House Bill 219 - State Firearm Designation - Honor, Show Boat or Waste

Rep. Carl Wimmer is preparing his House Bill 219 which will make the Browning M1911 Handgun Utah’s State Gun.  The Standard Examiner featured the handgun and Browning’s accomplishments in their front page article. (See Here)  Though I have no problem in honoring Mr. Browning for the amazing things he has done, nor do I discount the affect the M1911 has had on America.  But to create a piece of legislation to honor the gun in my mind is a waste of time and Mr. Wimmer’s attempt to show off and get his name in the news.

Rep. Wimmer states in the article he knows there are concerns when he said:

 “Some people don’t like this bill because they say it’s glorifying a symbol of death. We are glorifying a symbol of freedom.” 

However he is wrong, that is not why people are worried about this bill.  We are worried about this bill because of a $313 Million deficit we are facing and the “waste of time” this bill represents.  How are we going to spend quality time cutting budgets by 7 percent if you are wasting it with new state guns? Though no one will really stand up against this bill because it is not worth ruining a relationship with Rep. Wimmer, His constituents and Utahans a like should know what a waste House Bill 219 is. During the House Political Subdivision Committee Meeting, House Bill 219 received few opposition.  In fact Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem gushed over the bill and paid homage to Mr. Wimmer when he said, “I think John M. Browning has single-handedly saved more American lives on the battlefield than any other American.” Our very own Rep, Dixon Pitcher, did call out Mr. Wimmer and questioned what this bill would do for us.  Mr. Wimmer admitted this would do “NOTHING” for Utah.  Yes that is right, he said it would do “NOTHING” for Utah.

Mr. Wimmer says this won’t cost a thing and it is simply a little notation to code.  But don’t forget he spent nearly 40 minutes discussing this bill just in the first meeting.  That time in itself cost us all money.  There’s 40 minutes we could have been discussing something of real value.  The fiscal note to the bill states the enactment of this bill likely will not result in direct, measurable expenditures by Utah residents or businesses, state budget or the government.  But are we looking at the missed opportunities to work on real pieces of legislation.  This bill represents the real waste of the legislature. 

I applaud Democratic Reps. Jennifer Seelig and Marie Poulson for opposing this bill, but they have no favors to earn with Mr. Wimmer so it was easy for them to vote no.

See My Posts Here for more info

Let’s get to the real issues Mr. Wimmer. – PLEASE!

How a bill becomes a law? Rep. Carl Wimmer Style.

In about a month and half the 2011 Legislative Session will begin here in Utah. Once again it will be that crazy political time where our elected officials come together to find ways to help our state to continue being the best. However at the same time, politics at its worst will also come forth in the form of bad message bills and back door favors. Though there are often message bills full of important content that may help the public be aware of the issues affecting our communities, state and even the nation; there are also many message bills that serve no purpose at all. These, no purpose, message bills are not only a waste of time, but a waste of money. After talking to a number of people who work at the legislature, we have determined it is hard to understand how much a bad message bill would cost. Therefore I have decided to break down how a bill becomes a law using Rep. Carl Wimmer’s Official State Gun Bill as an example.

