By McKenzie Romero | Editor
Though the underlying conflict has been resolved, frustration has lingered after the governor’s office threatened to hold back some state funds following Wasatch County’s decision not to proceed with a development plan in the area.
One sore spot in the dispute is a state law that allows landowners to essentially self-form a new city or town on unincorporated land. Now, Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz says he’s open to changing the law — or even repealing it.
In today’s Dispatch we break down the latest chapter in the Wasatch County land development saga, what you need to know about two proposed constitutional amendments on your ballot, and Sen. John Curtis’ opposition to President Donald Trump’s plan to get diesel fuel from Russia.
“Now to see it kind of blow up to the extent that it has, is it time to just do a full repeal and start over? I think those are all options that are on the table.” — Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz on support he sees in the House to changing or repealing the “preliminary municipality” law.
A new housing subdivision is under construction in the Heber Valley on Sept. 19, 2026. (Katie McKellar/Utah News Dispatch)
By Katie McKellar
In a formal resolution approved last month, Wasatch County leaders called on state lawmakers to walk back SB258 because they said it allows developers to “entitle large-scale projects while sidestepping the infrastructure, housing, oversight and accountability standards every other community in Utah must meet.”
The 2024 law created a pilot program that allows up to three landowners in mostly undeveloped, unincorporated areas to petition to create a “preliminary municipality,” which Wasatch County leaders described as “a step toward eventual full incorporation.”
People watch from a packed gallery as the Senate discusses a proposed constitutional amendment related to citizen initiatives during a special legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)
By Katie McKellar
Utah voters’ ballots will feature two proposed changes to the Utah Constitution when they arrive starting this week. Amendment A will strip out the explicit requirement for all other future proposed constitutional amendments to be published in newspapers before the election, instead replacing it with a more flexible rule set by lawmakers.
Amendment B — the more controversial of the two — would set a higher bar for Utahns to enact certain laws at the ballot box, requiring a 60% approval threshold for ballot initiatives that would come with a tax increase.
Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, talks to media during a press conference at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)
DC BUREAU
By Jacob Fischler
The Trump administration’s order to allow import of Russian diesel violates a 2022 law banning Russian energy imports while the country’s war with Ukraine is ongoing, according to a bipartisan group of U.S. senators that includes Utah Republican Sen. John Curtis.
“Congress explicitly banned Russian energy imports in 2022 to prevent American dollars from financing Putin’s brutal war against Ukraine,” the group said in a prepared statement. “Congress was clear: the U.S. should not import oil from Russia until it ends its aggression against Ukraine and ceases threats against our NATO Allies.”
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