Latest news with #McKenzieRomero
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Planned Parenthood of Utah shutting down 2 clinics amid Trump funding freeze
A Planned Parenthood clinic in Salt Lake City is pictured on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch) Planned Parenthood of Utah announced on Tuesday that thanks to 'ongoing attacks from the Trump administration,' it's been forced to restructure its operations, which includes closing two clinics — one in northern and one in southern Utah. On May 2, Planned Parenthood said it would be closing its Logan and St. George centers, which served about 4,500 patients last year. Plus, it said it would be cutting staff and increasing prices. 'The painful decisions to close Logan and St. George health centers, reduce PPAU's staff, and increase service fees are forced on us by the Trump administration,' said Sarah Stoesz, interim CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah. The nonprofit — which offers affordable sexual and reproductive health care, especially for low-income Utahns — said in a news release Tuesday that it had to make 'several difficult operational decisions,' including the clinic closures, 'to preserve the organization's long-term sustainability and access to care for as many patients as possible.' Planned Parenthood of Utah officials said President Donald Trump's administration's withholding of $2.8 million in Title X funds forced them to take action. In addition to the closures, they said they also had to reduce 'clinical and education staff' and up their prices. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'Unfortunately, without Title X funding, PPAU must also increase the sliding-fee scale for self-pay patients,' the news release said. 'Simultaneously, PPAU will expand telehealth services to help connect patients in remote or rural areas to timely care.' Since 1985, Planned Parenthood of Utah has been the only recipient of Title X funding in the state. More than 26,000 low-income Utahns received low or no-cost services from Planned Parenthood thanks to that grant, according to the nonprofit. Last month, on March 31, the federal Health and Human Services' Office of Population Affairs notified almost one in five Title X grantees across the country that their fourth year of funding (for a five-year period) would be 'temporarily withheld,' according to KFF, a health policy research outlet. That freeze impacted all nine of Planned Parenthood's grantees, plus seven other nonprofits. It's not clear when or if that funding will be unfrozen. As part of that decision, all of Utah's Title X funding was frozen. Planned Parenthood of Utah has eight clinics throughout the state. The Trump administration said the funding freeze was aimed at enforcing executive orders on diversity and immigration. Federal officials gave Utah and the other impacted affiliates '10 days to submit detailed reports showing they don't discriminate in hiring or patient care, but those who did so by the deadline said they have not received a response,' Politico reported Tuesday. The outlet also said the Trump administration did not respond to questions about the status of the funds. 'It's been radio silence,' Stoesz told Politico. 'For some inexplicable reason, they are taking a meat axe to the healthcare system in America.' Since Title X, the nation's only federally-funded family planning program, was enacted in 1970 with bipartisan support, it has helped millions across the country access preventative health care, including birth control, sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment, and cancer screenings. The program's money cannot be used to fund abortions, according to Congress. 'By withholding Title X funding from PPAU, the Trump administration is taking away essential health care from Utahns,' Stoesz said. Utah House passes bill to ban Planned Parenthood educators from schools Still, Stoesz said in a prepared statement Tuesday that the nonprofit is 'committed to making sure that everyone gets the health care they need when they need it, despite efforts by politicians to take it away.' 'We know that we cannot show up for the communities who rely on us without making some challenging decisions now,' she said. By 'consolidating our health care delivery and expanding telehealth, we will be in a better position to continue serving those who rely on us for health care,' Stoesz added. 'While politicians in Washington are taking away people's health care, Planned Parenthood is working tirelessly to keep our patients, families, and communities healthy.' Shireen Ghorbani, interim president of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, said the organization has spent decades — 55 years — supporting Utahns and 'future generations.' 'This decision is heartbreaking and extremely difficult but necessary right now, so we can operate a sustainable organization that can continue to provide our community with essential health care and education,' said Ghorbani, who ran an unsuccessful Democratic bid to represent Utah in Congress in 2018. Despite the funding freeze, Ghorbani said Planned Parenthood of Utah will continue to provide services. 'Our mission, coupled with the challenges of this moment — federal dismantling of health care, inflation, stagnant reimbursement rates — requires us to take serious and immediate cost-saving measures to protect the people we serve,' she said. 'During this transition, our clinical staff will ensure our patients continue to get the same high-quality, trusted care they have come to expect.' 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Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Utah international students and ACLU sue DHS over abrupt visa terminations
