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Daily news: Bill to block public unions from collective bargaining passes Utah House

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This is your daily news rundown for Monday, Jan. 27. In this edition:

  • A bill that would block public unions from collective bargaining has passed the Utah House
  • A reporter that helped the Salt Lake Tribune win its first Pulitzer Prize has died at 102
  • Utah lawmakers are looking to put Utah on year-round standard time, at least for now

Bill to block public unions from collective bargaining passes Utah House

A bill that would block public labor unions from collective bargaining passed the Utah House of Representatives on Monday.

H.B. 267 would ban public employers like school districts from “recognizing a labor organization as a bargaining agent for public employees,” like teachers or police. That includes entering into collective bargaining contracts with their employees.

It would also prevent public money from being used for union organizing or deterring and excludes labor organization employees from receiving state retirement benefits.

Proponents of the bill argued that giving unions the power to collectively bargain blocks the voice of those who disagree with union efforts or aren’t a member.

Opponents called it union-busting and anti-worker, and noted that collective bargaining is already optional in Utah.

The bill passed the Utah House on a 42-32 vote, with some Republicans joining Democrats in pushing back. It now heads to the Senate committee for further discussion.

Reporter who helped the Salt Lake Tribune win its first Pulitzer dies at 102

A reporter who helped the Salt Lake Tribune win its first Pulitzer Prize died over the weekend at age 102.

Robert Clarke “Bob” Blair was among a team of reporters, editors, and photographers that covered a 1956 midair collision of two passenger planes over the Grand Canyon that killed 128 people.

The coverage earned the Salt Lake Tribune its first Pulitzer Prize for local reporting.

Blair worked as a reporter and editor for forty years before retiring in 1985. According to his family, he died peacefully in a Sandy nursing home from natural causes.

A full obituary can be found on the Salt Lake Tribune’s website.

New Utah bill looks to put Utah on year-round standard time — for now

Utah lawmakers are looking to put Utah on standard time year round — at least until they can make the switch to daylight saving instead.

H.B. 120, Time Change Amendments, would put Utah on standard time year-round rather from November to March, which means the sun would rise and set earlier in the summer.

Only two states currently observe permanent standard time, Arizona and Hawaii.

The bill’s sponsor is Rep. Joseph Elison, a Republican representing Washington County. Elison said he doesn’t favor standard time over daylight time or vice versa, but it would take an act of Congress for a state to move permanently to daylight saving time, whereas a state can decide on their own to stay on standard time.

Utah previously passed a law in 2020 that would put Utah on permanent daylight saving time if four other Western states passed similar legislation and the U.S. Congress approved. Enough states have passed similar policies, but federal law still prohibits the change.

If that changes, H.B. 120 would switch to put Utah on permanent daylight saving time instead.

Duck is a general reporter and weekend announcer at UPR, and is studying broadcast journalism and disability studies at USU. They grew up in northern Colorado before moving to Logan in 2018, so the Rocky Mountain life is all they know. Free time is generally spent with their dog, Monty, listening to podcasts, reading or wishing they could be outside more.