Utah State Representative Gay Lynn Bennion of Cottonwood Heights, Utah, this morning wrote and sent me a very nice reply letter:
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: "Gay Lynn Bennion" <glbennion@le.utah.gov>
To: "John McMillan" <mcmillanj@att.net>
Sent: Mon, Nov 27, 2023 at 8:18 AM
Subject: Re: 11-26-23 Urgent Need for UT Water Conservation Laws
Hello John,
Welcome to Utah. These are some great suggestions. For decades, the Department of Natural Resources, Great Salt Lake Advisory Committee, Audubon, and others have been focused on ways to conserve water.
Here's some information you might want to review:
The Division of Water Resources has released the Great Salt Lake Basin Integrated Plan. Clyde Snow provided a Water Policy Inventory & Assessment for the project. It’s two parts – a Water Policy Narrative and an interactive Matrix of all of the laws, administrative rules, program websites, administrative forms, and related recommendations passed in the last several years. I personally find the Matrix the most helpful.
Best regards,
Representative Bennion
___
From: John McMillan <mcmillanj@att.net>
Date: Sunday, November 26, 2023 at 11:23 PM
To: Joel Briscoe <jbriscoe@le.utah.gov>, Jen Plumb <jplumb@le.utah.gov>, Angela Romero <angelaromero@le.utah.gov>, Scott Sandall <ssandall@le.utah.gov>, Walt Brooks <wbrooks@le.utah.gov>, Nate Blouin <nblouin@le.utah.gov>, David Hinkins <dhinkins@le.utah.gov>, Derrin Owens <dowens@le.utah.gov>, Evan Vickers <evickers@le.utah.gov>, calbrecht@le.utah.gov <calbrecht@le.utah.gov>, Gay Lynn Bennion <glbennion@le.utah.gov>, Bridger Bolinder <bbolinder@le.utah.gov>, schew@le.utah.gov <schew@le.utah.gov>, Tim Jimenez <tjimenez@le.utah.gov>, Mike Kohler <mkohler@le.utah.gov>, Derrin Owens <dowens@le.utah.gov>, Doug Owens <dougowens@le.utah.gov>, Thomas W. Peterson <tpeterson@le.utah.gov>, Mike Schultz <mikeschultz@le.utah.gov>, Rex P. Shipp <rshipp@le.utah.gov>, Casey Snider <csnider@le.utah.gov>, cwatkins@le.utah.gov <cwatkins@le.utah.gov>, chart@le.utah.gov <chart@le.utah.gov>, Julie Humberstone <jhumberstone@le.utah.gov>, Patricia Owen <powen@le.utah.gov>, Ryan Williams <rwilliams@le.utah.gov>, Finn Rose <frose@le.utah.gov>, farose@le.utah.gov <farose@le.utah.gov>, Mayor Wilson <mayor@slco.org>, County Council Member Bradshaw <arbradshaw@slco.org>, llstringham@slco.org <llstringham@slco.org>, suharrison@slco.org <suharrison@slco.org>, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall 2021 <mayor@slcgov.com>, Salt Lake City (UT) City Council <council.comments@slcgov.com>, Mark A. Strong <mstrong@le.utah.gov>, Kirk Cullimore <kcullimore@le.utah.gov>, Mike Weichers <mweichers@ch.utah.gov>, Envision Utah <info@envisionutah.org>, jsweeney@sltrib.com <jsweeney@sltrib.com>, Deseret News 2022 <dnweb@deseretnews.com>, newsmedia@ldschurch.org <newsmedia@ldschurch.org>, mayor@murray.utah.gov <mayor@murray.utah.gov>, Utah Restaurant Association 2022 <info@utahrestaurantassociation.org>, Utah Press Assn Director Brian Allfrey 2022 <ballfrey@utahpress.com>, Attorney General of Utah <uag@utah.gov>, University of Utah Student Newspaper 2022 <press@chronicle.utah.edu>, Utah Apartment Association 2022 <info@uaahq.org>, UT_Webmanager <ut_webmanager@hud.gov>, Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson 2021 <beckiepage@utah.gov>, membership@utahretail.com <membership@utahretail.com>, Office of Gov. Spencer Cox <govcomm@utah.gov>, Utah Republican Party <info@utgop.org>, Utah Democrats <mail@utdem.org>, Him-roi <him-roi@umail.utah.edu>, contactus@imail.org <contactus@imail.org>, Utah Apartment Association 2022 <info@uaahq.org>, Utah Restaurant Association 2022 <info@utahrestaurantassociation.org>, utah.chapter@sierraclub.org <utah.chapter@sierraclub.org>, Fox News SLC 2022 <news@fox13now.com>, nbauer@abc4.com <nbauer@abc4.com>, Jennifer Gardiner <jgardiner@abc4.com>, CBS News '60 Minutes' Editors and Reporters <60m@cbsnews.com>, nytnews@nytimes.com <nytnews@nytimes.com>, Utah Public Radio 2022 <tom.williams@usu.edu>, JCarter@cleanwater.org <JCarter@cleanwater.org>, commerce@utah.gov <commerce@utah.gov>, Utah State University Provost 2022 <provost@usu.edu>, Utah State Univ Communications 2022 <ucom@usu.edu>, agriculture@utah.gov <agriculture@utah.gov>, Berkeley (CA) Mayor (2016) Tom Bates <mayor@cityofberkeley.info>, newsmedia@ldschurch.org <newsmedia@ldschurch.org>, byu-info@byu.edu <byu-info@byu.edu>, sociology@byu.edu <sociology@byu.edu>, Murrayschools Info <info@murrayschools.org>, anielson@murrayschools.org <anielson@murrayschools.org>
