernal City Hall  374 East Main street  Vernal, UT 84078  10:00 am  11:30 am", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=C3F78633-B61A-4739-B9F3-64F9107DFD60", "October 30th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Daggett County", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Manila  Daggett County  Manila Town Hall  145 East Highway 43  Manila, UT 84046  1:30 pm  2:30 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/mobile-office?ContentRecord_id=EA02BF50-25F9-4892-928A-18371CCD9EBE", "October 30th, 2019 - Mobile Office Visit to Carbon County", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Wellington City Hall  150 W Main  Wellington, UT 84542  1:30 pm  2:30 pm", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-merkley-file-vaping-bill-amendment-appropriations-bill", "Romney, Merkley File Vaping Bill as Amendment to Appropriations Bill", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Merkley File Vaping Bill as Amendment to Appropriations Bill\n      \n            HELP Committee to hold hearing on vaping illness response on November 13\n      \n            Wednesday, October 30, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) today filed the ENND Act, their legislation to address the vaping crisis, as an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2020 (FY2020) appropriations bill. This comes as the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, which Senator Romney serves on, announced that they will hold a hearing next month to examine the response to lung illnesses and rising youth e-cigarette use.  \n       \nWe are introducing our ENND Act as an amendment to the appropriations package being considered on the floor today because we simply cannot afford anymore delay in putting our nation's young people at risk of nicotine addiction, Romney said. I urge my colleagues to join me in taking decisive action on this issue.\n      \nFlavors like gummy bear,' scooby snacks,' and strawberries and cream' are designed to hook children on nicotine and e-cigarettes, Merkley said. Unfortunately, these insidious marketing tactics are workingcausing a new addiction crisis and massive health consequences for young people. This is an urgent problem that requires an urgent solution.\"  \n     \nBackground:\n \n\tSenators Romney and Merkley introduced the Ending New Nicotine Dependencies (ENND) Act last month, which would regulate e-cigarette standards and protect public health by prohibiting non-tobacco flavors and ensuring that electronic nicotine delivery systems are tamper-proof.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-rescue-committees-would-help-save-trust-funds", "Romney: Rescue Committees Would Help Save Trust Funds", "2019-10-30", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney: Rescue Committees Would Help Save Trust Funds\n      \n            Joins CNBC to discuss newly introduced TRUST Act to protect taxpayers, trust funds\n      \n            Wednesday, October 30, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) today with Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) joined CNBC's \"Squawk Box\" to discuss the TRUST Act, bipartisan and bicameral legislation he introduced yesterday which would create congressional committees specifically tasked to develop legislation to restore and strengthen endangered federal trust funds. Without legislative action, the government's trust fundsHighway, Medicare Hospital Insurance, Social Security Disability Insurance, and Social Security Old-Age and Survivors Insurancewill be exhausted in the next thirteen years.  \nHighlights of the interview can be found below.  \n  \nWhat you have is a setting where we have a series of trust funds, and the funding for these trust funds takes up about two-thirds of all federal spending. So, if you ever want to see a balanced budget, if you ever want to get out of debt, you have to deal with these trust funds. And another problem is, they all run out of money within thirteen years. So if you want to save Social Security, Medicare, the Highway Trust Fund, and the other trust funds, you want to save those programs and save those trust funds from financial ruin, we have to make adjustments now. So what Joe and I have come together is saying, let's put together a rescue committee for each one of the trust fundsthe five trust fundsand find a way to get them in balance over a 75-year period.  \n  \n  \n  \nIn many respects [the TRUST Act] has the same aim [as the Simpson-Bowles Plan], which is to bring fiscal sanity to Washington and to begin to make some changes now so that we don't have to cut programs down the road. But the difference between this and Simpson-Bowles perhaps is that, one, we go automatically to a vote. This doesn't have to go through a process that keeps it from getting to the floor. Number two, instead of taking on all of these trust funds in one single task force, instead this bipartisan, bicameral effort is going to be divided between each one of the five trust funds. So one group looking at Social Security, another committee looking at Medicare, another looking at the Highway Trust Fund, another looking at the Pension Guaranty Trust Fund. So all of these are looked at individually, and then if the group can come together in a bipartisan basis, it comes on a privileged basis to the floor for a vote. We think on that basis we're going to be able to tackle some of these long-term problems that we've been facing.