Instead of coming out the gate sprinting, Utah lawmakers took more time to get big legislation across the finish line this year. The House and the Senate have also been more at odds with each other than in past sessions.
As a result, bills got bogged down (the governor probably won’t mind). There was also contention on election bills and legislation that targets the judiciary as well as criminal justice.
The state faces a projected budget shortfall of about $112 million this year, leaving little wiggle room for lawmakers to spend on new programs and priorities. Even then, it hasn’t stopped them from pledging another income tax cut for the fifth year in a row.
Similar to past years, lawmakers took up controversial measures early on. They approved a ban on collective bargaining for public sector unions and placed restrictions on where transgender students at state colleges and universities can live on campus. Changes were also made to Utah’s popular vote by mail process and to who hears appeals on denied public records requests.
Here’s what passed and failed in 2025.
Budget:
✅ Bill of all bills: Lawmakers approved a $30 billion budget in the waning minutes of the session. Utah was faced with a tighter budget than in years past. Federal COVID relief money is gone and revenue forecasts were down roughly $112 million according to a February estimate. Despite the belt-tightening, lawmakers still set aside $50 million for a $1,446 salary increase for teachers, plus $50 million for $1,000 bonuses for educator support staff. Additionally, $8.25 million for Gov. Cox’s Operation Gigawatt and efforts to further explore nuclear power in the state. Funding to continue Utah’s first-time homebuyer program was set aside to the tune of $20 million. The budget goes into effect at the start of the new fiscal year on July 1.
Constitutional amendments, ballot initiatives and referendums:
❌ Who writes ballot language? HB563 would have empowered nonpartisan legislative council to write the constitutional amendments, initiatives and referendums that appear on the ballot. Lawmakers previously gave that power to the Senate President and Speaker of the House. Ballot language for 2024’s Amendment D to reform the statewide referendum process — written by Speaker of the House Mike Schultz and Senate President Stuart Adams — was found by the Utah Supreme Court to be misleading. Schultz, for his part, called that change “a mistake” and ran the bill to give that power back to the legislative council with Adams. Even though time ran out on this bill, the change could still be made before the 2026 election.
✅ 60% for ballot initiatives that raise taxes: SJR2 raises the threshold for citizen ballot initiatives that increase taxes or change revenue levels from a simple 50% majority to 60%. Lawmakers argued the bar should be set high to raise taxes. Critics said Utah’s ballot initiative process is already difficult and they were opposed to making it harder. Because this is an amendment to the state constitution, it will need voter approval. It will be on the ballot in 2026.
✅ Referendums need publication in newspapers: People or groups that choose to run a ballot initiative will now be required to pay for it to appear in newspapers statewide — the same requirement the state is constitutionally bound to. It’s estimated that SB73 will cost people $1.4 million to get their language published. If they don’t meet that requirement, the initiative won’t be valid.
❌ Right to work state: Utah law already says this is a right to work state, meaning no one is required to join a labor union. HJR8 would have asked voters to enshrine Utah as a right to work state in the state constitution.
K-12 Education
The money: The Weighted Pupil Unit, the star of the state’s K-12 budget that determines how much money schools receive per student, was increased by 4% — the minimum amount state law requires legislators to raise the WPU to keep up with inflation. Teachers got an extra $1,000 pay raise and support staff got a $1,000 bonus. The Utah Fits All Scholarship was increased by $40 million, bringing the total budget to $122.5 million, but the program will only get half of that new money this year and the second half next year. Lawmakers also allocated $65 million to expand K-12 Career and Technical Education programs.
✅ Voucher guardrails: It’s the first year of the Utah Fit’s All Scholarship and lawmakers have already seen some problems with the new voucher program they wanted to clean up. HB455 gives homeschooled students less money than private school students. Currently, all eligible students can get $8,000. Now, homeschoolers ages 5-11 can receive $4,000, and those ages 12-18 can receive up to $6,000. The bill also puts new limits on how much families can spend on extracurriculars. It also expands the list of prohibited expenses, like ski passes, furniture and season tickets. Gov. Spencer Cox signed it into law.
