These are classic discussions published back in March 2006
Candidate Filings
Of the 75 House seats up for grabs, Republicans failed to field a candidate in 1, and Democrats failed to field a candidate in 19.
Vetoes
Gov. Huntsman vetoed 3 bills and a few lines from the budget. The budget lines simply reflect the fact that we pulled the money from the wrong source; we can correct that in a special session. As widely reported elsewhere, the 3 policy bills deal with parental rights, environmental litigation, and concurrent enrollment.
The first 2, no doubt, presented the Governor with difficult choices. On both those bills, I agreed with the intent of the sponsors but, like the Governor, had concerns that the bills addressed the issues in the best way. Ultimately, I concluded they did.
On the third bill, though, I don’t understand the controversy. The Governor stated in his veto letter that “this bill would unfairly preclude some students from participating in concurrent enrollment classes.” That’s not how I read the bill.
The key language of 1 HB 151 reads that colleges can charge:
“partial tuition of up to $30... (read more)
Higher Education
The Tribune editorialized on higher education – correctly identifying a few of the problems but missing the necessary fix.
Things it got right: (1) tuition increases thwart access to higher education and (2) “political urgency” exacerbates Utah’s problem.
What it got wrong: the editorial concludes that the funding problem is caused by smaller institutions offering more degrees.
The State does not waste money on degrees at its smaller colleges. Instead, the State wastes money – and lots of it – by spending two- or three-times as much awarding those very same degrees to many students at the University of Utah without any justification why the taxpayers should pay the extra freight. The only justification for this wasteful practice is that the U is the U. In other words, political urgency: “Yes, we waste a lot of money, but just try and change it.”
The Tribune’s editorial ignores the fact that taxpayers fund students differently at the various institutions. At... (read more)
Concurrent Enrollment Redux