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-20-lawmakers-propose-rule-change-improving-house-transparency/", "Curtis, 20 Lawmakers, Propose Rule Change Improving House Transparency", "2019-10-29", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCToday, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement after introducing theLet Everyone Access a Copy of Transcripts Resolutionto give all Members of the House of Representatives better access to Congressional hearing documents. The resolution would amend the House Rules to require any recordings or transcripts of classified hearings, briefings, depositions, etc. be made available to all Members when they are made available to Committee Members.\nEach Member of Congress, regardless of their party or committee assignments, has the duty of representing their constituents with all available information. Without access to all the information from an oversight investigation, including transcripts, this is impossible,said Curtis. That is why I am proud to introduce this resolution to require that all Membersinstead of just a select fewhave access to transcripts of classified hearings at the same time, including those relating to impeaching the President.\nBackground\n All Members of the House are cleared to handle and view classified information, not just those who sit on specific committees.Similarly, all Members will likely vote on impeaching the President, not just those who are on specific Committees and every Member of Congress should have access to all of the information possible to make the best decision on behalf of their constituents.This resolution would amend House rules to allow for all members to read transcripts of classified hearings and depositions related to Speaker Pelosi's impeachment inquiry. \n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-leads-bipartisan-bicameral-legislation-protect-taxpayers-trust-funds", "Romney Leads Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Protect Taxpayers, Trust Funds", "2019-10-29", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Leads Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Protect Taxpayers, Trust Funds\n      \n            Tuesday, October 29, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Todd Young (R-IN), Doug Jones (D-AL), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) today introduced the Time to Rescue United States' Trusts (TRUST) Act, which would create congressional committees specifically tasked to develop legislation to restore and strengthen endangered federal trust funds. Without legislative action, the government's trust fundsHighway, Medicare Hospital Insurance, Social Security Disability Insurance, and Social Security Old-Age and Survivors Insurancewill be exhausted in the next thirteen years. U.S. Representatives Mike Gallagher (R-WI), Ed Case (D-HI), William Timmons (R-SC), and Ben McAdams (D-UT) have introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.  \n         \nIt's irresponsible for Congress to keep ignoring a preventable crisis, Senator Romney said. We must put in place a responsible process now to prevent dramatic cuts to programs like Social Security and Medicare or be forced to enact massive tax hikes down the road, both of which would be devastating to middle class Americans. We have a duty to work to secure these programs that provide a safety net for millions of Americans.\n      \nI have always said that our national budget should reflect our values and priorities, but be fiscally responsible, Senator Manchin said. Unfortunately our fiscal irresponsibility has left critical programs like Social Security and Medicare heading towards insolvency. Congress cannot let these programs fail. That's why I'm proud to join my colleagues on this bipartisan bill to proactively help to secure sustainable funding for programs like these before it's too late.\n  \nThe TRUST Act will enable us to have a serious, bipartisan conversation about the long-term stability of critical programs like Medicare and Social Security. We can no longer kick the can down the road, and we owe it to future generations to have this discussion and identify solutions before it's too late, Senator Young said.  \n\nThis important legislation creates a bipartisan path forward that gives us the tools to we need to put our budget on the path to fiscal responsibility and upgrade our decaying infrastructure, protect pensions and Social Security benefits for retirees, and ensure that Medicare remains strong for seniors for generations to come, Senator Jones said.  \n       \nIt's no secret that a number of our nation's critical trust funds are spiraling towards insolvency. But rather than offer solutions, Congress has avoided the difficult conversations needed to get our fiscal house in order, Representative Gallagher said. Problems don't age well, and the TRUST Act would ensure that elected officials have the opportunity to work together and find solutions to this mess. It's high time we have these tough debates in Congress, and I hope my colleagues take up this bipartisan, bicameral idea immediately. There's no time to waste.