Subject: 11-26-23 Urgent Need for UT Water Conservation Laws
November 26, 2023
Dear Highly Esteemed Members of the Utah State Legislature,
I feel sure that each of you is already painfully aware of the grim fact that Utah is the second-driest state in the entire nation.
As a new permanent resident of Utah, I would like to offer each of you a variety of very tentative brainstorming ideas of mine on how our state each year can consistently provide an adequate quantity of safe drinking water and irrigation water for all residents and visitors to Utah, and for all applicable businesses and farmers in our state.
Among the possible public-policy strategies toward that goal for our state:
----a State of Utah-sponsored "Utah Water Conservation Tips" website could invite and post brainstorming ideas from Utahns of all ages, and from visitors to Utah of all ages, on how Utah can achieve a significant reduction in total annual consumption of drinking water throughout our state. Candid and non-profane online dialogues in response to each of the suggestions posted at that website could also be encouraged by the moderators or editors of that website.
----The Utah State Legislature could sponsor the creation of a Utah Water Conservation Pop Quiz that could be given to each public school student in Utah. Students receiving a grade of "95" to "100" on that pop quiz could be honored publicly at an all-school assembly in which their school principal would preside and would hand out awards to each of the top-scoring students.
----The Utah Legislature could declare "War on our Utah Mega-Drought" by requiring each business in Utah to post on permanent display for all employees and visitors inside their business at least one Water Conservation Tip.
----The Utah State Legislature could require that each public primary and public primary school in Utah must each year offer their students a mandatory-attendance videotape or movie focused on the Utah Mega-Drought and how to conserve water in this state.
----The Utah State Legislature could require that any and all radio stations and television stations and news-media publications in Utah must offer a Water Conservation Tip or Water Quality Tip to their listeners, viewers, or readers, respevtively, at least once per month in a format that is clearly identifiable to all applicable listeners, viewers, and readers, respectively.
---The Utah Legislature could sponsor and help finance the offering of workshops for Utahn parents and Utahn Sunday school teachers on how they can be successful at teaching their or others' children the skills needed to help conserve water and protect and enhance the quality of water in our state.
----The Utah Legislature could recommend or require that all restaurants and cafes in Utah must serve water or iced tea guests or customers in glasses that each hold no more than 16 ounces of water or iced tea.
---A "Utah Water Conservation Statistics Office" could be established established by the State of Utah. That proposed new state agency office could employ numerous experts in both statistics and water conservation.
That new State of Utah agency could offer assistance to any and all Utah Legislators or Utah Legislative Committees that or who request information from the cited office about the "Water Conservation Impact" (WCI), and "Water Quality Impact" (WQI), of any given proposed new state law or proposed new state policy or proposed new construction project or service.
For example, if my own duly elected state lawmaker in the Utah House of Representatives, Rep. Joel Briscoe, were to introduce a new bill before the Utah Legislature that requires all retail stores and hotels and apartment complexes in Utah to install or continue to offer State of Utah-approved water-conserving faucets and State of Utah-approved water-conserving toilets in any and all bathroom or restroom sinks inside their commercial real estate properties, this could save many thousands of gallons of water per year in our state.
