“Political speeches are like horns on a steer…a point here and a point there, with a whole lotta’ bull in between.”

Pleasant Grove had it’s own “running of the bull.”    Link HERE for news article.

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“In the United States, religious freedom is the first of our freedoms, and the freedom to preach is very nearly at the core of religious freedom.”

Link HERE for the full-article.

Resurfacing in the media is the annual Cigarette/Tobacco Tax Increase proposal by some members of the Utah legislature who are looking for easy answers to tough questions regarding budget shortfalls.  Gehrke at the Salt Lake Tribune reports that some legislators are looking to substantially increase a targeted sin tax on tobacco product consumers to help plug the estimated $850 million in budget shortfalls for FY11.

One tax increase proposal raises Utah’s current 69.5 cent tax up to $2.00 per pack, which would make Utah the 11th highest per pack tax rate in the country.

Read this previous Under the Dome post for more information:

Smokin’ a Butt Gonna Cost You More?

The Salt Lake City Council recently passed a resolution encouraging the Utah State Legislature to “cap” payday loan businesses’ ability to charge high interest rates.   Read about the proposal HERE.

What do you think?

During its monthly lunchtime meeting on Wednesday, a new Independent Ethics Commission proposal was introduced to the Utah State House Majority Caucus.  Rep. John Dougall (R-Highland), Co-Chair of the House Ethics Committee, presented a draft outline of a proposal crafted by the entire Bi-partisan House Ethics Committee.

You can read the Independent Ethics Commission proposal by linking HERE.  (Go to “Related Materials” for the October 21st meeting and choose the third item on the list.)

The Ethics Commission would work as an advisory panel to review ethics complaints and make recommendations to the House Ethics Committee before proceeding with actions against legislators.  A number of states have Ethics Commissions similar in structure to the body in this proposal.  Further deliberations will take place before a bill is drafted for the Utah State Legislature to consider in the upcoming 2010 General Legislative Session.

Because many people throughout the state feel the current legislative ethics initiative introduced by the group Utahns’ for Ethical Government ‘ just goes too far,’ the bi-partisan committee has chosen to take a proactive approach to address sensible legislative ethics measures.

Related stories:    Deseret News & Salt Lake Tribune

Governor Herbert on Ethics Initiative:  Deseret News

For your commenting pleasure…Under the Dome’s “comment” feature is back on-line.  The First Amendment in this part of the blogoshere has been restored (not that it was ever repealed).

Let me take an opportunity, at this juncture, to remind everyone who comments on this, my personal blog, to be civil, respectful, and to make an attempt to stay on topic.  Personal attacks and vulgarity will not be tolerated.

This is a family friendly site!

Under the Dome is currently experiencing some minor “technical difficulties.”    Some readers have brought to my attention the “comments” areas are not accessible.  I don’t know why that is; however, this problem should be rectified within the next couple of days.  I have a team of highly qualified professionals working on this somewhat delicate matter…as we speak. (Don’t feel bad…not even I can access them.)

So…until then, if you find it difficult to restrain yourself, you can purge your comments at…

1) HollyOntheHill

2) Steve Urquhart, State Senator

3) The View from Pleasant Grove

4) The Senate Site

5) Utah Wastebuster

Thank goodness the “links” feature is still operable!

If you haven’t heard by now, Dallin Oaks, former member of the Utah State Supreme Court (and current member of the Quorum of the 12, of the LDS Church), delivered a thought provoking speech to the student body of Brigham Young University-Idaho yesterday.  A well-timed, well-delivered speech to be sure.

Interested in reading the entire text?!  Link HERE to UtahPolicy.com.

Here’s a few thoughts by Bob Bernick of the Deseret News worth reading:

“Moderation in most things works here.

Politically speaking, Utah is stable, accountable, conservative. In other words, boring.

But in the recent hard times, boring can be good.

Don’t stand out, get the job done, don’t complain too much — a recipe for success for most Utah politicians.”

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CLICK HERE for full article.

Joe Pyrah, from the Daily Herald, WROTE THIS ARTICLE last year about former state Representative Jordan Tanner (House District 63, 1991-2000).  If the Ethics Initiative is passed in November of 2010, Tanner will become one of the five “Super Czars,” the non-elected, and supposed keepers and over-seers of the Ethics Commission.  Called into question by many and reported by Pyrah about the ethical concern that Mr. Tanner at one time did not reside in the district that he represented (state law): 

With his well-known push for ethics reform, Tanner also raised eyebrows toward the end of his time in the legislature when he built a house in the north end of the county but maintained that his residency was still in District 63.

When asked about this situation, Senate President John Valentine, who spent time with Tanner in the House, said there was discussion about where Tanner actually lived.

“It appeared to me at the time that he had moved out of the district,” he said.  “It was pretty hard for him to make the case that he lived in two places at the same time.”

(Steve) Clark replaced Tanner eight years ago.

What’s equally disturbing in this Pyrah article, is the fact that Mr. Tanner (a republican?) also publicly endorsed a democrat running against Rep. Steve Clark (R-HD63) in the last election cycle.

Did someone mention this ballot initiative was a non-partisan ethics proposal???