The Orrin G. Hatch United States Courthouse is pictured in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch) Eight international students in Utah whose permits to study in the country were revoked have sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the 'unilateral' and abrupt termination of their legal status in the country, forcing them to lose school time and jobs while subjecting them to detention and deportation. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed the lawsuit in federal court in Utah on behalf of the students on Friday, asking for a temporary restraining order halting the removal of the individuals' records from Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVIS), a database that tracks their visa compliance and allows them to stay in the country while they complete their studies, or in the case of recent graduates, maintain an early career job. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX That, after more than 50 students were reported to be impacted by status revocations in Utah, many without any type of notice. Some of them didn't have links with protests or a criminal background, generating confusion on campuses. According to the suit, the Department of Homeland Security action violated the students' rights for due process since they didn't get a chance to contest the decision. It also alleges that erasing the SEVIS records was against federal law and violated the Constitution. '(The students) were following all their visa requirements and had committed nothing that should have changed their status,' Aaron Welcher, communication director for the ACLU of Utah, said on Friday. The ACLU declined to release some details about the students to protect their privacy. However, the organization said they are from China, Nigeria, Mexico and Japan and are attending different universities across the state, including the University of Utah, Brigham Young University and Ensign College. A ninth student from BYU-Idaho was also included in the complaint. Cox asks for clarity from Trump administration on revoked student visas The students have been experiencing high levels of stress and anxiety after learning about their status terminations, and are uncertain about their futures, including fears of being labeled a national security or foreign policy threat, forbidding them from reentering the United States or other countries. 'The abrupt and unexplained termination of these students' lawful SEVIS registration is profoundly concerning. These students now face deportation or worse, placing their education and futures in jeopardy,' Tom Ford, staff attorney at the ACLU of Utah, said in the release. 'Coordinated attacks on due process are paving the way for the kind of tyrannical government our Constitution was meant to prevent — and the ACLU of Utah is taking action to stop that abuse of power and keep rights intact for all of us.' The termination of SEVIS records effectively ends the students' permits to be in the country. While the students have the option to apply for reinstatement of status with USCIS, according to the lawsuit, the federal government has informed multiple schools that they will deny all reinstatement applications for students in this specific situation. The new process of removing SEVIS records was also criticized in the suit. 'If ICE believes a student is deportable for having a revoked visa, it has the authority to initiate removal proceedings and make its case in court,' the lawsuit reads. 'However, it cannot misuse SEVIS to circumvent the law, strip students of status, and drive them out of the country without process.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Utah State Board of Education to consider resolution tying DEI programs to communist goals
The Utah State Board of Education building is pictured on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch) Are diversity, equity and inclusion programs explicitly 'attempting to achieve the Soviet Communist goal of actual equality'? That will be part of a resolution the Utah State Board of Education is scheduled to discuss, and perhaps adopt, on Thursday. Five Republican board members signed on to back a proposed resolution to remove DEI from Utah schools — Christina Boggess of Taylorsville, Cole Kelley of Vineyard, Joann Brinton of St. George, Rod Hall of Syracuse, and Emily Green of Cedar City — supporting a draft containing Trump Administration orders and a lot of Soviet Union terminology. 'The Utah State Board of Education directs its employees and subsequent staff, instructional and administrative personnel to immediately disband any and all 'Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Practices;'' the proposal reads. 'Moreover, the agency shall immediately disband and rescind all associated documents, training, programs, curriculum and policies.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The state school board still doesn't have an official statement on the resolution since the board hasn't discussed it yet, a communications person for the board said, and Boggess, who is coordinating the effort, didn't reply to a request for comment on Tuesday. The move stirred concerns from Utahns who oppose more DEI regulation in the state's education system. Especially, since there's already a Utah law in place that tightly restricts deploying DEI programs. When HB261 became law in the summer of 2024, all public institutions in Utah banned programs that 'promote differential treatment' and may exclude some based on their race, color, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, religion or gender identity. As anti-DEI law takes effect, students and staffers share 'great sense of loss' 'Of all of the anti-DEI things I've read in politics and in policy, this is the most far reaching and the most frightening,' Sarah Reale, one of two Democrats among the 15 state school board members, said on Tuesday. Citing the recent implementation of that anti-DEI policy, Reale questioned the necessity of such a resolution when Utah schools have spent the last year making substantial cuts to diversity programs and are already in compliance with new federal orders prohibiting DEI. 