LET’S SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT!
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In an attempt to discredit me and minimize my service, my opponent has, unfortunately, said some things which are untrue.
Please allow me to share some facts so that you may make an informed decision when you vote at Convention. This email will set the record straight about:
- My effectiveness and reputation with colleagues
- Running to serve, not for my bucket list
- How many bills I ran in General Session
- My reputation with Senators
- Co-sponsoring bills
- Major legislation I’ve passed
- Special interest group “Scorecards”
- Awards I’ve received
- 2019’s tax reform passage and repeal
- Calendar of coming events
As always, reach out to me directly with any questions or concerns! My number is (801) 809-3571.
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THINGS I WOULD LIKE YOU TO KNOW ABOUT ME:
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I am one of only two women in the House appointed to Chair a committee.
Chair appointments are indicative of the trust and confidence the Speaker of the House and his leadership team have in a legislator’s ability to get things done. I chair Executive Offices & Criminal Justice Appropriations, which is comprised of six senators and ten House members. Our committee allocates resources totaling over $1B to many of the core functions of government. Being the chair of an important committee increases my interaction with legislative leaders and state government agencies, giving me greater knowledge of the resources available to the people of our district.
I am running to serve, not to check something off my bucket list.
I serve out of genuine concern for the people of Utah, not for personal aggrandizement or ego. People’s lives are affected by the laws we pass as a state. My interests and skills are well-suited to legislative work: I was the only female on the debate team at BYU; I enjoy public speaking, writing, learning, and sharing what I’ve learned; and I’ve had a lifelong interest in public policy and current affairs. I put all of these things to use regularly in the legislature. I am not using my position in the House as a stepping stone to the Senate or any other office. I am running to serve.
Contrary to my opponent’s impression, I have excellent rapport with EVERYONE in the House and Senate, including the staff and government agencies I interact with.
I talk to fellow legislators daily throughout the year. I am especially close to many of my fellow conservatives. We work together and support each other on important legislation. The only entities who would probably consider me an enemy are Planned Parenthood, Alliance for a Better Utah, and the ACLU, because I lead out on issues they actively oppose.
I am able to devote myself to full-time service in the House, though Utah has a part-time legislature.
When the legislature is not in session, I am in working groups, researching bills and issues, drafting legislation, speaking to groups large and small, attending conferences, and touring state facilities. Because of my availability, I am able to answer phone calls, respond to emails personally, etc.
I am recognized as the go-to person on pro-life issues in the legislature (both House and Senate.)
This is largely because of the deep dive I did in passing HB136 and working on other pro-life issues. I am also a leader on issues concerning individual rights and children, homes, and families. “Strong homes, strong state, strong nation.”
I offer REAL representation, because I am approachable, available, knowledgable, transparent, and accountable.
Representing my constituents accurately and reporting back to them is more important to me than any other aspect of the job. Knowing what my constituents think empowers me to speak and vote confidently on legislation. Several of my bills have come directly from constituents.
I have demonstrated an ability to champion conservative solutions with civility and sound reasoning.
As a public servant and a writer, I enjoy persuasively articulating the conservative message. Many western states like Colorado have ‘gone blue,’ and Utah is under constant pressure from the left to follow suit. Our representatives need to defend Utah’s quality of life by championing individual rights and avoiding the unintended consequences and slippery slopes of bad legislation.
I am seeking the Republican nomination, because I fully agree with the Republican party platform.
Candidates sign a document when they seek the nomination of the party saying that they agree with the platform or stipulating parts they do not agree with. My opponent recently said no one fully agrees with the platform, which is untrue, because I do!
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At various time, my opponent has told delegates that I ran only one bill, or three bills, or “only a few bills” during General Session – not true. I actually ran seven bills in General Session plus two concurrent resolutions and three RFAs. This information is a matter of public record on the legislature’s web site, but let me list a few of my own 2022 bills and their substance here:
- HB431 Social Credit Scores prohibits the use of an ESG score (Environmental/Social Justice/ Governmental compliance) when assessing an individual’s worthiness to participate in the economy (borrowing, hiring, etc.) Three states have already embraced ESG scores. Utah needs to be among those who prohibit their use. (China has used a Social Credit system very effectively since 2014 to control their population.)
- HB439 Elected Official Transparency adds a requirement to the Open & Public Meetings Act that the votes of all elected officials’ (yes, no, or absent) be easily searchable online by name in the organization’s minutes, so that when officials are up for re-election, we will have a clear idea of members’ positions on important issues.