1. Rep. Carl Wimmer will submit his idea for the State Gun bill to the OLRGC (Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel).
2. General Counsel’s office will then open a bill file.
3. General Counsel assigns a legislative attorney or analyst to then draft the bill.
   1. We then pay someone to do some research and draft the bill, shouldn't be to hard for a State Gun.
4. Someone is paid to then write an Approval Letter and then send the letter and draft of the bill to Rep. Wimmer.
5. Rep. Wimmer then reviews the draft legislation, signs and returns the draft letter. Unless he has changes he will then contact the draft attorney and we will start over at Step 3. (I assume this will be an easy one so no changes will be made.)
6. General Counsel will prepare the final draft which includes:
   1. Having someone numbering of the bill
   2. Having someone deliver a copy to Rep. Wimmer
   3. Having someone deliver a copy to the Docket Clerk in the House, the Billroom, and the Office of the Fiscal Analyst.
   4. Having someone post the bill on the internet and intranet.
7. The bill is then introduced (read) by number and short title (which is short) and referred to the House Rules Committee.
8. The Rules committee (9 people including Rep. Wimmer) will then meet and discuss the bill.
   1. They will ask the bill be printed with a fiscal note (I assume this will not have one).
   2. Then recommend which standing committee this bill will go to.
9. The Speaker of the House then assigns this bill to the recommended standing committee.
10. Standing Committee then meets (9 to 15 people give or take). Which one will take a State Gun Bill?
    1. A public meeting will be scheduled. (Hot item)
11. A public meeting is held with the Standing Committee
    1. Rep. Wimmer will present the bill, committee members can ask questions (assuming there will be only a few) and then the public will ask questions (assuming no one cares, there will be none).
    2. At this time the bill can be amended, put on hold, tabled, substituted or make a favorable recommendation for the bill. (We will assume all will go well, who wants to make enemies with Mr. Wimmer, besides it is just a State Gun).
12. The bill is then read for a second time in the House; so we must take up time again to read it about the State Gun.
    1. Nobody can amend or change the bill at this time.
13. House staffers then place this on the calendar for the third reading.
14. The bill is read for the third time. Blah Blah Blah State Gun Blah Blah Blah.
15. Rep. Wimmer then presents his bill and gives a 15 to 20 minute oration as to how this gun saved America and why we are all wasting our time listening to this bill.
16. Others will speak for it or against it. A few will speak for it and say what a great American Mr. Browning was and how this gun is awesome. They will thank Rep. Wimmer for bringing this bill forward. If we get lucky one or two people will say they are not sure but will vote for it anyways.
17. If there no amendments or substitutions we can move on. If there are amendments then we have to go back a few steps. But let’s assume there isn’t (unless we designate a state bullet while we are at it).
18. Then we vote!
    1. We need 38 yes votes for this to pass, the bell will chime and those who are out in the hall will come in and vote yes or no.
19. Rep. Wimmer will then ask someone to be his Senate Floor Sponsor and notify the docket clerk in the House.
20. The Senate will now do the all of the same things the House did. Starting with Step 7 through 18.
    1. There are few differences but essentially the same steps.
21. We Vote!
    1. 15 yes votes is all this bill needs to move on.
22. Assuming no amendments from the Senate, this bill does not need to go back to the House. If it does, then we start back at Step 7 again. If there are no changes we can move to step 23.
23. Presiding Officers find a time to sign the bill
24. The bill is sent back to the General Counsel for enrolling.
    1. The bill is then color coded (Blue for House and Yellow for Senate).
25. The bill is then ordered to be printed and sent to the Governor’s office to be signed.
26. The bill will then sit there for a few days (He has 20 days after the adjournment to sign it) until the Governor signs it.
27. Then the new laws need to be published. We will then have people update the internet site, Utah Code and The Laws of Utah.

Some additional costs we have not considered is all of the IT and staffer time it will take to setup the rooms, turn on the microphones, clean the offices, set up chairs, and do other things to make sure everything is correct.  But it is hard to put a cost on all of that.

Well there you have it, 27 Shorts steps to a bill and then we are done! Shouldn’t take much money at all; so I wish Rep. Wimmer the best. All in all, this will probably be the cheapest bill the legislature sees all year.  In recession, I think we need to save money everywhere we can and this is a waste of money for something everyone will forget about it in less than a year, I mean does anyone remember that the state vegetable is the Spanish Sweet Onion.

Carl Wimmer's State Gun Bill - A waste of time.

Yesterday I heard about Representative Carl Wimmer's legislation for naming a state gun.  KSL.com has a nice little article on this here. Realizing what a waste of time and money this would be, I quickly sent out a tweet to Mr. Wimmer to express my dissatifaction to this bill.


I tweeted:

Hey @CarlWimmer this is a waste of time and tax payer money, don't you have better things to do with your time!http://j.mp/dGng0X #utpol

 His reply:

@BenJoeM2 #utpol I suppose you expressed the same feelings when they designated the dutch oven, seagull and blue spruce official emblems?

From there following conversation began:

ME: Did you just compare the state bird to a gun? RT @CarlWimmer: #utpol Did you expressed same feelings when they designated the seagull?