'We have tons of work to do — helping students' math scores improve, helping find ways to provide teachers with professional development opportunities, finding ways to support parents in the schools.' Reale said. 'So to spend time on something that, to me, is blatantly just inciting fear, and that doesn't help our teachers or students in their learning environment (…) is embarrassing. The resolution is embarrassing.' Utah State Board of Education resolutions aren't binding, they are just approved statements that express the opinion of the board's majority. However, the draft resolution cites a Utah Constitution provision that gives the board control and supervision powers over public schools and programs designated by the Legislature. However, Reale said, whether or not the resolution is enforceable isn't the main issue. 'It's the principle, it's the tone, it's the message that it sends that's hurtful and scary,' she said. Approving these kinds of resolutions, 'feels very Big Brother, very big government,' which, she added, isn't the role of the state school board. The resolution explains how a series of words and programs used in the Soviet Union may relate to DEI efforts — 'коренизация (korenizatsiya), which maps to 'inclusion,' and разнообразие (raznoobrazsiya), which means 'diversity,' in the sense meant by Lenin who described it as 'diversity in form to arrive at unity in content.' DEI at its core is 1920s Soviet Union policy for using ethnic minorities to advance the installation of Communism,' the five board members wrote in the resolution. The authors also criticized the terms 'identity politics' and 'inclusion,' which they define as 'programs, processes or implemented ideas that emphasize including, affirming and protecting counter-hegemonic perspectives at the expense of universal and objective truth.' Those correlations, Reale said, are false analogies. 'You cannot say that words in different languages mean the same thing and cross over with the same definition in English,' she said. 'It feels very McCarthyism. It screams Red Scare. It's frightening language.' The resolution also has DEI as a synonym of Critical Race Theory, an academic discipline examining racial disparities in the country, which has existed for decades but became a hot culture war debate during Trump's first term. 'DEI is not equal to CRT,' Reale said. 'CRT is not found in any of our schools. We have looked and reviewed for anything that could be even a glimmer of CRT taught in our schools in Utah. They don't exist. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
As Sundance leaves, Utah Gov. Cox allows first-in-the-nation flag ban to become law without his pen
A pride flag flies at the Salt Lake City & County Building on Thursday, March 13, 2025. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch) Saying Utahns are 'tired of culture war bills that don't solve the problems they intend to fix,' Utah Gov. Spencer Cox will allow a bill aimed at banning many flags — including pride or LGBTQ+ flags — from schools and all government buildings to become law without his signature. Cox explained his reasoning in a letter to legislative leaders issued with just over an hour to spare before his midnight deadline Thursday to sign or veto bills passed by the 2025 Utah Legislature. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'HB77 has been one of the most divisive bills of the session, and I am deeply disappointed that it did not land in a better place,' wrote Cox, who also explained he agreed with the intent behind the legislation. 'My understanding is that there was a deal on a compromise that would have removed problematic portions of the bill while retaining others that would support political neutrality in the classroom. Sadly the sponsors did not move that deal forward.' Supporters of HB77, sponsored by Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton, argued it was meant to promote 'political neutrality' in government spaces. But critics argued a broad ban that extended to all government properties would invite free speech litigation while also leaving some Utahns, especially the LGBTQ+ community, feeling unwelcome and erased. Now slated to take effect on May 7, HB77 will ban almost all flags from being displayed on or in public buildings, except for flags explicitly allowed in a prescriptive list included in the bill, such as the U.S. flag, the state flag, military flags, Olympic flags, college or university flags, or others. Pride flags or other LGBTQ+ flags — which Utah lawmakers in recent years have repeatedly tried to bar from schools in various ways — would be prohibited. It's slated to make Utah the first state in the nation to enact such sweeping flag restrictions in government-owned buildings. The Idaho Legislature recently passed a similar bill, HB41, which Gov. Brad Little signed last week, but that legislation won't take effect until July 1 and it only applies to schools. Idaho lawmakers are also advancing a separate bill to restrict government entities from displaying certain types of flags. Utah Legislature bans pride flags from schools, public buildings Utah's largest LGBTQ+ rights group, Equality Utah, had negotiated with lawmakers on the bill, which originally focused the flag ban on school classrooms. However, in a House committee last month, Lee changed the legislation to broaden the flag ban to all government property, leading Equality Utah to oppose the bill even though it was prepared to take a 'neutral' position on its earlier version. Cox faced numerous calls to veto HB77 from advocacy groups including Equality Utah and the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah, as well as from Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, whose city hosts the annual Utah Pride Festival. He could have vetoed the bill — but he indicated in his letter that it would likely just be overridden by the GOP-supermajority Utah Legislature. Instead, he's urging lawmakers to work to fix it. 