This is your daily news rundown for Wednesday, March 18. In this edition:
- LDS women can now be Sunday School presidents in local wards
- Rep. Jefferson Burton has withdrawn his reelection bid for November's election
- With this week's heat, the Division of Wildlife Resources is stocking fish early this year
LDS women can now hold a role that was previously only for men
Women who are part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can now hold a leadership position previously only allowed for men — local ward Sunday School president.
Previously, women could only lead organizations for women or children, whereas Sunday School is for older kids and adults.
Under the new rules, a woman Sunday School president must have all-women counselors and vice versa for men.
The church's rules for other positions held by only men, such as bishops or the First Presidency, have not changed.
This Utah lawmaker has withdrawn his reelection run
Another Utah lawmaker has announced he is not running for reelection.
Rep. Jefferson Burton currently serves District 64, which is over part of Utah County, and has been part of the Utah State Legislature for over five years.
He had originally filed to run again, but announced on Tuesday that he’s moving out of his district, which makes him ineligible for the position under state rules.
That leaves two Republican challengers for the District 64 spot — Matthew Durant and Jackie Larson.
Burton is one of several incumbent lawmakers who decided not to run for reelection in November, including Majority Assistant Whip Bridger Bolinder and Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, the former Utah House majority whip.
With Utah's near-record heat, fish are being stocked early this year
The Department of Wildlife Resources is stocking fish in Utah’s reservoirs early ahead of near-record high temperatures this week.
Usually fish aren’t stocked for anglers until April or even May, but because reservoirs are going to get really low this year, the division said, they want to make sure fish are in the water long enough for anglers to catch them.
Where fish are stocked may also change depending on conditions, but anglers will likely have better luck at high elevation, in big bodies of water.
Coldwater species like trout will likely struggle the most with higher temperatures and lower water levels, as they don’t do well in water above 70 degrees.
The division plans to stock more cool and warmwater species like walleye and catfish as time goes on.
