Welcome to the end of week five of the legislative session, which wraps up on March 3rd. We have identified our priority bills and look forward to working with our lawmakers in moving these bills forward:
- HB 42, Technology Commercialization Amendments, sponsored by Rep. Jeffrey Stenquist
- SB 185, Transportation Amendments, sponsored by Sen. Wayne Harper
- SB 125, Transportation Infrastructure Amendments, sponsored by Sen. Chris Wilson
- HB 364, Housing Affordability Amendments, sponsored by Rep. Stephen Whyte
- SB 174, Local Land Use and Development Revisions, sponsored by Sen. Lincoln Fillmore
- HB 216, Business and Chancery Court Amendments, sponsored by Rep. Brady Brammer
As we have previously reported, the Chamber has been actively engaged in discussions with lawmakers, industry leaders, and other stakeholders on ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) policies and regulations.
With regards to ESG …Our Position: America’s awesome system of free enterprise allows businesses to be both successful AND responsible in the areas of environmental, social, and governance … without federal ESG mandates OR state ESG prohibitions.
What We Support: The Chamber supports businesses putting economic principles as the foundation of their decision-making processes.
What We Oppose: The Chamber opposes the federal government driving an environmental or social agenda through regulation of the financial industry. We oppose the state government penalizing businesses for voluntarily choosing to adopt environmental, social, or governance goals.
What We Want: The Chamber wants state policies that protect lawful Utah businesses from subjective boycotting from other private or public entities based solely on their industry, products, services, and environmental, social or governance goals … INCLUDING protection from subjective boycotting FROM the State of Utah itself of businesses who voluntarily adopt these goals.
Where Things Stand Now: A notable ESG bill that we are actively working on includes:
- SB 97, Public Contract Requirements, sponsored by Sen. Chris Wilson, which requires a company that bids on and is awarded a contract with any public entity to self-certify that the company is NEITHER engaged in an economic boycott NOR does business with a company that is engaged in a boycott that is intended to penalize or inflict economic harm.
Looking Ahead: The Chamber’s goal is to ensure that legislation for or against ESG is fair and reasonable, and promotes prosperity for both business and community. We are committed to working collaboratively with policymakers, industry leaders, and other stakeholders to develop ESG regulations that are fair and reasonable for businesses of all sizes and sectors.