Carl Wimmer: @BenJoeM2 #utpol oh I see. So its not about the "waste of time" its about your anti-gun stance? I see.

ME: I own a gun dude! stp twisting words & find a real bill RT @CarlWimmer: #utpol So its not abt "waste of time" its abt your anti-gun stance?

ME: @CarlWimmer Here is a nice pic of my Browning Pump, I can not believe you would stoop so low, you've just shown your true colors. ttp://twitpic.com/3e4f36

Carl Wimmer: @BenJoeM2 just trying to figure out why you don't think it appropriate to honor John Browning and his contributions to defending America...because the M1911 has done far more for Utah and the U.S than a dutch oven, blue spruce, elk, beehive or sego lily.

ME: @CarlWimmer because the economy sucks and we have more important things to worry about like saving money. Lets honor him later...and who cares! Lets save money and work Utahs real issues like education and the economy not whether the M1911 saved America.

Our conversation stimulated other tweets as well including:

@J_Kane @CarlWimmer's "State Firearm" proposal is a pointless and purely symbolic waste of time. I say this as a lover of guns & the 1911. #utpol 

@utahdiatribe It is now clear that @CarlWimmer is NOT a fiscal conservative. Prefers to waste taxpayer money with frivolous nonsense (state gun).#utpol

and... @CarlWimmer Perhaps I was harsh, but IMHO any money spent on a state gun in these hard economic times is frivolous waste.

@bbart76  @CarlWimmer Can we have a state jello & make vanilla our state ice cream?#greenjellowithcarrots

@cboyack @CarlWimmer The counter point, I think, is that govt.'s proper role is to secure the rights of its citizens, not honor people. #utpol

Plus we can't forget Bagley's wonderful cartoon in today's Tribune: Bagley's Carl Wimmer Cartoon

In the end, I am terribly disappointed in Mr. Wimmer's attempt to not only waste our money but also to twist my words, his true self has come forward.  I hope he stops wasting our time with this pointless bill and moves on to fixing our real problems in Utah. 

Flip Flop or True Change on HB 477

Today in the Salt Lake Tribune there is an article on Rep. Carl Wimmer’s desire to repeal the dreaded HB 477. (See Here) For once Rep. Wimmer and I agree on something, but what I find interesting is the enormous amount of political back-tracking that is happening with this thing, especially with Mr. Wimmer.


Have a number of our legislators really learned this is a horrible bill or are they worried about the political fallout this will cause them?

Just to be reminded, this is who voted for the ORIGINAL BILL in the House:

Original HB 477 Vote

When the Senate recalled (not repealed) the law to amend it to start in July, all of the sudden people were voting against it. Were House Members voting against because they knew they had made a mistake or did they just not like the July 1st date? Where they feeling the heat or did they really think this was a bad bill?

Any representative that tells me they voted against the final passing is not being truthful if the voted for the original bill. The only reason they even got another vote was because the Senate recalled the bill. Without the recall, they House would have moved on.

I remember well when Senator Kerry said, “I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it.”


Here is how the vote went for the "recalled amended" version in the House:

Amended HB 477 Vote

Not much of a change, was there? 19 votes in total switched to NAYS. Are these political flip floppers or people who really have changed their mind?

In Rep. Wimmer’s case, I think it is a Flip Flop. Why? Because I have been personally been attacked by Mr. Wimmer for voicing my opinion to him. Mr. Wimmer only has political ambition in mind and in reality could care less about anything else. Why else would he constantly tweet, text and push to be in the papers about being an advocate for repeal. When he VOTED for it in the first place.

As for the rest, only time will tell. Personally I am disappointed in all of them. What a waste of a 2011 legislature. Cats, Guns, and Text Messages. What highlights!

Comments welcome.

