Utah
Proposed bill would define what’s allowed on personalized Utah license plates
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SALT LAKE CITY — After a pair of failed attempts to pause Utah’s personalized license plate program over concerns of future legal challenges, a bill that takes another route to the issue cleared its first challenge Wednesday following some additional changes.
Members of the House Transportation Committee voted 7-3 to advance an amended version of HB186. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Norman Thurston, R-Provo, seeks to outline in state code what would not be allowed on a personalized license plate, such as any combination of letters or numbers that is “indecent, obscene, profane or connotes certain other illegal activities or substances.”
These, according to the bill, include profanities, “vulgar, coarse or irreverent” terms and anything that “naturally provokes a violent resentment.” It also includes any “statement or use of innuendo, euphemism, double-entendre,” as well as anything that “depicts or describes sexual or eliminatory activities or organs; and patently offensive or appears to pander or is used to titillate or shock,” among other terms that wouldn’t be allowed.
The intent behind the bill remains the same as in recent years. Thurston explained to the committee that he’s concerned with how Utah approves personalized plates. He fears that the state denying a swear word could lead to a lawsuit over freedom of speech based on the current law.
“The problem is that court cases around the country, federal cases in particular, are finding that states cannot ban just whatever they want,” he told the committee. “The First Amendment requires that any restrictions must be viewpoint neutral and cannot be vague — they have to be specific enough that people can understand the law.”
The representative floated around somewhat similar bills over the previous two legislative sessions, although both of those called on the state to temporarily stop issuing any personalized license plates while the state waits for further legal clarification.
In 2022, his bill that included the pause sailed through the House of Representatives but the Senate failed to vote on it before the session came to a close. Then, last year, the same bill was altered to remove the provision that called for the pause while the rest of the bill went into law.
This year’s bill doesn’t seek to stop the program for any point in time; rather, it intends to codify what’s considered appropriate that “still passes constitutional muster.”
“Hopefully, we’ll get it right this time and the Senate will love it and we won’t have to talk about it again,” he said.
His presentation led to a flurry of clarifying though, as constituents and lawmakers sought to understand the restrictions better.
Crystal Young, a member of the audience, asked about nuances within outlined banned terms. She asked if her partner could have a license plate that reads “69TESLA,” because the bill lists No. 69 as a possible example of “indecent” language.
Thurston explained that the context of a request would be used in this situation. In that scenario, the plate shouldn’t be rejected; however, it could be rejected if it’s determined that the number is used indecently.
In the end, she said doesn’t oppose the effort because it doesn’t attempt to restrict “viewpoint diversity.”
Questions about the bill sparked a pair of amendments during the meeting. The changes clarify that any slur is on the list of banned language and tweak the wording to say that the Utah Division of Motor Vehicles “shall consider how an objective reasonable person would interpret the requested language with no other context.”
Others doubted the need for the bill, though.
Utah State Tax Commission Chairman John Valentine said the commission, which oversees the Division of Motor Vehicles, hasn’t issued a stance on the bill yet, but there are “significant administrative concerns” with what’s in the bill now because it shakes up the current standard that has “stood the test of time.”
Rep. Kay Christofferson, R-Lehi, voted against the measure for similar reasons. He believes it has “a lot of good points,” but that it’s also a nonissue right now.
“At this point, why change it when it’s not broken?” he said. “I’m inclined to just say let’s keep this in mind, but let’s hold off at this point.”
But Thurston countered that it’s why Utah should look at the measure now, so it avoids a legal conflict that it may lose without bolstering the law.
“Every other state that got sued had not been sued until they were sued,” he quipped. “We haven’t been sued yet. We don’t know if that’s going to happen sooner or later or not at all.”
In the end, the committee voted in favor of the bill, sending it to the House floor for a full vote. The bill must be approved by the House of Representatives and Senate by March 1.
If approved, it’ll go into law in May.
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Utah
911 recordings detail hours leading up to discovery of Utah girl, mother dead in Las Vegas
CONTENT WARNING: This report discusses suicide and includes descriptions of audio from 911 calls that some viewers may find disturbing.
LAS VEGAS — Exclusively obtained 911 recordings detail the hours leading up to the discovery of an 11-year-old Utah girl and her mother dead inside a Las Vegas hotel room in an apparent murder-suicide.
Addi Smith and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, lived in West Jordan and had traveled to Nevada for the JAMZ cheerleading competition.
The calls show a growing sense of urgency from family members and coaches, and several hours passing before relatives learned what happened.
MORE | Murder-Suicide
Below is a timeline of the key moments, according to dispatch records. All times are Pacific Time.
10:33 a.m. — Call 1
After Addi and her mother failed to appear at the cheerleading competition, Addi’s father and stepmother called dispatch for a welfare check.
Addi and her mother were staying at the Rio hotel. The father told dispatch that hotel security had already attempted contact.
“Security went up and knocked on the door. There’s no answer or response it doesn’t look like they checked out or anything…”
11:18 a.m. and 11:27 a.m. — Calls 2 and 3
As concern grew, Addi’s coach contacted the police two times within minutes.
“We think the child possibly is in imminent danger…”
11:26 a.m. — Call 4
Addi’s stepmother placed another call to dispatch, expressing escalating concern.
“We are extremely concerned we believe that something might have seriously happened.”
She said that Tawnia’s car was still at the hotel.
Police indicated officers were on the way.
2:26 p.m. — Call 5
Nearly three hours after the initial welfare check request, fire personnel were en route to the scene. It appeared they had been in contact with hotel security.
Fire told police that they were responding to a possible suicide.
“They found a note on the door.”
2:35 p.m. — Call 6
Emergency medical personnel at the scene told police they had located two victims.
“It’s going to be gunshot wound to the head for both patients with notes”
A dispatcher responded:
“Oh my goodness that’s not okay.”
