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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SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — A semi-truck tipped onto its side blocked several northbound lanes on Interstate 15 in Salt Lake City.
The crash was first reported by the Utah Department of Transportation around 6:20 a.m. and was located at the top of the on-ramp from 1300 South.
Traffic cameras in the area showed the truck rolled over, blocking multiple lanes to the right of the highway. First responders arrived on scene and blocked two more lanes, leaving only one lane open for through traffic.
It is currently unclear what caused the semi-truck to rollover or if there were any injuries as a result of the crash.
UDOT advised drivers to expect major delays on I-15 and to use an alternate route, such as I-215 or State Street.
As of 7 a.m., UDOT’s traffic monitor website showed traffic was at a near standstill as far back as 3300 South, nearly five miles south of the crash site.
No estimate for when I-15 would reopen was immediately available.
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Utah
Gov. Cox calls Utah Legislature into special session on redistricting, to repeal collective bargaining ban
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Gov. Spencer Cox has called the Utah Legislature into a special session to address redistricting and election-related issues, and repeal Utah’s collective bargaining ban after it qualified for a vote on the 2026 ballot.
The call was anticipated, but beyond election deadlines, the agenda items signal that lawmakers will address the appellate process when they gather on Tuesday, Dec. 9, at 6 p.m. The GOP-controlled legislature is currently anticipating embarking on an appeals process after a Third District judge struck down a redistricted map drawn by lawmakers and put in place one crafted by an expert for anti-gerrymandering groups.
Lawmakers will address “amendments to court rules related to appeals by government officers or governmental entities and appeals of election, voting, and redistricting cases; and clarify that the Utah Supreme Court has exclusive and original appellate jurisdiction over election, voting, and redistricting cases, to address the appeals process for a post-judgment motion on attorney fees in such cases, and address statutory inconsistencies,” according to the Governor’s call.
As reported exclusively by ABC4, lawmakers will push back filing deadlines and consider a joint resolution about the “constitutional authority” of the courts. Utah’s GOP leaders have been highly critical of Judge Dianna Gibson since the ruling in late August, some even suggesting impeachment.
Repeal of HB267 after successful signature gathering
The repeal of the anti-collective bargaining ban, known by its bill name H.B. 267, comes after months of speculation that a repeal was in the works after public labor unions gathered more than enough signatures at lightning speed for a referendum to put the question to voters in 2026.
The coalition labor groups, called Protect Utah Workers, supported the repeal in a statement after the call was made public.
“The expected repeal belongs to the Utahns who stood up and signed the referendum,” the coalition said. “More than 320,000 people who signed the petition sent a clear message that public workers deserve a voice on the job. The coalition thanks legislative leadership for respecting the will of the people. This anticipated repeal preserves the rights of firefighters, police, nurses, public educators, transportation workers, airport staff, and all other critical public workers who improve the lives of Utahns every day,” said a spokesperson for the group.
Here is the complete list of agenda items for Tuesday’s special session:
- to modify election provisions relating to qualifying for placement on a primary election ballot, including changing the declaration of candidacy filing period for congressional office;
- to consider a joint resolution of the House of Representatives and the Senate regarding constitutional authority, including in redistricting, and the redistricting process;
- to consider amendments to court rules related to appeals by government officers or governmental entities and appeals of election, voting, and redistricting cases;
- to clarify that the Utah Supreme Court has exclusive and original appellate jurisdiction over election, voting, and redistricting cases, to address the appeals process for a post- judgment motion on attorney fees in such cases, and to address statutory inconsistencies regarding the appellate jurisdiction of the Utah Supreme Court and Utah Court of Appeals; and
- to repeal H.B. 267, Public Sector Labor Union Amendments, enacted in the 2025
General Session.
Oklahoma City has dominated the NBA. They hope to continue to do so on Sunday against the Utah Jazz, the second time the Thunder have played in Salt Lake City this season. In the first meeting, OKC overcame a red-hot shooting night to eventually blow out the Jazz after Utah put themselves in a great position following the opening frame.
In that game, the Thunder were short handed, much like they will be in this contest. So far this season, Oklahoma City has missed multiple games from All-NBA swingman Jalen Williams, Rising Star big man Chet Holmgren, Sharpshooter Isaiah Joe, Top Bench Bucket Getter Aaron Wiggins, Defensive-Aces Alex Caruso and Lu Dort, veteran Kenrich Williams and starting big man Isaiah Hartenstein.
For this Sunday affair, the Oklahoma City Thunder will see their superstar, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, miss his first game of the season with elbow bursitis. Joining him in street clothes will be Joe, Caruso, Dort and Hartenstein.
This will make Mark Daigneault’s job a bit trickier but the OKC Thunder are still favored to win this road contest. Here is what to watch for tonight.
What to Watch For
Oklahoma City is having to navigate its first game of the season without superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. To take an automatic 30 points out of the lineup will be hard to replace; he has been the lone constant in this season for the short-handed Bricktown Ballers. This will take Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren stepping up in a big way in the scoring department to replace that production.
The big question remains the Thunder’s depth, Oklahoma City will have to shuffle their rotation and likely include lineups without any of Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams or Holmgren on the court. How will OKC handle that outcome on the offensive end?
This game will likely come down to who performs the best shooting from distance, the great equalizer in basketball and if either team is red-hot it can help mask deficiencies for both clubs.
Game Information
- Date: Dec. 07
- Matchup: OKC Thunder (22-1) vs. Utah Jazz (8-14)
- Time: 07:00 PM CT
- Location: Delta Center –– Salt Lake City, UT
- TV: Fanduel Sports OK
- Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM)
The Oklahoma City Thunder are hoping to cap off a 3-0 week with a win tonight over the Utah Jazz. The Thunder then get to enjoy two more days off before opening up the knockout round of the NBA Cup tournament on Dec. 10 against the Phoenix Suns. That game holds the right for the winner to advance to Vegas and continue their pursuit of the cup championship and cash prize at the end. Oklahoma City sits 22-1, two games shy of the Warriors’ 24-1 start way back in 2015-16.
Stay tuned to Thunder on SI for complete coverage of this Oklahoma City Thunder season as the Bricktown Ballers continue to make history this season.
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