Hello there John ,

Travis here, the Elections Manager for Stewardship Utah, continuing our candidate introduction series with an impressive climate champion, Rep. Andrew Stoddard. He has been one of our foremost advocates for air quality and played a crucial role in the passage of air quality bill HB 220 during the 2023 legislative session. HB 220 is one of the most impactful pieces of air quality legislation in decades addressing bromine emissions that make our wintertime inversions up to 25% worse!

The unfortunate truth of air quality along the Wasatch Front is that our air is killing us. On average, our community loses about 1 to 3 years of our lives from air pollution in the valley. Fortunately, through O₂ Utah’s partnership with legislators like Rep. Andrew Stoddard, we have laid the foundation for cleaner air and healthier lives for all Utahns, and we look forward to what we can accomplish as Stewardship Utah. So what drove Rep. Stoddard to become a leader on these issues? Why did he run for office? What is our path forward to clear the air? We reached out for answers and to learn about his vision for our communities to help you, as a voter, be more informed at the polls. 

I first ran for city council thinking that I had to do something to give back to my community. I came in fourth out of four. But I met someone while running who encouraged me to run for the seat I currently hold. So I feel like fate brought me to this seat as an opportunity for me to serve my community. I have been in three terms and feel like I still have more to do before I move on to something else.

A more balanced government that works on issues that impact its citizens, cleaner air, smarter water usage, a full Great Salt Lake, affordable housing, and a place that is welcoming to all people.

It allows the Division of Air Quality to create and enforce standards for bromine and other similar chemicals which have been found to create around a quarter of our inversions. This bill started off initially as a wish list of changes to help our air quality, but it was not getting traction. It took a lot of work explaining the issue to my colleagues and getting their support. Once we had those conversations, they saw the need for the legislation and got on board.

More work needs to be done to strengthen and expand HB 220. I am also looking at heavy-duty vehicles that are pre-2010 because they are disproportionately responsible for contributing to our air pollution. Other than that, I am open to any ideas of what we can do to help us have cleaner air.

Stewardship Utah is proud to endorse Rep. Stoddard in this year’s election, and we look forward to working with him to achieve our air quality goals laid out in Prosperity 2030. 

Thank you Rep. Stoddard for your work at the capitol protecting our health and clearing the air!

Onwards,

Travis Suite,

Elections Manager

[email protected]

www.stewardshiputah.org