First things first -- a proposal that would allow the Utah Legislature to "give direction" to the state's U.S. Senators and require regular progress reports on those directives is not a reaction to the state's current officeholders.

"I hold them both in high regard," said state Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, of U.S. Sens. Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett, both fellow Republicans. "What I do challenge is the whole notion of the Senate no longer being responsive to the states."

It's a complaint with a lot of support in the Legislature -- Stephenson's bill, for example, has 19 Senate cosponsors.

The bill, SB 156, was discussed in a Senate committee Wednesday, but the committee didn't vote on it.

The discussion boasts a long history as well, tracing its roots to the 1913 ratification of the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and almost a century of preceding debate. That amendment says that U.S. Senators would be chosen by a direct vote of the people -- not by state legislatures.

Stephenson's proposal seeks to reassert the influence of state lawmakers.

"I don't expect that anything will happen to repeal the 17th Amendment, and maybe it shouldn't," he said.

"But if we were to set a pattern for the rest of the nation, for states across the country to influence their U.S. Senators to advocate for states' rights, No Child Left Behind would've looked totally different. Highway funding would look different. Environmental policy would look totally different, I believe, if the states' perspectives were reflected in the U.S. Senate."

The bill was placed on hold Wednesday because of expected changes in its most controversial provision -- a procedure that would allow political parties to bypass a primary election and instead let the party's legislators choose who would appear on the ballot.

That section might be eliminated entirely, Stephenson said.

Sen. Karen Hale, D-Salt Lake City, wondered why that option would be offered at all.

"Do we not have confidence in the peoplefi" she said. "What's the genesis of thisfi"

Stephenson said his intent is to have the delegation play some role in the selection of Senate candidates, since historically the Senate was meant to give voice at the federal level to the concerns of state government. He noted the Legislature can't require political parties to choose nominees in a specific way.

"If they wanted to have a clairvoyant ... if they wanted to roll dice or draw straws, they could do that," Stephenson said.

The bill was discussed Tuesday in the Senate GOP caucus meeting, which is closed to the public.

"I think he's inclined to pause and think a little bit before he goes forward," said Senate Majority Leader Peter Knudson, R-Brigham City and a cosponsor. He said he and other lawmakers haven't "changed their hearts" on the intent of the bill, but there's some concern that it isn't the right time to move forward.

Hatch, meanwhile, said the bill is unnecessary.

"There's no question that the state and federal legislatures must work together closely to advance the interests of Utah's citizens," Hatch said through a spokesman. "But, frankly, I don't think we need legislation to achieve that."

Bennett's office did not return a phone call seeking comment.

The U.S. Constitution originally provided that state legislatures would elect each states' senators. The process broke down in the 1850s, however, as conflicts over slavery and other issues left legislatures so deadlocked over nominees that Senate seats stayed vacant.

There were also several bribery scandals in the late 1800s and early 1900s -- some successful Senate candidates were found to have bribed state legislators for their votes, and there was a "general sense" that senators were too beholden to corporate interests, according to an article written by Lewis Gould, an emeritus professor at the University of Texas and the author of several political histories.

Stephenson is not alone in his push to give state lawmakers more control over U.S. Senate business. A bill similar to his failed last year in the Montana Legislature, and former U.S. Sen. Zell Miller, D-Georgia, U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, and perennial presidential candidate Alan Keyes have all called for the 17th Amendment to be repealed.

"The Senate has become just one big, bad, ongoing joke," Miller told his colleagues in 2004, "held hostage by special interests, and so impotent an 18-wheeler truck loaded with Viagra would do no good."

Gould acknowledged that the current Senate has problems, but he argued that removing or diluting the public's say wouldn't solve anything.

"Such a reversion might have the effect of reducing campaign expenses since the cost of influencing several dozen state lawmakers would be well below the current outlay for running a statewide election," his article states.

"Yet it is laughable ... to suggest that a return to a system so susceptible to corruption, log-rolling and the flouting of public opinion would be any kind of improvement over the present state of affairs."

SB 156: Legislative Direction Relating to United States Senators

Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper

As currently proposed, the bill would allow a political party to submit nominees for the U.S. Senate to the party's legislative delegation, which would decide who is placed on the ballot. The state Legislature could also give direction to Utah's U.S. Senators and require periodic updates from them.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page A9.