\n   \nSocial Security, Medicare and related programs are among our most successful and critical promises to each other. They have made the difference between stability and poverty, even life and death itself, for generations of Americans, Representative Case said. But as the program administrators, independent experts and Congress' own Government Accountability Office have repeatedly warned for decades, these programs are closing in on insolvency on their current path. Yet we have kicked this can down the road for just as long, hoping that it would solve itself or someone else would make the needed decisions. But we can no longer defer facing up to the question of not whether but how best to maintain our safety net and keep our promise to future generations. The TRUST Act charts a road that will get us there before our decisions become much much harder.\n    \nOur nation's biggest fiscal issues are not going to solve themselves, Representative Timmons said. Vital programs such as Medicare and Social Security are at risk unless Congress takes action sooner rather than later. The TRUST Act will facilitate a bipartisan conversation tasked with developing solutions to shore up these programs for the next 75 years. I am proud to join Senators Romney, Manchin, and Young, along with several of my House colleagues in introducing this crucial piece of legislation and commend them for their leadership on this issue.\n           \nMillions of Americans depend on the benefits they've earned through Social Security and Medicare programs over a lifetime of hard work, Representative McAdams said. We owe it to them and to future generations to carefully consider the options that will ensure we protect and strengthen these vital programs. Republicans and Democrats must engage in a serious conversation about how we keep the promises we've made about aging with dignity in our country. We can't keep these promises without working together to get our fiscal house in order.\n     \nSome of the federal government's most important trust fund programs are headed toward insolvency, said Maya MacGuineas, President of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. The TRUST Act offers renewed hope that we can address these imbalances before it is too late. Senators Romney and Manchin deserve great praise for taking on a challenge that far too many ignore, by proposing to establish a process to achieve bipartisan solutions. The commissions established under the TRUST Act would be charged with securing programs like Social Security, Medicare, and the highway fund so that they are stronger, more effective, and continue to be there for current and future generations. The bill wouldn't force policymakers to agree, but it would force them to try to work together. That goal should have unanimous support.  \n        \nHow the TRUST Act works:\n \n\tTreasury would have 30 days upon passage of the legislation to deliver to Congress a report of the government's major, endangered federal trust funds.\n\tCongressional leaders would appoint members to serve on Rescue Committeesone per trust fundwith the mandate to draft legislation that restores solvency and otherwise improves each trust fund program.\n\tRescue Committees would ensure bipartisan consensus by requiring at least two members of each party to report legislation.\n\tIf a Rescue Committee reports a qualifying bill for its trust fund program, it would receive expedited consideration in both chambers. While 60 votes would be required to invoke cloture for final passage in the Senate, only a simple majority would be needed for the motion to proceed, which would be privileged.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-murphy-statement-need-bipartisan-action-ncaa-reform", "Romney, Murphy Statement on Need for Bipartisan Action on NCAA Reform", "2019-10-29", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney, Murphy Statement on Need for Bipartisan Action on NCAA Reform\n      \n            Tuesday, October 29, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) and U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) on Tuesday released the following statement in response to the NCAA Working Group's recognition that college athletes must be paid:  \n  \nThe NCAA Board of Governors finally recognized that change is coming, and they need to adapt their rules to catch up with the times. We believe those rules must be changed to allow athletes to be compensated. The name, image and likeness approach has its own challenges that we must address, and we'll be carefully reviewing the NCAA's next steps and working on ways Congress can reform college sports, said Romney and Murphy. We need to correct the inequities between what college coaches and the institutions make versus what the athletes receive and protect college athletes' health and educational opportunities.\n      \n  \n    Issues", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://curtis.house.gov/press-releases/curtis-writes-letter-to-chairman-schiff-after-impeachment-inquiry-vote-announcement/", "Curtis Writes Letter to Chairman Schiff after Impeachment Inquiry Vote Announcement", "2019-10-28", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "John Curtis", "C001114", "curtis.