- HB29 DUI, DMCS, Automobile Homicide realigns the Utah Code for these crimes into one section instead of scattering them throughout multiple volumes. It does not affect the severity of the penalties at all (neither harsher nor less harsh), but it will make it easier to charge and sentence correctly, prosecute and defend effectively, etc. The working group I assembled for this bill, comprised of prosecutors, defense attorneys, Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, and other advocates, met for an entire year to get it just right.
- HB55 Juvenile Justice allows case managers the discretion to offer stabilizing services to youth released from custody if the youth has no support at home and they believe such services would prevent the youth from recidivating back into the justice system.
- HB006 Base Budget for Executive Offices & Criminal Justice allocated resources to fund the operations of our Dept. of Public Safety, the Courts, the Governor’s Office, and Corrections, among other core functions of state government. After a grueling budget battle, I won a 25% compensation increase for Utah’s largest law enforcement agency – money which will positively impact 1,700 families and keep all Utahns safer.
- My other bills and concurrent resolutions dealt with UDOT, access to the Jordan River Trail, and safeguarding children from 10 known determinants of physical and mental health across the lifespan.
- My RFAs (Requests for Appropriation) aided domestic violence prosecution, promoted civics education in schools, and sought money to complete the Big Bend Project on the Jordan River.
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Gov. Spencer Cox signing one of my bills into law.
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AFFILIATION WITH THE SENATE
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My opponent has told delegates I do not work with Senators and I am never asked to represent their bills on the House floor – not true. Three senators asked me to floor sponsor their bills this year:
- SB63 Bereavement Leave after Miscarriage (Sen. Harper) is the first bill of its kind in the nation; it acknowledges the humanity of the unborn by recognizing the grief of parents after a miscarriage.
- SB201 DABC Fund Allocation (Sen. Owens) moves some funds from DABC to UHP to cover DUI blitzes, etc. There’s been a huge uptick in DABC revenue due to the pandemic.
- SB240 Home Health Liability (Sen. Fillmore) requires home health agencies to carry liability insurance if they want to bill Medicaid, lessening the state’s exposure to lawsuits.
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ABOUT CO-SPONSORING BILLS
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Since no one legislator can sponsor every bill himself, we co-sponsor to lend gravitas to the bills we really like, hoping that our support will propel them across the finish line. These bills often reveal our broader philosophical positions on issues. I co-sponsored bills this year prohibiting vaccine passports (HB60), leveling the playing field for cis girls in high school sports competitions and allowing trans girls to fully participate on either boys’ or girls’ teams, while limiting actual competitions to the team of their birth gender (HB11), making Juneteenth a state holiday (HB338), and several others. I am often very enthusiastic about my colleagues’ bills. Legislation is a creative, collaborative process. It is not possible to pass a bill alone.
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SOME MAJOR LEGISLATION I’VE PASSED
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- HB136 ABORTION AMENDMENTS (2019) challenges existing viability standards. If it ultimately prevails through litigation, abortion law will return to the states where it resided before Roe v. Wade. (I have a two-page summary of all of the considerations I used to pass the bill. If you are interested, I’ll send it to you!)
- HB155S04 HOA PROVISIONS (2020) requires sellers to disclose the governing documents of an HOA before completing the sale or purchase of an HOA property.
- HB219 INMATE PHONE RATES (2021) caps the per-minute rate that can be charged for an inmate phone call from a county jail. I worked with sheriffs across the state for 18 months to get this bill right. It facilitates communication between inmates and their families, which will deter recidivism.
- HB77S04 AVIATION LIABILITY INSURANCE (2021) requires fixed wing operable aircraft to carry liability insurance so that victims on the ground can defray medical and property costs in the event of a crash.
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ABOUT LEGISLATIVE SCORECARDS
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I vote for or against bills based upon the merits of the bill and the wishes of my constituents. (And I always know why I’m voting one way or the other.) I never give any consideration to scorecards, but since my opponent does and has made an issue of them, here is a list of all the bills I voted on contrary to the wishes of the special interest groups he cited. I stand by these votes and do not regret any of them:
- S05 HB331 – I voted NO on the Hope Scholarship, partly because of its HUGE fiscal note ($36m, with $4m of that going to ONE non-govt’l organization for distribution. It should not cost that much!) It would use public funds to pay for private schools and homeschools with little to no accountability. This bill failed in the House 22-53, so I was not the only one who didn’t like it. I like school choice. but this bill was not the right mechanism for it. Utah has more school choice than any other state. I oppose subsidizing private schools with public funds. (The Utah Taxpayers Association, Libertas, and Utah Parents United wanted everyone to vote YES. This bill alone sunk many legislators hopes of receiving an award from these organizations.)