Bills that shouldn't pass

House Bill 220 – by Rep Michael Morley, R-Spanish Fork. – Civics Education Amendment.  Plenty of talk about this one.  See my blog post from yesterday. See Blog Post Here

House Bill 332 – by Rep. Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman – Utility Payment Assistance.  He wants to eliminate the program utility companies have setup to help low income people pay for their gas and power.  Essentially they are charging us $.10 a bill to help our neighbor.  Mr. Wimmer hates this idea.  Everyone should send a check to Mr. Wimmer for $1.20 to cover his share of the program. See Blog Post Here

House Bill 219 – by Rep. Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman – State Firearm Designation.  WASTE! MESSAGE BILL! WASTE!  Need I say more. See Blog Post Here

House Bill..Pretty much anything Rep. Wimmer.  So far I am seeing nothing he is proposing will help education or job creation in the state of Utah.  Okay he does have HB 191.  It is kind of cool .  It makes it so non-residents who go to high school in Utah for a certain number of years are able to get instate tuition. See Everything Here

Senate Bill 44 – by Sen. Margaret Dayton, R-Orem.  She no longer likes people telling her what to do, so she will now tell them.  See Blog Post Here

House Bill 258 – by Rep Chris Herrod, R-Provo.  This is his second pathetic attempt and making booster seats optional for kids age 5-7.  Failed in Committee! Why it shouldn’t pass, because this is stupid!  According the Utah Dept. of Public Safety nearly half (41%) of unrestrained children in crashes were injured or killed compared to 13% of children in booster seats.  I am going with the seat.  That was an easy one, it didn’t pass. 

These are just a few!  I would love to hear your list or what you think about this.  If you disagree, give me your opinion.  I can be swayed if you can prove to me why these are good.

Enjoy

Mr. Wimmer is upset over a $1.20

That’s right, Mr. Wimmer is at it again.  Instead of wasting our time with state gun laws, he is now wasting our time because of a $1.20 fee.   You see Questar gas charges us a $.10 a month fee to help other low income citizens pay for their utilities.  Rocky Mountain power has a similar fee.  But Mr. Wimmer hates this idea.  He hates that Questar would force us all to pay $1.20 a year to help out our neighbors.  Instead he wants to eliminate the fee and force them to ask permission to charge the $.10 fee. 

The Salt Lake Tribune has a nice little article on his bill here: (See Here)

My favorite quote is this: 

"They [residents] don’t give the utility permission to take their money and just give it to someone else," Wimmer said. If the companies want to raise the money, customers should sign up and agree to the extra charge.”

Man…so what he is saying is:  How dare that company come up with a cost effective way to help people who can’t afford it?  They should have asked permission first!  What does he want, Tiny Tim to come to his house and beg for more porridge to see this is a great program. I mean if this was $20 bucks I would be worried, but it is a freakin’ $1.20! 

Not sure what the Rocky Mountain Power fee is, but I tell you I am glad to pay it.  In fact, I am willing to pay Mr. Wimmer’s because he obviously hates charity or dealing with real issues.

Please tell me I am not crazy on this.

Message Bills and Waste

In today’s Standard Examiner you can find editorials and opinion pieces regarding message bills during the 2011 Utah State Legislature.  The Editorial Staff hits a homerun with their thoughts about these types of bills and how much of a waste they are. See Here) They bring up the example of HB220 by Rep Michael Morley’s, R-Spanish Fork, that would force Utah public schools to not tell students the U.S. is a democracy.  Not only do I find this bill an absolute waste of time and money but also completely contradictory to Republican values as a whole.  I am sorry, but Mr. Morley should not be reelected if this is how is going to spend his time and our money.

The editorial continued with:

"We have so many important issues to deal with on Capitol Hill this legislative session. Why do these dumb bills -- such as bullying schools or putting up our dukes with the "fedral gubbermint" -- waste our time

What's worse, however, is that Morley managed to get seven allies to continue his clutter through the Utah Legislature. The silly bill passed the House Education Committee by a 7-4 vote. Those seven members need to do their homework on what's important in education. We do applaud Top of Utah state Rep. Becky Edwards, R-North Salt Lake, for having the sense to vote against this time-waster."

