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What You Need to Know About Utah Politics Today – January 3, 2014

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Allegations that John Swallow’s campaign filed fake tax documents. Officials say two Utahns have died from influenza. Some big Utah businesses missed paying their property taxes on time.

Countdown:

  • 24 days until the start of the 2014 Legislature
  • 172 days until Utah’s 2014 primary elections
  • 305 days to the 2014 midterm elections
  • 668 days to the 2015 elections
  • 732 days until the 2016 Iowa Caucuses
  • 1039 days to the 2016 presidential election

Today’s Utah news highlights:

  • Newly unsealed search warrants allege John Swallow’s campaign filed false tax information to skirt IRS rules [Tribune, Deseret News].
  • A lawsuit filed against the state and LDS church using the names of a lesbian couple without their permission has been closed [Tribune].
  • Rep. Paul Ray plans legislation to protect consumers who solicit free credit score information [Standard-Examiner].
  • Both Ray and Sen. Curt Bramble will run measures addressing how law enforcement can deal with people who are openly carrying firearms in public places [Standard-Examiner]. 
  • Utah has the lowest percentage of residents who are eligible to vote in any state [Tribune].
  • Salt Lake County officials confirm two people have died from influenza [Deseret News].
  • West Valley City readies to swear in new mayor Ron Bigelow and three members of the city council next week [Deseret News].
  • A number of high-profile businesses in Utah did not pay their property taxes on time [Tribune].
  • Road construction will slow travel between St. George and Las Vegas beginning next week [Tribune].
  • Evergreen International, a group that advocated reparative therapy for gays and lesbians, is shutting down [Tribune].
  • Utah earns a cash bonus for enrolling children in health care programs [Deseret News].
  • Utah spent $12 million marketing the state last year, which translated to $7.4 billion in tourism spending. Officials plan to ask the legislature for more money this year [Tribune].
  • Utah’s poor air quality is prompting many residents to start wearing masks [KSL].
  • A Utah man is on a hunger strike to protest same-sex marriage in the state [ABC 4].

On this day in history:

  • George Washington defeated Cornwallis’s forces at the Battle of Princeton in 1777.
  • Congress was televised for the first time in 1947.
  • Sir Edmund Hillary reached the South Pole in 1958.
  • Alaska became the 49th state in 1959.
  • Apple Computer was incorporated in 1977.
  • Manuel Noriega surrendered to U.S. forces in 1990.
  • NASA’s Mars rover, “Spirit,” landed on Mars in 2004.