✅ Parental rights in therapy: HB281 requires school therapists to get written consent from a parent before they meet with a child. It also has parents list what topics or issues can and can't be discussed during a session. After lawmakers received significant pushback from mental health care providers about that second piece, bill sponsor Republican Rep. Stephanie Gricius changed the bill to allow therapists to address prohibited topics “if the omission would compromise the student’s immediate safety” or violate mandatory reporting obligations, such as if the therapist suspects child abuse.
✅ Ban on Planned Parenthood: HB233 prohibits schools from working with Planned Parenthood, or any “elective abortion provider,” to teach students about health. This could cost some schools between $17 to $44 per student if they have to update their health curriculum as a result of this bill, according to the fiscal note.
✅ Phones in schools: Students can no longer use cellphones in class unless a school creates a policy that says otherwise. Under SB178, the default policy for schools statewide will be that students can’t use phones, smart watches or similar devices during class time. Schools can create their own rules that have different restrictions. The bill has been sent to Gov. Spencer Cox and would go into effect July 1. In 2024, Cox sent a letter asking schools to remove phones during class.
✅ School lunches: More students will be eligible for free school lunches under HB100. Instead of the state’s current meal program’s reduced-price option, the bill will provide free lunch for all qualifying students. Students enrolled in meal programs will also be protected from public identification and all information regarding their lunch debt will be communicated to their parents only.
❌ Universal free lunch: A push to make school lunches free for all K-12 students in public schools failed. SB173 would have provided breakfast and lunch to every student at no charge unless their parents opted out. Some lawmakers were concerned by the need for $160 million in ongoing funding outlined in the bill’s fiscal note.
✅ School Safety: In HB40, lawmakers tweaked last year’s massive school safety bill and allocated $25 million in one-time funding for schools to implement the requirements. Republican Rep. Ryan Wilcox, the bill sponsor, previously said schools would need hundreds of millions to implement everything in his 2024 bill. The 2025 cleanup bill gives schools more flexibility in implementation, he said. It also allows a nonprofit foundation to raise money for school safety needs.
✅ Firearm safety class: K-12 schools would be required to teach students about firearm safety under HB104. Classroom instruction could begin as early as kindergarten, though parents would have the option to opt-out.
Higher Education
✅ Budget ‘Reinvestment’: Lawmakers are withholding $60 million from Utah's eight degree-granting public colleges. But, HB265 sets up a process for colleges to earn that money back by coming up with “reinvestment” plans. Schools will have to show how they plan to cut certain “inefficient” programs and redirect that saved money toward more “high-demand” parts of their curriculum. If a school’s reallocation plan doesn’t satisfy state leaders, they won’t get that money back. Lawmakers argued this is to make sure taxpayer and student money is spent as efficiently as possible.
✅ Rooting general education in ‘Western civilization’: Utah State University will get a new general education curriculum under SB344. The bill creates a “Center for Civic Excellence” at USU to figure out what that new coursework looks like. Lawmakers said this new structure will give students a “classically liberal” education that is “rooted in the foundational text and traditions of Western civilization.” If this pilot program is deemed successful by the Utah Board of Higher Education, it could be expanded statewide.
✅ President search secrecy: SB282 keeps the selection process for a new college president almost entirely behind closed doors. Current law directs search committees to announce their top three to five choices before the Utah Board of Higher Education makes a final decision. Under this bill, the names of finalists would be sent to the board in secret. It passed almost unanimously through the House and Senate. Lawmakers argued this would attract more qualified candidates as more people might be willing to apply if they knew their name wouldn’t be released unless they got the job. As long as Gov. Spencer Cox approves the bill, the upcoming search for Utah State University’s new top leader will be kept secret.
