Dear Constituents, Happy Back-to-School! This is a fun time of year to see all the kiddos headed back to class. I am grateful for the awesome teachers and school staff who teach and take care of students across the state to make sure they have a quality educational experience. With the new school year in full swing, the safety of all Utah students is of the utmost importance. The SafeUT app is a resource available to students, parents/guardians, and teachers. Last year, counselors responded to over 32,000 chats. From those chats, officials were able to respond to about 314 potential school threats or acts of violence and 300 incidents involving life-saving interventions for students at risk of attempting suicide. Every student’s life in Utah is precious and should be protected. You can download the app or visit the website at https://www.safeut.org. Inflation, Federal Spending & Upcoming Legislation This month I had the chance to join Glen Mills on the Inside Utah Politics Panel to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act. You can watch the interview here. The title of this bill is disingenuous at best and is unlikely to have any impact on bringing down the inflation rate. It increases taxes, increases spending on climate change and drug pricing policies, and drastically increases the number of IRS agents. This coupled with President Biden’s Student Loan Forgiveness Program, that will cost taxpayers $605 billion, are sure to have a negative impact on the inflation rate and the economy. With sky high gas prices and the cost of groceries putting a major pinch on family’s budgets, Utahns’ are hurting financially. Right now, families are paying between $750-900 extra a month for basic needs like gas and groceries. While the federal government's out-of-control spending, increased national debt, energy policies, and tax policies all significantly impact family's budgets right now, there are some things we can do at the state level to put more of people's hard-earned money back into their budgets. I'm working on legislation for an income tax cut and a one-time income tax cut refund. As a state, we are anticipating a $1.3 billion-dollar one-time surplus in revenue alone, it’s time we send taxpayers’ money back to their own budgets. In addition to the income tax cut legislation, In addition, I'm working with my colleagues on legislation for the option of a property tax deferral for elderly individuals living on a fixed income. There is plenty of work to do.
I also joined the Utah House of Representatives’ Podcast to discuss some of the policies we’re working on for the 2023 general session to provide relief to Utah families. You can listen here.
Utah Monuments and Public Lands Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes filed a lawsuit challenging President Biden’s federal overreach on Utah’s public lands. I join him and other state leaders in fighting to ensure that our public lands are adequately protected and that smart stewardship remains with the people closest to the land. Utah should be managing our lands, not bureaucrats in Washington, DC. Watch this video to learn more about our fight to stop federal overreach. Interim Meetings Interim meetings resumed in August, allowing my colleagues and I the chance to meet and discuss several key issues our state is currently facing. If you want to stay up to date on the topics we’re talking about, you can read the highlights here. You can also participate both in person or online during next month's interim meetings, scheduled for September 20th and 21st. Register to Vote The general election is just two months away! October 28th is the last day to register to vote. Check your status or register at vote.utah.gov. Tis the Sign Season! You can show your support by placing a sign in your yard or business. If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up! Thank you for the opportunity to represent our community. Please feel free to reach out with any concerns or questions you might have, you can email me at cpierucci@le.utah.gov. Sincerely, Candice B. Pierucci State Representative for House District 52 (Riverton, Herriman & South Jordan)
This month I had the opportunity to join the Young America’s Foundation for their Legislative Economic Freedom Conference at the Reagan Ranch Center and Rancho Del Cielo in California. For three days, we had the chance to listen to seminars on the history of tax policy, free market economics, and Reagan’s approach to leadership from Economist Art Laffer and Governor Scott Walker.