I couldn’t agree more; however Rep Morley’s bill doesn’t just say our teacher’s can no longer say “democracy”.  It also says our teachers must give a thorough study of the following:

(a) the Declaration of Independence;
(b) the United States Constitution;
(c) the national motto;
(d) the pledge of allegiance;
(e) the national anthem;
(f) the Mayflower Compact;
(g) the writings, speeches, documents, and proclamations of the Founders and the Presidents of the United States;
(h) organic documents from the pre-Colonial, Colonial, Revolutionary, Federalist, and post Federalist eras;
(i) United States Supreme Court decisions;
(j) Acts of the United States Congress, including the published text of the Congressional Record; and
(k) United States treaties.
(4) To increase student understanding of, and familiarity with, American historical documents, public schools may display historically important excerpts from, or copies of, those documents in school classrooms and common areas as appropriate.
(5) There shall be no content-based censorship of American history and heritage documents referred to in this section due to their religious or cultural nature.



Don’t get me wrong all of the info above is important and should be read, but Rep Morley is going a bit far.  The folks over at OneUtah.org have a nice post on this and how HB220 will actually force teachers to bring up some of our country’s dark secrets.  Like how the Founding Fathers chose not to abolish slavery to maintain southern state support and how the writer of the Pledge of Allegiance was actually a well renowned socialist. (See Here) If Mr. Morely has his way, we all be watching our kid’s teachers like a hawk to make sure they don’t say “democracy” and we will be quizzing them on when “in God we trust” replaced “E Pluribus Unum” as the national motto. If the fail to do this we can then report them to Big Borther Morley and get them all in trouble.  (Or if Stuart Reid’s bill goes through the Governor)



From the Standard Examiner

But the waste doesn’t stop here.  Don’t forget Rep Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman, is pushing for a State Gun to represent the values of our state.  The Wasatch Rambler makes some interesting points that not only is ta waste, but in reality Mr. Wimmer has the wrong gun.  (See Here) The Browning M1911 wasn’t even made in Utah.  But heck, we can’t expect Rep Wimmer to do his homework on everything. Right!   Maybe Rep Morley should add this to his list of criteria.  Mr. Wimmer himself told me this would take no time at all but in reality he has wasted hours of the legislatures time discussing this bill.  In committees alone I have timed the discussions and we are up to nearly three hours of waste. 

It saddens me that every year we waste countless hours for message bills that do nothing.  What waste!

Thanks Mr. Wimmer for the waste

I would like to thank Mr. Wimmer for another 45 minutes of wasted time on his hand gun bill that wasn’t going to take any time.

NM gov.-elect: Billy the Kid pardon waste of time - ksl.com

New Mexico's new Governor has it right - going through all the paper work, money and time to pardon Billy the Kid is a waste. Especially when there is so much work to be done. Governor-Elect Susana Martinez thinks the outgoing governor should be more focused on balancing the budget then wasting money on a pardon. Looks like Rep. Wimmer and Rep. Fisher could learn something from Gov. Martinez.

Also...anyone notice Rep. Wimmer loves positive feedback on twitter, but as soon as someone attacks his ideas he calls everyone a democrat or a gun hater. Just follow him on twitter to see more, he went the rounds again today. http://www.twitter.com/carlwimmer

NM gov.-elect: Billy the Kid pardon waste of time - ksl.com

More Waste! Time to fix 88-year-old mistake in Utah flag? | The Salt Lake Tribune

Rep. Julie Fisher (R-Fruit Heights) has joined the list of wasteful legislators with her new resolution to fix the State Flag. According to the Salt Lake Tribune (Time to fix 88-year-old mistake in Utah flag?) Rep. Fisher is frustrated because the "1847" on the flag doesn't conform to State Law and for 88 years we have ignored this horrible sin.  Now is the time to repent.

“It’s not the ugliness of the flag, it’s simply wrong,” says Fisher, who went back and read Utah state law about how the flag is supposed to look. “The ‘1847’ is supposed to be inside the shield. If you look at the state seal — which the flag is based on — it is inside the shield there"

Fisher has decided to have a little "fun" with the legislature and validate every one's State Flags.  In doing so she is now ignoring state problems like education, economic recessions and  immigration.  But we have ignored the State Flag too long!  Thousands of Utahn's have been breaking the law for 88 years and it is time we put this to an end before someone gets hurt.  Yes this resolution won't take long and will probably be cheaper than Rep. Wimmer's State Gun Bill.   But waste is waste and I am disappointed Rep. Fisher can't see the urgency of her job.