Labor
✅ Ban on collective bargaining: HB267 strips public labor unions of their ability to collectively bargain for better wages and working conditions. Despite strong opposition from teachers, firefighters, law enforcement and other public employees, Gov. Spencer Cox signed the bill after it narrowly passed the Legislature. Some unions are now seeking to overturn the law with a ballot referendum.
Child Care
❌Repurposing state buildings: For the second year in a row, lawmakers killed a bill that would’ve turned empty state-owned buildings into child care facilities through public-private partnerships. This was one of the recommendations in a recent report lawmakers commissioned to figure out how to handle the child care crisis. SB189 was a bipartisan effort and like last year, it died in the House.
Elections
✅ Vote by mail: Instead of active voters automatically being sent a ballot in the mail, they will need to opt-in starting in 2029. Voters will also need to list the last four digits of a valid ID on their ballot. Republican lawmakers say HB300 will increase election security and integrity. But it drew significant opposition and critics argue the revisions to the popular vote by mail process will make elections less secure because it won’t require a signature on a ballot.
✅ Private ballot: HB69 prohibits county clerks from tracking how voters turn in their ballots. It was in response to the Utah County Clerk who announced how a senator in the county submitted his ballot. The bill also snuck in a provision that requires residents to pay all attorney fees accrued if they lose a public records appeal to the state.
❌ No more same day voter registration: A bill that would have eliminated Utah’s same-day voter registration passed through the House only to be held in a Senate committee. It was eventually returned to the rules committee, effectively killing the bill. Utah voters will still be able to register to vote in person on Election Day if they choose.
❌ Runoff elections: HB231 would have runoff elections for primaries with more than two candidates when no candidate gets over 50% of the vote. Currently, the candidate with the most votes wins, even if they don’t have 50%. Some lawmakers have expressed concerns over the cost of running another election, as well as what adding a runoff could do to voter fatigue.
❌ Election conflict of interest officer: After talk of stripping the lieutenant governor of their role in overseeing elections, HB369 was changed to create a “conflict of interest elections officer” who would step in if the lieutenant governor was a candidate in a race they were overseeing. After passing through the House, the bill stalled in a Senate committee.
❌ Election Day is a state holiday: HB351 would have officially recognized Election Day as a state holiday but excluded it as a legal holiday that requires a work-related closure. In other words, your employer isn’t required to give you the day off.
❌ Voter registration data: Changes to how Utah compiles and stores voter registration data will not move forward after the bill was held in a Senate committee. Rep. Karianne Lisonbee’s HB332 aimed to help clean up the state’s voter rolls by removing people who either moved out of state, were inactive or died. An earlier version would have also removed Utah from the multi-state Electronic Registration Information Center, which helps states share voter data.
Energy
✅ Nuclear power consortium: After some last-minute back and forth between the House and Senate, a bill creating a framework for how Utah develops nuclear power passed out of both chambers on March 6. HB249 creates the Utah Nuclear Energy Council, establishes a process for designating energy development zones and creates an energy development investment fund to help finance future projects. Lawmakers are eager to get this process started now because the timeline for developing nuclear technology is a long one — often 10 years or longer.
✅ Tri-state energy compact: State lawmakers want to explore an energy compact between Utah, Idaho and Wyoming. The push for HCR9 comes amid continued pressure for Rocky Mountain Power to split from its parent company, PacifiCorp over political differences on energy policy between the Rocky Mountain States of Utah, Idaho and Wyoming and the PacifiCorp states of California, Oregon and Washington.
Immigration
❌ E-verify: A bill that would have required all Utah businesses with more than five employees to electronically verify the legal working status of their employees was held in a House committee in February. It was not revived after strong pushback from the agriculture and construction industries, as well as several chambers of commerce. As it stands now, only businesses with over 150 employees need to electronically verify their employees.