- S01 HB348 – I voted YES to Public Employee Re-Employment, because it gives govt employees (like teachers) the opportunity to return to employment if their new employers will pay the amortization rate and a surcharge to offset the cost for Utah Retirement Services. We need more teachers, for example, and many would like to come back, if their retirement funds would be unaffected. (The Utah Taxpayers Association wanted everyone to vote NO.)
- HB32 – Voted YES to increase the penalty for anyone who assaults a health care worker doing his/her job at work. (Libertas wanted everyone to vote NO.)
- HB60 – Voted YES and co-sponsored this bill to prohibit the use of vaccine passports in Utah. (Incredibly, Libertas wanted everyone to vote NO.)
- HB125 – Voted YES to eliminate the repeal of the transient room tax (hotel tax), which funds many augmented services needed to accommodate an influx of tourists , who often double the size of rural communities. (Libertas wanted everyone to vote NO.)
- SB49 – voted YES to a $6m capped tax incentive to revitalize the rural film industry. The incentive is post-production, requires receipts, and only applies if 75% of film is made in rural Utah. Films increase tourism for the state and generate revenue in our smaller communities.
- SB227 – voted YES to Consumer Privacy. This bill requires businesses to be good stewards of our private information. It passed unanimously in the House. (Libertas wanted everyone to vote NO.)
- HB428 – voted YES to requiring schools to keep more complete records on instances of bullying. This bill places more emphasis on protecting the victims of bullying, so that schools can identify and care for victims of bullying to prevent a tragedy (like Izzy’s suicide) from happening again. (Utah Parents United wanted everyone to vote NO.)
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SOME RECOGNITION I’VE RECEIVED
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- Guardian of Life Award from Pro-Life Utah
- Champion of Business Award from the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce (twice)
- Cultural Champion Award from the Utah Cultural Alliance (three times)
- Silver Pen Writing Award from the Valley Journals
- Meritorious Service Award from the Department of Defense
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ON SUPPORTING (THEN REPEALING) 2019’S TAX REFORM EFFORT
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I vocally opposed the 2019 tax reform effort until the bill’s sponsor doubled the tax cut and removed property taxes from the equation. According to our fiscal analysts (who are the best in the nation for at least 14 years running and have established a very high degree of credibility), tax reform would have benefitted 84% of the people in my district, and it would not have dramatically harmed anyone. (People in the highest income brackets would have paid about $40 more per year in taxes.) But, when the people responded in opposition and demanded that we repeal the bill, we did repeal it. I wrote about all of these issues in length at the time on my website blog. Here are the links to those summaries:
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JOIN ME FOR EVENTS BEFORE AND AT THE CONVENTION
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WED. 3/30 – DELEGATE VISITS (Call or text if you would like to schedule a visit 801-809-3571)
THURS. 3/31 – DELEGATE VISITS (Call or text if you would like to schedule a visit 801-809-3571)
FRI. 4/1 – DELEGATE VISITS (Call or text if you would like to schedule a visit 801-809-3571)
SAT. 4/2 (12:30-1:30pm) @ Bingham Creek Library – FREAKY FAST Q&A with FABULOUS PRIZES and JIMMY JOHNS
SUN. 4/3 – NO EVENTS SCHEDULED
MON. 4/4 6:30pm @ South Jordan Library – MEET & GREET REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES hostd by the UNITED WOMEN’S FORUM (see their announcement)
TUES. 4/5 (6-8PM) BEHIND-THE-SCENES UTAH CAPITOL TOUR
(Meet at the east entrance of the first floor. Park in the east lot by the Senate Office Building.) We will see the historic Supreme Court, the Senate chamber and lounge, my office on the 4th floor, and the House chamber and lounge, concluding with refreshments in the Majority Caucus Room. Hopefully the cherry blossoms will be in bloom! For people of all ages who live in House District 38.
WED. 4/6 – DELEGATE VISITS (Call or text if you would like to schedule a visit 801-809-3571)
THURS. 4/7 -- DELEGATE VISITS (Call or text if you would like to schedule a visit 801-809-3571)
FRI. 4/8 (6-9pm) – MEET & GREET CONVENTION CANDIDATES @ Kearns High School (5525 S Cougar Lane)
SAT. 4/9 (7:30am - ) – COUNTY CONVENTION @ Kearns High School (5525 S. Cougar Lane)
(7:30-8:30am) REGISTRATION
(8:30-10am) BREAKOUTS
(10am) GENERAL SESSION
ADDITIONAL BREAKOUTS
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Copyright © 2020, All rights reserved.
Paid for by the Committee to Re-Elect Cheryl Acton.
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