2:36 p.m. — Call 7
Moments later, fire personnel relayed their assessment to law enforcement:
“It’s going to be a murder suicide, a juvenile and a mother.”
2:39 p.m. — Call 8
Unaware of what had been discovered, Addi’s father called dispatch again.
“I’m trying to file a missing persons report for my daughter.”
He repeats the details he knows for the second time.
3:13 p.m. — Call 9
Father and stepmother call again seeking information and continue to press for answers.
“We just need some information. There was a room check done around 3:00 we really don’t know where to start with all of this Can we have them call us back immediately?”
Dispatch responded:
“As soon as there’s a free officer, we’ll have them reach out to you.”
4:05 p.m. — Call 10
More than an hour later, Addi’s father was put in contact with the police on the scene. He pleaded for immediate action.
“I need someone there I need someone there looking in that room”
The officer confirmed that they had officers currently in the room.
Addi’s father asks again what they found, if Addi and her mother are there, and if their things were missing.
The officer, who was not on scene, said he had received limited information.
5:23 p.m. — Call 11
Nearly seven hours after the first welfare check request, Addi’s grandmother contacted police, describing conflicting information circulating within the family.
“Some people are telling us that they were able to get in, and they were not in the hotel room, and other people saying they were not able to get in the hotel room, and we need to know”
She repeated the details of the case. Dispatch said officers will call her back once they have more information.
Around 8:00 p.m. — Press Conference
Later that evening, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police held a news conference confirming that Addi and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, were found dead inside the hotel room.
The investigation remains ongoing.
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Utah
Ban on AI glasses in Utah classrooms inches closer to passing
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — AI glasses could allow you to get answers, snap photos, access audio and take phone calls—and now a proposal moving through the legislature would ban the glasses from Utah school classrooms.
“I think it’s a great idea,” said Kizzy Guyton Murphy, a mother who accompanied her child’s class on a field trip to the state Capitol on Wednesday. “You can’t see inside what the student is looking at, and it’s just grounds for cheating.”
Mom Tristan Davies Seamons also sees trouble with AI glasses.
“I don’t think they should have any more technology in schools than they currently have,” she said.
Her twin daughters, fourth graders Finley and Grayson, don’t have cell phones yet.
“Not until we’re like 14,” said Grayson, adding they do have Chromebooks in school.
2News sent questions to the Utah State Board of Education:
- Does it have reports of students using AI glasses?
- Does it see cheating and privacy as major concerns?
- Does it support a ban from classrooms?
Matt Winters, USBE AI specialist, said the board has not received reports from school districts of students with AI glasses.
“Local Education Agencies (school districts) have local control over these decisions based on current law and code,” said Winters. “The Board has not taken a position on AI glasses.
MORE | Utah State Legislature:
Some districts across the country have reportedly put restrictions on the glasses in schools.
“I think it should be up to the teachers,” said Briauna Later, another mother who is all for preventing cheating, but senses a ban could leave administrators with tired eyes.
“It’s one more thing for the administration to have to keep track of,” said Later.
The proposal, HB 42, passed the House and cleared a Senate committee on Wednesday.
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Utah
Kalshi sues Utah over efforts to stop prop betting in the state
SALT LAKE CITY — A prediction market is suing Utah over plans to regulate proposition betting that it says would run afoul of federal regulations.
Kalshi is a New York-based prediction market that allows users to place “event contracts” on future outcomes and earn a payout if they are correct. Those transactions are regulated through the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, the company said Utah has plans to prevent the company from offering contracts in the state and asked the courts to block any enforcement that “interferes with the operation and function of plaintiffs’ futures market.”
“Plaintiff KalshiEX LLC believes the governor of Utah and the Attorney General’s Office of Utah will imminently bring an enforcement action against Kalshi with the intent to prevent Kalshi from offering event contracts for trading on its federally regulated exchange,” the complaint states. “Defendants have repeatedly represented that they believe Kalshi is operating unlawfully under Utah anti-gambling laws.”
The lawsuit points to a couple of posts from Gov. Spencer Cox and an op-ed written by Attorney General Derek Brown in the Deseret News on Sunday. After Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Mike Selig announced that his agency would “defend its exclusive jurisdiction” over prediction markets last week, Cox took to X calling the markets “gambling — pure and simple.”
“They are destroying the lives of families and countless Americans, especially young men,” he wrote. “They have no place in Utah. Let me be clear, I will use every resource within my disposal as governor of the sovereign state of Utah, and under the Constitution of the United States to beat you in court.”
He followed that up last Thursday, saying Utah is “ready to defend our laws in court and protect Utahns from companies that drive addiction, isolation and serious financial harm.”
In his op-ed, Brown argued that prediction markets are “the newest iteration of gambling” and said he didn’t see a difference between betting and trading futures.
“Although traditional sports betting apps are illegal under Utah law, these platforms argue that they merely allow users to hedge their risk,” he wrote. “But what is the real risk to hedge when you are simply predicting whether LeBron James will score more or less than another player? It’s simply a bet, dressed up in different clothing.”
The lawsuit also comes as the state Legislature is advancing a bill that would clarify that proposition betting — or betting placed on specific players or events during games — falls under the state’s definition of gambling, which is prohibited by the Utah Constitution. HB243 has passed the House and a Senate committee and is awaiting consideration on the Senate floor.
But Kalshi says its contracts are lawful thanks to a carveout in Utah’s anti-gambling laws that allows for “lawful business.” Its lawsuit claims Kalshi’s attorneys made “multiple attempts” to contact Brown about potential action against the company but were “met with silence, even though the Utah AG had previously been willing to communicate with counsel.”
Asked about the lawsuit on Tuesday, Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said he is “standing with the governor on this one.”
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
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