✅ Jail sentences: HB226 changes the maximum penalty for certain misdemeanors from 364 days to a full year, or 365 days. This means a conviction triggers automatic deportation under federal law. As the bill progressed, the list of applicable offenses narrowed to only violent crimes. The bill’s sponsor, Republican Rep. Candice Pierurri, said it was about aligning the state with federal law. But opponents, including Republican Sen. Daniel Thatcher, voted against it because it would affect immigrants with legal status and refugees.
✅ English learners: Under HB42, a school would be eligible for extra funding if the number of English language learners increases by 75% compared to the previous three-year average. The funding could be used to train teachers, reduce class sizes, hire classroom aides or other resources to help students who are learning English.
❌ Repealing State CHIP: HB178 would’ve ended Utah’s low-cost health insurance program for children without legal status. The program serves roughly 1,875 children. It was debated in a House committee but never got a vote.
❌ Wire transfer fees: HB284 would have put a 2% tax on international money transfers for people without valid government ID (driving privilege cards, which Utah offers to people without legal status, don’t count). Those who file tax returns could recover those funds through a nonrefundable income tax credit.
LGBTQ+ issues
✅ Transgender dorm assignments: Gov. Spencer Cox has signed a bill into law that restricts where transgender students attending state colleges and universities can live on campus. HB269 bars transgender students from living in sex-designated dorms that align with their gender identity. Instead, they need to reside in a dorm that matches their sex assigned at birth or request to be placed in a “gender-neutral” dorm. There are no exceptions, even if a student has changed their birth certificate and undergone gender-affirming surgery.
✅ Transgender inmates: Building off legislation passed during the 2024 session, HB252 prohibits transgender minors in juvenile justice centers from living in a cell that aligns with their gender identity. They must be assigned to living quarters that match their sex assigned at birth. There are no exceptions. The legislation also restricts gender-affirming care for adult transgender inmates unless they were already prescribed treatment, like hormone therapy, before incarceration.
❌ Pronouns in school: HB250 would have protected all public employees who refer to someone in a professional setting by the incorrect pronouns or name from disciplinary action. Bill sponsor, Republican Rep. Nicholeen Peck, said it was needed to protect employees who make a “good faith” effort to use the correct pronouns and name but still misgender or deadname someone. LGBTQ+ advocates called the bill unnecessary.
✅ Pride flags: A bill awaiting Gov. Spencer Cox’s final decision would ban pride flags from public schools and government property. Under HB77, only flags specifically listed in the bill could be displayed. Approved flags include the U.S. flag, state flag, flags for other countries, military flags, flags of Native American tribes, Olympic flags, as well as official flags of colleges and universities. Equality Utah called the bill “unconstitutional” and “seemingly fueled by an ongoing dispute with Salt Lake City.” The group said they would support legal challenges to the bill. The ACLU of Utah is urging the governor to veto the bill.
❌ Gender-affirming care: HB521 sought to ban the use of public funds to pay for gender-affirming care procedures, like surgery and hormone therapy, for transgender Utahns. The legislation would have heavily impacted transgender Utahns employed and insured in the public sector. It also raised questions about public health care professionals, specifically at the University of Utah, who administer gender-affirming care.
Judiciary
❌ Judicial retention changes: After a standoff between the judicial and legislative branches, legislators backed off on efforts to reform Utah’s judicial retention process. HB512 would have created a legislative committee to evaluate judges and print those recommendations on the ballot. HB451 would have increased the retention threshold for a judge to 67% instead of 50%. Both bills were halted after strong pushback from Utah’s legal community but could be back in future sessions.
✅ Judicial standing changes: SB203 restricts who can bring a lawsuit against the state to challenge a potentially unconstitutional law. Critics say this could make it harder for everyday Utahns to challenge laws they view as unconstitutional.
✅ Who chooses the chief justice? Lawmakers want more control over who becomes the chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court. As it stands now, the chief justice is chosen by the other justices. SB296 changes that so the governor appoints the chief justice and the Senate approves that choice.