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DCThis evening, Representative\nJohn Curtis (R-UT), member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sent the\nfollowing letter to House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff after\nlearning of the upcoming impeachment inquiry vote by way of the media. \nAs a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman Curtis has attended as many closed-door depositions as possible. In his letter to the Intel Chairman, he describes his concerns with the rushed timeline and requests to see a copy of the resolution to better prepare to vote. Letter available in PDF here.\nDespite this seemingly rushed process, I learned through media reports, not official channels, that we will be voting on the House Floor this Thursday to launch an impeachment inquiry into President Trump. In order to make the best decision on my vote on behalf of Utah's Third Congressional District, I believe I will need to review the transcripts of each testimony. Therefore, I would like to know how many pages of transcript and testimony have and will be accumulated before Thursday's vote. Even if hearing transcripts were released right now, by my rough estimation, it would require more hours to read the transcripts than there are hours left before the official vote. Is it truly your intention to call for a vote with the impossibility to cast an informed vote?\nFull text of\nthe letter is below:\nChairman Adam Schiff\nHouse Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence\nHVC \n304\nU.S.\nCapitol Building\nWashington,\nDC 20515\nAs a\nMember of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, I am one of the few Members\nof Congress who you have allowed to attend the depositions related to the\nDemocrats hearings, known by some as Speaker Pelosi's impeachment inquiry into\nPresident Trump. \nWhile\nI have made an active effort to attend as many closed-door depositions as\npossible, I have been unable to attend every deposition. This is in large part\ndue to simultaneous hearings being held by various Committees on which I serve.\nIn fact, this Wednesday, the day before we are expected to vote on an official\ninquiry, I have been informed that you scheduled two impeachment related\ndepositions at the exact same time. I take my responsibility to listen to all\nthe facts very seriously and I cannot be expected to be in two rooms at once.\nFurther, my staff, and most of my colleagues, are not allowed to attend in my\nplace to brief me on the depositions after the fact. \nDespite\nthis seemingly rushed process, I learned through media reports, not official channels,\nthat we will be voting on the House Floor this Thursday to launch an\nimpeachment inquiry into President Trump. In order to make the best decision on\nmy vote on behalf of Utah's Third Congressional District, I believe I will need\nto review the transcripts of each testimony. Therefore, I would like to know\nhow many pages of transcript and testimony have and will be accumulated before\nThursday's vote. Even if hearing transcripts were released right now, by my\nrough estimation, it would require more hours to read the transcripts than\nthere are hours left before the official vote. Is it truly your intention to\ncall for a vote with the impossibility to cast an informed vote?\nIn\naddition, I would like to know at what dates and times your staff will be available\nfrom now until the vote, to accommodate Members, like myself, who want all\ninformation possible when representing their constituents  as Republican\nMembers are not permitted to view the transcripts without Democrat supervision.\n\nFinally,\nwith the impeachment inquiry vote less than 70 hours away, when can I expect to\nsee a copy of the resolution, and the terms of the impeachment inquiry, we are\nvoting on?\nThank\nyou for your assistance. I look forward to receiving your response.\nSincerely,\n\nJohn Curtis\n\nMember of Congress\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=A646C420-BC29-48B4-8E73-3687AC52A7E7", "Sen. Lee Reintroduces National Labor Relations Board Reform Bill", "2019-10-28", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) reintroduced the Protecting American Jobs Act Thursday, a bill that would strip the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) of its power to prosecute and adjudicate labor disputes. The NLRB, an independent federal agency consisting of five political appointees, was established to carry out the National Labor Relations Act. However, it has historically ignored traditional standards of due process, operated under lengthy and bureaucratic procedures, and caved to political pressures.  The Protecting American Jobs Act would transfer the power to hear labor disputes back to federal courts, in line with the court system established by the Constitution. The NLRB would retain the power to conduct investigations, but would not be allowed to prosecute them. For far too long the NLRB has acted as judge, jury, and executioner, for labor disputes in this country, Sen. Lee said. The havoc they have wrought by upsetting decades of established labor law has cost countless jobs. This common sense legislation would finally restore fairness and accountability to our nation's labor laws.