Sounds like Rep. Fisher and Rep. Wimmer need to get together and go bowling.  I am sure they could come up with some great wasteful ideas.

Comments welcome!

Social Media, News and the Machine Gun Fire #Herrimanfire

Last night a crazy thing happened.  Utah experienced a major news event, the Machine Gun Fire aka the Herriman Fire.  The reasons and causes of the fire can easily be read in every newspaper today.  But another story (and their are many) in this tragedy is the part Social Media played and how one news station dominated with it's coverage.

I started tuning into the coverage around 9 pm.  I caught a few minutes of Fox 13 news, a station I do not normally watch. They were discussing the Herriman fire and the fact a few hundred homes were being evacuated.  As usually I jumped on twitter to see if anything else was being discussed.  I noticed Ben Winslow (@benwinslow) was tweeting live updates about the fire and so were many concerned residents of Salt Lake City.  They were united under the hash tag #herrimanfire.  

For those who are new to twitter or do not understand how it works, here is a short explanation:  Twitter is a short messaging system.  Essentially you have a list of followers, then you post a short message (140 characters or less).  Your message is viewable to your list of followers.  Kind of like sending a short text message to 20 or 30 friends all at once, but not having to type in all of their phone numbers. In addition, non-followers can do a search and find your messages as well.  Sometimes, during major events, we end our messages with a hash tag starting with a #.  An example of this is #contest.  I could do a search just for #contest and get everyone who is tweeting about a contest of some sort in the world.  This keeps certain topics all in one place and easy to find in a search.

Hundreds, if not more of us were all communicating and sharing information about the fire all under the hash tag #herrimanfire.  In many occasions information was being tweeted faster than the news could report it.  Herriman City wisely created a twitter account (@bereadyherriman) and used it as way to communicate to everyone.  Quickly photos, videos and stories were passed on and shared with all.  Fox News (@fox13now) collected all of this and became the leading source of information for Herriman Residents.  Why was Fox on top! Well for a few reasons:

1. So many people turned to the Internet, the Herriman City website was overwhelmed and practically crashed. Cell phones were jammed; so TV and the Internet is where people got their news. 
2. People eventually turned to twitter for info and also Fox News and Ben Winslow because they were the only ones reporting (Deseret News and Salt Lake Tribune did show up later). 
3. KSL 5, Channel 2 and 4 all decided this was a non-story.  They showed the nightly newscast at 10:00 then moved on to sports and forgot about the story all together.  Their reporters (who are now tweeting and reporting) were no where to be found.  In fact News Editor for KSL 5, Graydon Johns, even attacked one twitter user by calling him a loser (see here) when KSL was questioned on their worthless reporting of the story. (Note: He apologized later)

My contributions to the evening were limited, but my tweets and re-tweets were connected to my Facebook page.  When this happened, tons of my friends in the SLC/Herriman area began responding and giving me even more info, which I was able to pass a long.  In no way did I play a major role in this; but it was fascinating to see live news and hundreds of people come together to contribute to this news.  

Fox News really became the "beacon of light" many people were looking for last night and I was amazed at how twitter really helped. Fox took advantage of the situation and was able to do amazing things. One example is when the Herriman City's website crashed, twitter users were quick to redistribute the evacuation map and Fox was able to post it online.  The amazing use of  photos, videos and stories was in real time and mind blowing.  When Channel 2 finally asked twitter users for info at 5:45 am, they were too late. Fox had been doing this for nearly 8 hours, they stopped tweeting shortly after that.

What does this all mean.  It means news is still evolving and the way it is reported is too.  News agencies and cities can learn from this experience by what Fox News did last night. Consumers want news in real time but they also want to be part of the story.  Most people on twitter felt a kinship with Ben Winslow and felt like they were helping him and Fox report.  

The saddest part for me was when Congressman Jason Chaffetz and Rep. Carl Wimmer showed up.  They began tweeting they were going to take charge and make sure everything was under control.  I bet they were just in the way and costing us money.  Herriman City, the fireman and their teams did a fine job last night and were the real heroes of this fire.