----The Utah Legislature could approve a new law that requires the Utah State Tax Commission state agency to provide corporate tax discounts to respective businesses in Utah that can prove with legal documents that they reduced their own total water consumption rate from the previous calendar year, or that can prove with purchase and installation receipts that they have recently installed more water-conserving faucets or more water-conserving toilets inside their business property in Utah.
----Your very influential Legislature could assign highest possible priority to water conservation by creating a new permanent Legislative committee or new permanent Legislative subcommittee that is focused exclusively on Water Conservation-related and Water Quality-related public-policy issues in Utah.
----Your Utah State Legislature could require that all Utah-theme social studies textbooks books, all Utah-theme government textbooks, all Utah History-theme textbooks, all Utah Geography textbooks, and any other Utah-theme textbooks must each include at least one chapter devoted to providing pertinent factual information about water conservation issues and water quality issues that have arisen here in Utah.
----The Utah Legislature and Utah State Board of Education could require that each public school or public college in Utah must require that their students pass at least one academic course on water conservation and water quality in order to graduate from that public school or public college.
----The Utah Legislature could approve funding for field trips that enable public school classes in Utah to receive a guided tour of a business or non-profit group headquarters or meeting place or other building in their town or city that practices and benefits from water conservation policies at that workplace in Utah.
----The Utah Legislature could approve funding for a generous annual financial awards and financial prizes and college scholarships to the Utah public primary or public secondary or public post-secondary students who each were judged at their school or college as having submitted a very creative and original and helpful idea for promoting water conservation or for raising the quality of tap water in our state.
----The official songs honoring Utah could be revised to urge or praise year-round devotion to water conservation by a wide variety of Utahns of all ages.
----The Utah Legislature could co-sponsor the offering of very informative and inspirational public "Water Conservation and Water Quality Workshops" open to the general public and news media. Those workshops in numerous cities and towns of Utah could be led by Utahn water conservation experts, with questions from Utahns attending those workshops being invited at each such event.
----The Utah Legislature could approve criteria for determining which Utahns are granted official State of Utah certification as "Water Conservation and Water Quality Experts" in our state.
----The Utah Legislature could provide financial incentives through our state corporate tax policies to Water Conservation Experts and Water Quality Experts residing in Utah who also pursue a part-time or full-time career or consulting services career focused on Water Conservation or Water Quality.
----The Utah Legislature could officially appoint a very articulate and incisive full-time "Utah Water Conservation Czar."
That well-paid expert on those crucial topics could produce podcasts, factual documentary videotapes, hold press conferences and grant interviews with the news media that are focused on Water Conservation Issues here in Utah, and give public speeches in public schools, private schools, at civic group meetings, and in town civic centers---public speeches that promote a healthy "Water Conservation Ethos" throughout our entire state.
----The Utah Legislature could sponsor an annual essay competition in which Utahns ranging in age from age 8 to age 30 could each----through a class they each attend at a school or college or university in Utah--- be invited by a teacher or professor of theirs to write and submit an essay explaining why they believe that water conservation and water quality protection are of supreme importance for the Utahns and visitors here of today, and for the Utahns and visitors here of five, 10, 20, or 30 or 50 or 75 or 100 years from now.
---The innovative "Water Waster" program (see online link further below) currently sponsored by the City of Ogden, Utah, could serve as a model for a statewide program of that type to be approved by the Utah State Legislature.
That statewide program could invite reports or tips from Utahn residents and visitors who have heard rumors or obtained factual information about one or more alleged water wasters in Utah.
Below is a link to a website providing more information about the Water Waster program in Ogden that apparently has been very successful in that city.
----The Utah State Legislature could revise the state penal code to impose a variety of criminal-law penalties for water wasters in Utah whose conduct is flagrantly illegal.
Thrs could help increase the scope of Environmental Crines here in Utah for which a perpetrator upon conviction could be put in a state prison in Utah for a specified time period.
I hope that this brainstorming letter proves to be helpful to some, several, or many of you Utah State Legislators.
I welcome any reply note to me that any of you are willing to offer me.
Sincerely and Best Wishes,
from John Kevin McMillan, the youngest grandson of former Murray (UT) butcher shop owner Parley McMillan of Murray and his devoted Mormon Church (LDS) member wife, Mrs. Alice Mae Pugh (maiden surname) McMillan of Murray.
My cell phone: (512) 993-7305.
My home phone: (801) 355-0850.
Sent from AT&T Yahoo Mail on Android
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