\" The bill is cosponsored by Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR), Rand Paul (R-KY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Marco Rubio (R-FL).\r\n\r\nProtecting American Jobs Act by Senator Mike Lee on Scribd", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/issue-in-focus?ContentRecord_id=6597C705-CEFA-482D-AFE7-DDC223AC2EBF", "Protecting PILT", "2019-10-25", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Many Americans might be surprised to find out that most of the land west of the Rocky Mountains is owned by the federal government. In fact, if they were to look at a map highlighting this land, they would see that more than 50% of it is owned by the federal government. In Utah, the percentage is even higher: the federal government owns more than two thirds of the land. For our state, and for other states in the West, this presents some unique  and very substantial  challenges. Chief among them is the fact that the federal government has deprived states, counties, and local jurisdictions from the ability to collect property taxes on this land. And unlike other property owners, the federal government itself does not pay property taxes on the land that it owns in these states. The result? Many areas with high concentrations of federal land are impoverished. Without a property tax base, these communities are deprived of money vital for funding local schools, building roads and public infrastructure, and paying for firefighters, police, and search and rescue services. That's where the Payment in Lieu of Taxes program comes in, or PILT. The federal government created this program to offset some of the disproportionate burden placed on the shoulders of public lands states and communities by providing funding to help compensate for the loss of property tax revenue. So each year, the Department of Interior calculates each county's annual payment by taking into account its population, the amount of federal land it has, and receipts it has from other revenue-sharing programs. Since its inception in 1977, PILT has distributed more than $8.5 billion to 1,900 local governments across the country. The problem, however, is that PILT funding has historically been woefully inadequate. PILT payments have unfortunately tended to be a small fraction of what state and local governments could generate through property taxes if they owned the land within their borders. This yet again unfairly affects rural, vulnerable communities who are struggling to fund their schools, infrastructure, and community services. That's why, as I continue to represent the state of Utah in the Senate, I will keep working to ensure that the PILT program remains in existence; and to increase its payments so that it reflects at least a rough equivalent to the amount of money that the taxing jurisdiction could would collect at its lowest rate. It's only right that we ensure that the citizens of Utah, and our public lands states generally, have the means they need to both survive and thrive.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/the-chairman-s-note?ContentRecord_id=493A73AB-8F68-4E87-9BB0-EACFF724E42D", "A Better Way to Manage Public Lands", "2019-10-25", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "When most Americans hear the phrase public lands, they tend to think of national parks, forests, monuments, and wilderness areas.\r\nUtah is blessed with breathtaking examples of such lands, including Arches National Park, Dixie National Forest, Dinosaur National Monument, and High Uinta Wilderness area. Every Utahn I know supports the continued protection of these national treasures.\r\nBut the vast majority of public lands in Utah are not parks, forests, monuments, or wilderness areas. In fact, less than one fifth of Utah's public lands fall into these categories. The vast majority of the public land in our state - about 55 percent - has been designated for multiple use by Congress under the control of the Bureau of Land Management.\r\nThe Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 charges the BLM with the task of managing this land in a way that takes into account the long-term needs of future generations for renewable and non-renewable resources, including, but not limited to, recreation, range, timber, minerals, watershed, wildlife and fish, and natural scenic, scientific and historical values.\r\nThis land belongs to all Americans. It should be possible to balance the interests of ranchers, hikers, anglers, energy producers, loggers, bikers, and future generations of all of the above.\r\nUnfortunately, the federal government is not living up to this mandate.\r\nA Byzantine labyrinth of federal regulations has made active management of our public lands next to impossible. Restrictions on road construction, fuel management, and timber production have made the risk of severe wildfires much worse. Harvest volume in our nation's forests has declined from 10 billion board feet per year in the 1980s to under 3 billion board per year today. Timber sales on BLM land have declined by similar margins.\r\nSteps to manage fire danger, and ensure other enjoyment of the land, has fallen victim to analysis paralysis according to one former-Forest Service chief. The National Environmental Policy Act requires years of study for even the simplest maintenance projects, all of which can be blocked in court by just a single interest group unhappy with a management plan.