Environment
✅ Halogen emissions: Utah will try to curb emissions of halogen, a byproduct of the smelting, mining and extracting of magnesium. Rep. Andrew Stoddard's HB420 directs the Utah Division of Air Quality to complete an emission reduction plan and requires an annual report to be filed and presented to the Legislature.
✅ Pollinator program: HB251 makes Utah’s pollinator program permanent. On a first-come-first-served basis, the state will cover up to 75% of the costs of planting pollinator-friendly native flowering plants or seeds for those plants on private or public land.
Health
✅ No soda on SNAP: In a narrow vote, lawmakers approved limitations on how Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits can be used. HB403 restricts SNAP recipients from purchasing soda and other carbonated beverages that have “no nutritional value.” There was a split among Senate Republicans on the bill, with one lawmaker calling the bill “nanny stateism” for dictating what a family can buy.
✅ No fluoride allowed: Fluoride would no longer be added to Utah’s public water systems. Currently, municipalities decide if they want to put fluoride in the system. While fluoride can still occur naturally, HB81 prohibits putting any additional supply of the mineral in the water. Bill sponsor Republican Rep. Stephanie Gricius argued high levels of fluoride can cause negative health effects and that cities should not be deciding to medicate children. However, medical professionals say fluoride in drinking water protects against cavities, tooth decay and general oral problems.
✅ Infertility treatments: SB242 provides coverage under the Public Employees' Benefit and Insurance Program for qualified assisted reproductive technology, including in vitro fertilization.
Housing
❌ Smaller lots: Zoning regulations in different cities require homes to be a certain size. HB90 would have authorized single-family home construction to be built on lots of 6,000 square feet, smaller than many cities allow. The move was an effort to bolster Utah’s housing supply. However, the bill was killed in committee.
❌ ADU construction: To help ease the affordable housing crisis, HB88 would have allowed accessory dwelling units to be built in residential zones in urban cities. Right now, zoning regulations throughout many Utah cities prohibit the construction of granny flats. This bill would have bypassed local zoning ordinances so homeowners could construct ADUs with less red tape.
✅ Parking requirements: SB181 prohibits municipalities from imposing certain parking requirements for housing construction. The bill also bars municipalities from requiring a garage for dwellings that are single-family, owner-occupied affordable housing. According to Senate sponsor Lincoln Fillmore, easing up parking requirements will make affordable housing easier and cheaper to build.
✅ Affordable housing plan: HB37 requires the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget to develop a state housing plan by Dec. 31 and for that office to submit an annual written report on implementation to the Legislature. The bill also allows municipalities to incentivize the building of owner-occupied affordable housing in areas zoned for it.
Public Safety
✅ SLC public safety: Lawmakers have been vocal about their concerns for public safety in Salt Lake City. Even though the city’s mayor, Erin Mendenhall, proposed a plan addressing homelessness in January, the Legislature is taking steps to involve the state in the matter. HB465 would require Salt Lake City law enforcement to partner with the Department of Public Safety to work to improve issues of public safety.
✅ Substance use treatment: Law enforcement hopes to be better equipped to tackle substance abuse issues under HB199. It will prepare first responders with a list of mental health and substance use services that is updated every year. It also makes resources more accessible by allowing mobile opioid treatment units on Utah’s streets.
✅ Drug Trafficking Amendments: In an effort to tackle Utah’s fentanyl crisis, HB87 makes trafficking the drug a first-degree felony. That means offenders would face at least five years of prison time. The bill got unanimous support in both chambers and is heading to the governor.
✅ Homelessness Services: HB329 creates a zero-tolerance drug policy at Utah’s homeless shelters. If a shelter doesn’t meet these requirements, it could face a fine or lose state funding. It would also work to help individuals experiencing homelessness by matching them with caseworkers under the state’s Know-by-Name pilot program.
❌ Lower open carry age: HB133, an attempt to allow 18- to 20-year-old Utahns to openly carry loaded firearms in public, passed out of the House but died in a Senate committee.
