This is your daily news rundown for Thursday, Sept. 17. In this edition:
- Even over the winter, Utahns with pets should keep an eye out for harmful algal blooms
- The final Utah Supreme Court vacancies were confirmed this week after a months-long saga
- Utah is establishing a new veterans cemetery in Washington Terrace
Harmful algal blooms can last even after monitoring stops
State officials will stop monitoring for harmful algal blooms by the end of next month — but that doesn’t necessarily mean the risk will go away.
The Utah Division of Water Quality said these blooms can continue in colder weather. When in doubt, the agency said to keep pets and hunting dogs out of the water.
Harmful algal blooms can look like a mat of something green in the water or just water with a greenish tint. The toxins in them can be especially harmful to dogs.
Over two dozen Utah water bodies are currently under harmful algae advisories. By the end of October, many of those will be lifted and online updates from the Division of Water Quality will stop until the spring.
The final Utah Supreme Court nominees were confirmed
The final vacant seats on the Utah Supreme Court have been filled with the confirmation of Judge Matthew Bell and Michael Menssen this week.
Bell is a longtime judge who has worked for the District of Utah and the Fifth Judicial District. Michael Menssen is an attorney working in Salt Lake City without judicial experience.
Both new justices emphasized the importance of originalism throughout the confirmation process. That’s a legal philosophy that says legal documents like the U.S. Constitution should be interpreted as they were understood at the time of their adoption.
It’s the end of a months-long saga for the state’s highest court. Justice Diana Hagen retired in May after allegations of misconduct from Republicans, and soon after, Chief Justice Matthew Durrant announced his retirement.
Lawmakers also voted to expand the court from five to seven justices.
That means Governor Spencer Cox has nominated over half of the Utah Supreme Court this year. Because of a law passed last year, he will also get to select the new chief justice.
Utah got funds to establish a new veterans cemetery in northern Utah
Utah is getting over $16.5 million for two veterans’ cemeteries.
The majority of that funding will be used to establish the Northern Utah Veterans Cemetery in Washington Terrace. It will serve more than 4,000 veterans and their eligible family members.
The rest will go to expanding the Utah Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park in Bluffdale. That cemetery already serves over 100,000 veterans and family members.
The funding comes from the Department of Veterans Affairs’ National Cemetery administration, which has awarded over $1 billion for veterans cemeteries since 1980.
