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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 9h

🙏 Faith and Fair Maps: Mormon Women for Ethical Government’s Role in Redistricting

NPR profiled Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG), one of the plaintiffs whose lawsuit forced Utah lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional map.

In Utah, a group that helped prompt the redistricting says it's acting on faith

Mormon Women for Ethical Government was one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit that could overturn Utah's Republican-leaning map for U.S. House seats. That could matter in next year's elections.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 12h

Now that Utah lawmakers have voted on which map to send to the court, and the plaintiffs have submitted their map, there are three maps for the judge to choose from.

We created an easy to understand analysis of these maps: buff.ly/teXq6Yz

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 15h

Utahns take pride in our wild places; we should be fighting to preserve them, not auction them off.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 15h

Utah’s landscapes are more than drilling sites—they’re sacred spaces, economic lifelines, and homes for wildlife. Prioritizing short-term extraction over long-term stewardship is a losing deal for everyone.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 15h

The Bureau of Land Management leased over 17,000 acres for oil & gas development last week, most of it in eastern & central Utah. Conservation & recreation groups say the sale threatens public lands and outdoor economies, warning it could signal a broader rollback of protections.

Feds sold 17,000 acres in oil and gas leases across Utah. Recreation advocates worry it’s ‘tip of the iceberg.’

The lease sales generated $8,252,794 in revenue, signaling a "strong interest" in oil and gas exploration in Utah following changes made under the "One Big Beautiful Bill" that passed this summer.

www.sltrib.com

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 18h

When the Legislature ties the hands of local governments, it’s everyday Utahns who feel it—through potholes, crowded classrooms, and underfunded parks. Local leaders know their communities best. State micromanagement doesn’t save taxpayers money; it just shifts costs and blame.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 18h

A tweak to Utah law by Sen. Chris Wilson requiring strict compliance with the truth in taxation process led to the denial of 35 local tax increase requests this year. The move has frustrated city leaders who say it limits their ability to maintain basic services.

🔗 KSL: buff.ly/jjslTm8

New guidelines behind denial of 35 tax hikes may be focus of lawmakers in 2026

New guidelines behind the denial of 35 tax hikes across Utah, including a proposal in Roy, may get state lawmakers' attention in the 2026 legislative session.

www.ksl.com

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 19h

Compassion and inclusion are values Utahns share; our laws should reflect them.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 19h

Every child deserves the chance to play, belong, & grow. Utah’s transgender sports ban was never about fairness—it was about fear. While the courts debate, real kids are left feeling excluded.

🔗 KUER: buff.ly/7BnzZjD

Challenge to Utah’s transgender sports ban ends as Supreme Court takes similar cases

The families of two transgender minors who sued over the 2022 law have agreed to dismiss the lawsuit. But at the same time, the U.S. Supreme Court is slated to hear similar cases from Idaho and West…

www.kuer.org

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 21h

Utahns care deeply about the Great Salt Lake because it’s part of who we are. But what the lake needs is water. While short-term fixes are necessary, lawmakers need to be fighting for long-term sustainability.

Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 21h

But some environmental advocates warn the measure could be a sign that the state is sacrificing the northern arm, which could lead to increasing amounts of playa exposed to the elements.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 21h

Supporters say it will help manage salinity levels in the south end of the lake, and that the bill also requires authorities to have plans to lower the berm after raising it.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 21h

Lawmakers also approved a bill granting broad authority to raise the berm separating the Great Salt Lake’s north and south arms.

🔗 KSL: buff.ly/LVAI8Cd

Utah lawmakers pass bill to raise Great Salt Lake berm during special session

Utah lawmakers passed a bill that authorizes the state land managers to raise a berm within the Great Salt Lake if salinity levels become a problem again as lake levels fall.

www.ksl.com

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

This bill is part of a larger narrative about attacking the courts when the Legislature is upset at their rulings.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

The separation of powers is supposed to keep politicians honest. Instead, Utah’s leaders keep eroding it piece by piece. Giving the governor control over the courts isn’t about efficiency—it’s about control. Our democracy only works when no single branch can dominate the others.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

Lawmakers framed it as a “compromise bill,” but critics say it’s a direct attack on judicial independence and a further consolidation of power under the executive and legislative branches.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

Another bill passed Monday transfers the authority to select the Utah Supreme Court’s chief justice from the justices themselves to the governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate.

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After veto, Cox is one step closer to being able to appoint chief justice • Utah News Dispatch

The Utah Legislature revived a bill that would give Gov. Spencer Cox the power to appoint the Utah Supreme Court chief justice.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

When elected officials threaten judges and election officials for simply doing their jobs, that’s not democracy—it’s intimidation. Respect for the courts and our elections is a cornerstone of justice and democracy, not a bargaining chip in a broader partisan war.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

He also made a veiled threat of impeachment against election officials that certify maps not passed by the Legislature. These remarks echo a national trend of conservative politicians attacking courts and officials that enforce checks on partisan power.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

As the Legislature passed the new congressional map, one Utah Republican, Sen. Brady Brammer, suggested impeaching the judge overseeing the redistricting case if the court rejects their plan and selects one of the plaintiffs’ maps.

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Republican threatens to impeach judge if another GOP gerrymander blocked

A Republican state senator in Utah has threatened that a judge who tossed out the GOP-drawn gerrymandered congressional map could face impeachment if she rejects the still-gerrymandered map the…

www.rawstory.com

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

The Legislature is trying to rewrite the rules of fairness. By codifying their own political preferences, lawmakers are gaming the system before the judge even gets to rule. It’s like letting the defendant write the jury instructions.

Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

Legal experts say these standards could shape how the courts evaluate the maps going forward, giving lawmakers a leg up in defending their own handiwork. The plaintiffs have already filed a complaint against the new law, arguing that it impairs the intent of Prop 4.

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

Republican lawmakers also passed a new set of “redistricting standards” during the session—rules they wrote themselves to define what fairness supposedly looks like.

🔗 KUER: buff.ly/reb6cAu

With GOP-authored standards in place, Utah’s redistricting fight heads back to court

Were the standards passed in the special session needed clarity or “a wolf in sheep's clothing?” Plaintiffs in the redistricting case immediately responded in court.

www.kuer.org

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

🔗 Salt Lake Tribune: buff.ly/TKQV2MI

Republican lawmakers picked their preferred congressional redistricting map. See what district you’d be in.

Utah Republican lawmakers pushed through a new congressional map that would give their party an advantage in all four of the state’s U.S. House districts — but would give the minority Democrats at…

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Alliance for a Better Utah @betterutah.bsky.social · 1d

Every Utahn deserves to know their voice counts, not that their ZIP code determines whether it’s heard.

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