\r\nNot only do these regulations and planning delays increase the risk of severe wildfires, but they are spectacularly inefficient for recreational purposes. The Forest Service only earns 28 cents for every dollar the federal government spends on recreation management and the BLM earns just 20 cents.\r\nThere is a better way.  In 1994, the Utah state legislature created the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration to manage trust land first granted to Utah by the federal government back in 1896. SITLA manages trust lands to generate revenue for Utah public schools and other trust institutions through the leasing, exchange, or sale of these lands. Trust lands are not public lands, but SITLA has navigated responsible ways to preserve public access and use of trust lands for hunting, trapping, and fishing, as well as other forms of public recreation, while still meeting its fiduciary mandate.\r\nSITLA revenue is deposited into the Permanent School Fund endowment. Since 1994, SITLA has generated more than $1.5 billion in revenue for the Permanent School Fund, which now tops $2.5 billion. Earnings from this Permanent Fund totaled $82.7 million this school year. This supplemental education funding is distributed to each public school throughout the state on a per-pupil formula and disbursed under discretionary spending plans developed by parent-teacher councils.\r\nSITLA uses no taxpayer money to manage the 3.4 million acre trust land portfolio, rather, it is entirely self-funded. Last year, for every dollar invested in the management of trust lands, the agency generated $6.98 for trust land beneficiary endowments.\r\nIn other words, while the federal government routinely loses hundreds of millions of dollars every year managing our public lands, state trust agencies manage to turn a profit all while preserving the land for future generations.\r\nNot all land is best used for the same purpose. Some land, like that found within Zion National Park, is so unique, beautiful, and pristine that its best use is to be conserved for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.\r\nBut other land is not as unique and might serve the American people better if it is used for grazing, timber production, watershed maintenance, or renewable energy production. Our nation has a strong tradition of using different public lands in different ways, all to benefit everyone. The Homestead Act, land grant colleges, and the Wilderness Act are all examples of the federal government disposing of diverse lands in diverse ways for the greater good.\r\nThis week lawmakers from across the country will be visiting Utah to learn more about the unique and productive ways our state manages its different public lands. I hope and expect that they will leave our state with some ideas about how the federal government can improve its public lands policy.\r\nThis oped was first published in the San Juan Record on October 23, 2019.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.romney.senate.gov/romney-welcomes-interior-departments-disbursement-717-million-energy-revenues-utah", "Romney Welcomes Interior Department\u2019s Disbursement of $71.7 Million in Energy Revenues to Utah", "2019-10-25", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mitt Romney", "R000615", "www.romney.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Romney Welcomes Interior Department's Disbursement of $71.7 Million in Energy Revenues to Utah\n      \n            Friday, October 25, 2019\n\n      \n            WASHINGTONU.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) welcomed the announcement by the Secretary of the Interior that Interior's Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) disbursed $71.69 million in Fiscal Year 2019 energy revenues to Utah. The funds are derived from energy produced on federal and Indian lands, as well as U.S. offshore areas.  \n   \nI'm pleased to see that energy disbursements are up again this year, with $71.69 million being disbursed to my home state of Utah, said Senator Romney. These additional revenues are critical to our rural counties, as they support high-paying jobs and provide our counties a stream of income to pay for schools, roads, and public services. As the administration continues to support Utah's role in America's energy independence and responsible energy development, we will see the creation of more high-paying jobs and more revenue directed to our rural counties.\n  \nThe President believes we can appropriately develop our natural resources and be great stewards of conservation, said Secretary Bernhardt. The disbursements paid to states and Tribes from energy development revenues go right back to the communities where the energy was produced, providing critical funding for schools, public services, conservation improvements, and infrastructure projects that create good-paying American jobs.  \n \nBackground:  \nONRR disbursed a total $11.69 billion in FY 2019 from energy production on federal and American Indian-owned lands and offshore areas. This represents a $2.76 billion increase in comparison to FY 2018.