For the rest of us, news in Utah was amazing last night and Fox 13 was at the top.  They are my new, news station of choice. And to the rest of the news agencies, all I can say is - #fail.

Comments welcome.

UPDATE: Holly on the Hill (@hollyonthehill) has a nice post on this same issue. She is a better writer than me: http://hollyonthehill.wordpress.com/2010/09/20/twitte-and-emergency-response/

HB 477 - A real disappointment

As you may or may not know, the Utah State Legislature has recently passed HB 477.  This fantastic peace of legislation restricts the famed GRAMA law.  For those of you unfamiliar with GRAMA, it works like this.  If you want to know what your government official is doing, you can submit a GRAMA request.  In return you will receive all of their communications regarding a certain topic, more or less.  For example:  Maybe you want to know if Rep. Carl Wimmer is attempting to get someone fired because he doesn't like that they are investigating his ponzi scheming friend.  But you need to see what he is saying to those in charge to prove it.  A GRAMA request will get you access to his emails, text messages, etc.  And you would find out that indeed he is.  (This really happened by the way).

But our amazing legislature has now restricted this access to GRAMA by passing HB 477 (via Big Brother Rep John Dougall, R-Highland) .  This would restrict the access of Utah Taxpayers to our legislators text messages, voice mails, instant messages, and video chats.  It is waiting on Governor Herbert's desk to sign.

Their argument is GRAMA requests take up time and money.  Though I agree they do, it sounds like we need to create a more efficient system in making GRAMA requests and gathering the info, not eliminate the idea all together.  If we claim we want a transparent government that is accountable, then why are we now restricting it and making it secret.

So who voted for it in our area: (Yea that is about everyone)

• Brad J. Galvez (R) - House District 6
• Ryan D. Wilcox (R) - House District 7
• Gage Froerer (R) - House District 8
• Jeremy A. Peterson (R) - House District 9
• Dixon M. Pitcher (R) - House District 10
• Brad L. Dee (R) - House District 11
• Richard A. Greenwood (R) - House District 12
• Stuart Reid (R?) - Senate District 18
• Allen Christensen (R) - Senate District 19
• Scott Jenkins (R) - Senate District 20

What a real disappointment.  Instead of working on ways to improve education, create jobs or even help Utah be amazing, we can now shoot cats in front of schools with an M1911 and as long as I only tell people via Text Message know one will ever find out.

FAIL!

Comments Welcome.

See More Here: 

http://wcforum.blogspot.com/search/label/HB477

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/51374867-76/utah-government-records-law.html.csp

http://www.standard.net/topics/opinion/2011/03/03/our-view-another-attempt-gut-grama

More Waste In Utah - Senator Aaron Osmond's Pledge of Allegiance Bill

This year is starting out to be a great year for Utah waste, with wasted textbooks, trashed school lunches and now my favorite message bills. In 2010 I posted about the 27 lengthy steps on how a bill becomes a law.  Feel free to go back and review it if needed, since it shows the long process and cost involved with making a bill and passing a law in Utah.

This year Senator Aaron Osmond, out of complete bordem with his chair position on the Economic Development and Workforce committee, has had decided that we need to remove the comma in the pledge of allegiance.  SCR 01 in all it's glory is bound on wasting our short legislative session in all it's glory debating this hot topic.

Oh and yes it was debated, while your child choked to death on toxic air in downtown SLC, your senator was debating a joint resolution on commas.  Essentially the pause just before the word "under God" is just too much.  So to celebrate those words and their 60 years of controversy we are now wasting our time discussing how they should be said--with or without a comma.

This continued waste frustrates me to no end.  In a few short weeks the legislature will close for the year and any bill that isn't debated will miss out.  Things like discrimination, pollution and education spending are put on hold for Aaron Osmond and his desire to get his name in the paper.  Well Mr. Glory Hound Osmond, Fox 13 has done a story for you, Aunt Marie and Uncle Donny would be proud of ya!

When can we stop this waste and get back serious issues.  See my previous posts on waste and message bills by former Rep Wimmer.

Comments on Waste Welcome.