Let me share a secret with you. Utah Democrats are hard at work for policies that the majority of Utahns and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints enthusiastically support. The Church’s First Presidency recently stated, “Merely voting a straight ticket or voting based on ‘tradition’ without careful study of the candidates and their positions on important issues is a threat to democracy and inconsistent with revealed standards.” Now is a good time to unearth this secret and get voters in our state to support candidates who reflect their values, not just their political affiliation.

Currently, 14 of the 75 House of Representatives members are Democrats. We are Democrats because we love all our neighbors. As Democrats, half of whom are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we are working to implement policies that reflect sensible and compassionate values — values that align with Latter-Day Saint teachings.

An unhealthy supermajority in our state has led to many policies that most of us don’t support. Take a look at some of Utah’s current laws.

• Utah is one of only four states that allows over 600% interest on payday loans. Nebraska and other states have capped interest rates at 36%, which allows businesses to flourish and prevents predatory usury practices.
• No other state in the country allows only three business days before eviction, followed by mandatory treble damages, meaning three times the fines and rental fees.
• Eighty percent of Utahns support universal background checks for gun purchases; however, current passed legislation does not support these views.
• The current Legislature consistently has either significantly changed or outright overridden special ballot initiatives that Utahns voted to approve, such as the proposal to establish a bipartisan committee to recommend three alternatives for adjusting voter districts following each U.S. census.
• Utahns place a high value on public education, a tradition that began with the early settlers in Utah. The supermajority is using public education as a levying tool. Democrats have a commitment to public education and prioritize related policies because Utah has the country’s largest percentage of school-age children.
  • Research shows increased teacher salaries would help retain our fantastic teachers. They helped our children get through the pandemic, with our eighth graders being the only students in the country not to have a significant loss in math learning.
  • Utah’s income tax is constitutionally set aside for public and higher education and the needs of children and people with disabilities. With excess money in the income tax fund, why do those funds continue to be labeled “surplus” and set aside for the future rather than judiciously used for our children now?

These are just a few examples of current policies that do not reflect the values of many Latter-day Saints and others who care about fairness, helping our communities and good government. Utah Democrats in the Legislature want to change these policies, but we need your help. If you would like to support policies that reflect sensible and compassionate values, including those consistent with Latter-day Saint values, it is important that you help the Democratic Caucus reach our goals of improving state policies by electing candidates who reflect your values. Elect more Democrats to office to give the state more balanced representation. And support Republican candidates who will vote for policies that uplift Utahns’ values, not just the supermajority’s agenda.

It is important to be an engaged voter so your voice is heard and represented in government. Do you know who your state representative and state senator are? Do you know the policies they sponsor and proposed laws they vote for? Do their policies and votes reflect your values? Go to le.utah.gov to find your state representative and state senator. Send them an email or invite them to meet with you. If they don’t support the policies you want for Utah, get behind a person who will advocate for those policies, regardless of party affiliation. If you’re a passionate advocate, I encourage you to research or even contact me on how you can run for office. My door is always open for any conversation that will benefit the future of our state.

Gay Lynn Bennion represents House District 41 in the Utah Legislature. This is her opinion as an elected official and citizen and is not a statement from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

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