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/op-eds?ContentRecord_id=2641CD8F-24B2-4A43-8AFA-392D9825F8FC", "A Better Way to Manage Public Lands", "2019-10-23", "2019", "2019-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "When most Americans hear the phrase public lands, they tend to think of national parks, forests, monuments, and wilderness areas. Utah is blessed with breathtaking examples of such lands, including Arches National Park, Dixie National Forest, Dinosaur National Monument, and High Uinta Wilderness area. Every Utahn I know supports the continued protection of these national treasures. But the vast majority of public lands in Utah are not parks, forests, monuments, or wilderness areas. In fact, less than one fifth of Utah's public lands fall into these categories. The vast majority of the public land in our state - about 55 percent - has been designated for multiple use by Congress under the control of the Bureau of Land Management. The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 charges the BLM with the task of managing this land in a way that takes into account the long-term needs of future generations for renewable and non-renewable resources, including, but not limited to, recreation, range, timber, minerals, watershed, wildlife and fish, and natural scenic, scientific and historical values. This land belongs to all Americans. It should be possible to balance the interests of ranchers, hikers, anglers, energy producers, loggers, bikers, and future generations of all of the above. Unfortunately, the federal government is not living up to this mandate. A Byzantine labyrinth of federal regulations has made active management of our public lands next to impossible. Restrictions on road construction, fuel management, and timber production have made the risk of severe wildfires much worse. Harvest volume in our nation's forests has declined from 10 billion board feet per year in the 1980s to under 3 billion board per year today. Timber sales on BLM land have declined by similar margins. Steps to manage fire danger, and ensure other enjoyment of the land, has fallen victim to analysis paralysis according to one former-Forest Service chief. The National Environmental Policy Act requires years of study for even the simplest maintenance projects, all of which can be blocked in court by just a single interest group unhappy with a management plan. Not only do these regulations and planning delays increase the risk of severe wildfires, but they are spectacularly inefficient for recreational purposes. The Forest Service only earns 28 cents for every dollar the federal government spends on recreation management and the BLM earns just 20 cents.  There is a better way.  In 1994, the Utah state legislature created the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration to manage trust land first granted to Utah by the federal government back in 1896. SITLA manages trust lands to generate revenue for Utah public schools and other trust institutions through the leasing, exchange, or sale of these lands. Trust lands are not public lands, but SITLA has navigated responsible ways to preserve public access and use of trust lands for hunting, trapping, and fishing, as well as other forms of public recreation, while still meeting its fiduciary mandate.\r\nSITLA revenue is deposited into the Permanent School Fund endowment. Since 1994, SITLA has generated more than $1.5 billion in revenue for the Permanent School Fund, which now tops $2.5 billion. Earnings from this Permanent Fund totaled $82.7 million this school year. This supplemental education funding is distributed to each public school throughout the state on a per-pupil formula and disbursed under discretionary spending plans developed by parent-teacher councils.\r\nSITLA uses no taxpayer money to manage the 3.4 million acre trust land portfolio, rather, it is entirely self-funded. Last year, for every dollar invested in the management of trust lands, the agency generated $6.98 for trust land beneficiary endowments.\r\nIn other words, while the federal government routinely loses hundreds of millions of dollars every year managing our public lands, state trust agencies manage to turn a profit all while preserving the land for future generations. Not all land is best used for the same purpose. Some land, like that found within Zion National Park, is so unique, beautiful, and pristine that its best use is to be conserved for the benefit and enjoyment of the people. But other land is not as unique and might serve the American people better if it is used for grazing, timber production, watershed maintenance, or renewable energy production. Our nation has a strong tradition of using different public lands in different ways, all to benefit everyone. The Homestead Act, land grant colleges, and the Wilderness Act are all examples of the federal government disposing of diverse lands in diverse ways for the greater good. This week lawmakers from across the country will be visiting Utah to learn more about the unique and productive ways our state manages its different public lands. I hope and expect that they will leave our state with some ideas about how the federal government can improve its public lands policy. 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