| Updated: Feb. 23, 2021, 12:40 a.m.
The annual attempt by Utah lawmakers to bypass the signature-gathering path for candidates to get on the primary ballot is headed to the Senate floor.
A Senate committee gave the thumbs up to SB205 on Monday, to give political parties several options for determining how candidates qualify for the primary ballot.
“We have about $2.5 million being spent on the signature-gathering process over the last six years,” says bill sponsor Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton. He added that “99.3% of elections during that time were won by candidates that qualified for the ballot through the convention process.”
McCay’s bill creates four categories of political parties, with various paths for candidates to win the nomination, including one that would allow the party to send the top two vote-getters at convention to the primary unless one secured two-thirds support from delegates and clinched the nomination.
Bill allowing mother-in-law apartments, with some restrictions, slips through Utah House
Proponents say short-term rentals are an effective tool to fight Utah’s affordable housing shortage
(Leah Hogsten | Tribune file photo) Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful, is the sponsor of HB82, which would allow homeowners to build accessory dwelling units, sometimes known as mother-in-law apartments, as a solution to Utah s affordable housing crisis.
| Feb. 19, 2021, 1:00 p.m.
The Utah House erupted into a lengthy debate Thursday over whether the newest version of a bill freeing up homeowners to establish accessory dwelling units, also known as mother-in-law apartments, gave too much power to cities that might seek to block the housing units. Others argued the bill would not do much to fix the state’s affordable housing crunch.
Also: Utah lawmakers seek to rein in the governorâs authority during a long-term emergency.
(Scott Sommerdorf | Tribune file photo) Former presidential candidate Evan McMullin joins the Utah Politics podcast to discuss the future of the GOP and the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
  | Feb. 19, 2021, 1:04 p.m.
On this weekâs episode, weâre joined by former presidential candidate Evan McMullin to discuss the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the backlash from Sen. Mitt Romneyâs vote to convict former President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial and the future of the Republican Party.
New revenue projections show Utah will have more than $1.5 billion in extra money to spend on next year's budget. Lawmakers have already spent more than $650 million on public education, and are now targeting infrastructure and tax cuts.
Despite a rosy budget picture, lawmakers have more requests for spending than cash available
Public education and social services are chewing up most of the extra revenue.
(Rick Bowmer | AP file photo) Utah lawmakers will soon gather at the state Capitol to begin the process of setting the final budget for the next fiscal year. Despite projections showing they ll have more than a billion dollars in extra revenue to spend, public education and social services will take up a majority of that revenue. | Updated: 2:55 p.m.
Next week starts an intense two-week period as legislators make moves on setting Utah’s final budget for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.