Technology
✅ App store verification: SB142 requires app stores to verify the age of users and get parental consent for minors to download apps to their devices. Meta, the company that owns Facebook and Instagram applauded the action. Utah is the first state in the nation to pass such legislation.
✅ Data sharing: When you leave a social media platform, HB418 says you can take your data with you. Right now, digital platforms own everything you post but the legislation allows users to take ownership of their data, including posts and photos.
✅ AI identity abuse: SB271 would expand what counts as identity abuse to include the use of someone’s artificially recreated identity for commercial purposes without that person’s consent. That includes using their name, image or voice.
Taxes:
✅ Income tax cut: Lawmakers have approved another income tax cut for the fifth year in a row. HB106 reduces the income tax rate from 4.55% to 4.5%. A report by Voices of Utah Children found the cut will save the top 1% of earners nearly $2,000 a year and the bottom 20% of earners will save $13. It also expands a nonrefundable child tax credit for some parents with children under six years old. The cuts will cost the state $103 million.
✅ Reroute school property taxes: Under SB37, the property tax money paid with the “State Basic School Levy” would go to the state’s unrestricted General Fund instead of directly to school districts. The state would pay school districts back the same amount. Proponents say this will give the state more budget flexibility and won’t impact schools. But opponents call it ‘washing money’ and worry schools will lose out on future growth in state funds. The Utah State Board of Education is asking Gov. Spencer Cox to veto the bill.
✅ Social Security tax cuts: Gov. Spencer Cox wanted the Legislature to grant his wish to abolish income tax on Social Security benefits. But SB71 opted for a tax credit instead. It expands the Social Security tax credit by increasing the income thresholds for households from $75,000 to $90,000.
❌ Sales tax on food: A move to eliminate the state’s portion of the sales tax on groceries died before it was ever introduced. SB122 never received a committee hearing. Last year, lawmakers attempted to get rid of the sales tax on food in return for Utah voters approving a constitutional change to remove the income tax earmark on education. However, the question was voided from the 2024 general election ballot.
A little bit of this, a little bit of that
✅ It’s Utahn NOT Utahan: It’s official. SB230 enshrines Utahn as the state demonym. ot ‘Utahan’ or ‘Utahian,’ it’s Utahn. While the correct spelling is widely known among Utahns, Republican bill sponsor Sen. Dan McCay said the move was more for national news outlets.
❌ Flavored vape ban: Utah banned the sale of flavored e-cigarette juice and vapes in 2024. HB432 sought to overturn that ban to allow flavored vapes on the shelves of authorized retailers. As a result, a lawsuit brought against the state regarding the ban would be dropped. There would also be stricter regulations, fees and fines imposed on retailers as well as stricter penalties for people who sell vapes illegally, including the purchase for a person under 21. The House killed the bill over concerns that flavored vapes are enticing to minors and that the industry relies on getting minors addicted to nicotine to stay afloat.
❌ Lower open carry age: HB133, an attempt to allow 18- to 20-year-old Utahns to openly carry loaded firearms in public, passed out of the House but died in a Senate committee.
✅ Speciality license plates: HB324 will direct $23 out of the $25 license plate fee away from the state historical society and toward the Transportation Investment Fund, beginning July 1. As a compromise with the historical society, it sets aside a one-time $3.5 million sum for the Heritage and Arts Foundation Fund under the Department of Cultural and Community Engagement, which oversees the Utah State Historical Society. Utahns love black license plates and have raised $6.4M for the society, attracting lawmakers’ attention.
❌ Daylight savings: Utahns will continue to revel in an extra hour of daylight because lawmakers nixed a bill that would have moved the state to Standard Time. HB120 wanted to save residents the trouble of changing the clocks twice a year. Alas, Daylight Saving Time is here to stay – for now.
Elle Crossley is an intern with Amplify Utah and KUER covering the Utah State Legislature and other local news.
