Happy Friday from #OneUtah, a weekly update from the office of Gov. Spencer J. Cox. Here’s your recap of what we did this week, what's on the horizon, and more. Reply to this email with any questions or suggestions regarding the newsletter. And thank you for subscribing!

Visiting rural Utah

It’s always great to get back to our roots and visit rural Utah! This week we met with city and county officials in Carbon County to discuss the Utah Trail Network, transportation needs for rural Utah, wildlife, water issues and more. In Emery County we celebrated the groundbreaking of the Green River Energy Center, an 800-megawatt solar-plus-battery storage project that brings more than $1 billion in capital investment to rural Utah and will generate 500 jobs!

We are committed to providing an abundance of energy resources and opportunities to Utah residents. We are grateful to the people of Carbon County and Emery County and their long history in the energy industry, and to all those who will be a part of this initiative. 

Honoring the Constitution

In Utah we honor the divinely inspired document that is the U.S. Constitution. The Constitution inspired principles to safeguard our freedoms and shape our democracy; it is not just a piece of history, it’s a living testament to the values of liberty, justice and unity that guide us today. The U.S. Constitution and Utah Constitution were on display in the Gold Room of the State Capitol in honor of Constitution Day on Sept. 17! We hope you were able to stop by. 

Talking energy

This week we stopped by the Enbridge Gas Large Commercial Industrial Meeting meeting to discuss the future of energy in Utah and the role of natural gas. The demand for energy in the Beehive State is rising due to electrification, population growth, and technological advancements. We will continue to invest in baseload and dispatchable energy resources. Natural gas is a critical solution to these demands, it already supplies 34% of Utah’s total electrical generation. Utah’s natural gas processes are some of the cleanest in the world; we rank 4th in federal natural gas leases and we’re home to three major gas fields. 

We believe in innovative energy solutions and we know that there are many opportunities to grow in all fields of energy production, solar and wind included. While it is true that we are moving towards cleaner types of energy, we will not do so until we can ensure that it will be sustainable and affordable for all Utahns. Utah needs to invest in additional baseload and dispatchable energy resources like natural gas. We are an “all of the above” state, but we need more of the above.

Salt Lake County Council Honors the Constitution

This week Lt. Gov. Henderson spoke at the Constitution Day event held by the Salt Lake County Council. We are grateful that so many across the state have taken on the challenge of honoring the constitution this month. In her remarks, she reminded us of the importance of civic participation. Constitution Day shared the day with National Voter Registration Day. Please visit vote.utah.gov to register or update your registration.

50 Years of WIC 

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Women, Infant, and Children's program in Utah. WIC provides nutrition and breastfeeding services, and supplemental foods to pregnant women, mothers, infants, and children. Lt. Gov. Henderson joined WIC staff from around the state this week to celebrate the occasion, sharing her story of being a young mother needing support. We are so grateful for WIC staff, some having served for more than 30 years, and their contributions to a healthy Utah.

Giving back

On Wednesday we had the opportunity to visit the Community Action Services and Food Bank in Provo to learn more about their efforts to help those facing food insecurity. Their goal is to foster self-reliance for individuals, families, and communities. Food insecurity can be crippling and the resources the food bank provides are incredible. During our tour they highlighted their efforts to support young school children experiencing hunger and food insecurity. We discussed with them our recent initiative to alleviate student lunch debt. 

A few weeks ago we redirected $1.2 million dollars for this cause. Our students are the future of Utah, and investing in their health and education is vital to the success of our state. 

We are so grateful for the CASFB and their work to support our residents in Utah, Wasatch, and Summit County. Utah continues to rank as the most charitable state in the nation and we’re grateful for the Utahns who give back to the communities around them. We’re going to work with the Legislature to not only secure funding, but ensure we have robust programs so that no Utahn goes hungry.

Monthly News Conference

This week we held our Monthly News Conference with PBS Utah. Here are some highlights: 

Would you support electing judges to the bench over the current process?

I would not support electing judges to the bench, we have an incredible system here in our state. It’s been recognized across the country as one of, if not the best, system in the country and I’m grateful for that. I think the last thing we need is more divisive elections, especially over a branch of government that is supposed to be independent. And I think independence is important. I respect the judiciary even when I disagree with them. 

How do you see the public lands lawsuit affecting southern Utah?

We are a public lands state, there’s no question about that and we will remain a public lands state. One of the most important parts of this legal action is what it does but also what it doesn’t do. Those areas that have been designated by congress have not been touched at all. We’re not looking at National Forests, National Parks, National Monuments, Tribal Lands. This is simply the unadjudicated land, the 17 million acres, about half of the total public lands in the state. We have legislation already about how we would manage this land publicly for the benefit of the people of Utah. We’ve actually, over the past few years, purchased land that was private and made it public. That shows a deep commitment to our state and to our people and it is about opening those lands and keeping them open. We’re seeing sadly that this administration is putting up roadblocks, making it impossible for people to access land that has been accessed for generations. That is what we’re working to prevent and I’m confident we will be able to do that much better than the federal government. 

Watch the full news conference here.

ICYMI

• This week we joined Interfaith America and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to talk about the integrity of elections in our country. Click here to learn more. 

• Throughout my year as chair of the National Governors Association we filmed ads with 23 governors to promote healthy disagreement and reduce partisan animosity. This week we attended Dreamforce to discuss Disagree Better, the efficacy of the ads and what we can do to facilitate more productive disagreements. Learn more here.

• Lt. Gov. Henderson met with some of the most recent additions to Team Utah in the Return Utah program this week. Return Utah is a return-to-work program for individuals seeking employment after an extended professional absence. Learn more about the program and find job listings here.

Coming up

• Sept. 23: Looking forward to virtually meeting with our fellow Republican Governors.

• Sept. 24: Lt. Gov. Henderson is joining the Wasatch Front Regional Council in speaking to the AMPO annual conference. Learn more here.

• Sept. 26: Lt. Gov. Henderson will speak at the Utah Tourism Conference, which runs the 24th-27th. See more about the conference here.

• Sept. 26: The Utah Treasurer’s Office and the Utah Financial Empowerment Coalition will again hold the annual Women in Money Conference. Learn more here.

   

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