'I continue to have serious concerns with this bill,' Cox said. 'However, because a veto would be overridden, I have decided to allow the bill to go into law without my signature, and urge lawmakers to consider commonsense solutions that address the bill's numerous flaws.' Cox encouraged lawmakers to consider allowing the Utah State Board of Education to 'go further in ensuring the political neutrality of our classrooms, while also considering repealing the local government piece of this legislation and allowing elected representatives to answer to their own constituents.' 'If you are willing to pursue this kind of solution, you will have an open door in the executive branch,' Cox wrote. Cox's comments on the flag ban came after the bill cast final-hour drama over Utah's multimillion-dollar bid to entice the Sundance Film Festival to stay, with some saying it could impact Utah's chances. Earlier Thursday, festival organizers announced they'd opted to move the event to Colorado to help the festival grow. By the time they'd reached their decision, Cox had not yet acted on HB77, but a veto was looking unlikely. Sundance is leaving Utah, moving to Colorado While Cox told reporters last week Sundance organizers had told state leaders 'very clearly that political issues have nothing to do with the decision,' others, including Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, worried that HB77 could indeed be 'harmful to our effort to retain Sundance.' In the end, Utah lost its bid. Cox — who earlier Thursday called Sundance's decision a 'mistake' — also included a note in his letter that he'll be calling a special session to address, among other issues, what the Legislature should instead do with the $3.5 million it had set aside as part of Utah's bid to keep Sundance. 'Let's reappropriate that money to efforts in Utah to create a new festival and a world-class film economy right here in our state,' he said. Cox, in his letter, dove deeper into why he had misgivings with HB77 but said he agreed with the 'underlying intent' of the bill. 'I deeply believe that our classrooms need to be a place where everyone feels welcome — free from the politics that are fracturing our country,' Cox wrote. 'Parents are rightly upset when they bring their kids to publicly funded schools and see culture-war symbols in a place that should be apolitical. In an attempt to make some kids feel more welcome, other kids feel less welcome.' Cox also said he appreciated that the bill is 'neutral on the types of flags in question,' while adding that 'I find it strange that no headline reads 'MAGA flags banned from classrooms.'' Drama over Utah's bid to keep Sundance heats up over LGBTQ+ flag ban bill 'I agree with the underlying intent of those legislators who supported this bill in an attempt to bring political neutrality to the classroom,' he said, though he added, 'Unfortunately, this bill does not do that.' He said because it's aimed at only flags, 'there is little preventing countless other displays — posters, signs, drawings, furniture — from entering the classroom.' 'To those legislators who supported this bill, I'm sure it will not fix what you are trying to fix,' Cox said. He noted that many schools have already enacted their own 'political neutrality' policies in classrooms, and he argued 'we have a better place' to make regulations: the Utah State Board of Education. While he said the board has already set expectations for political neutrality in teacher code of conduct, 'I believe more needs to be done by USBE to provide direction in this regard.' 'I have asked the Board of Education to continue their work to find ways to make our classrooms both more politically neutral and more welcoming to every student to exercise their own individual freedom of expression,' Cox said. 'The idea that kids can only feel welcome in a school if a teacher puts up a rainbow flag is just wrong. Let's do everything possible to make our classrooms one of the last remaining politically neutral places in our state.' The governor added that the flag ban 'goes too far' by extending the ban to local governments. 'While I think it's wrong for city and county officials to fly divisive flags, I believe that election have consequences and the best way to stop that behavior is to elect people who believe differently,' Cox said. 'All this bill does is add more fuel to the fire, and I suspect it will only ratchet up the creative use of political symbolism.' Ultimately, Cox urged legislators to focus on solutions rather than legislation that deepens divides. 'As tired as Utahns are of politically divisive symbols, I think they are also tired of culture war bills that don't solve the problems they intend to fix,' he said. The governor urged lawmakers to work with the LGBTQ+ community, as they have in the past, to find common ground. 'Utah has always had a reputation of trying to find a way to work together and solve issues between sides that have strongly-held, opposing points of view,' Cox said. 'There are so many examples of the LGBTQ community and the conservative community coming together to find helpful and hopeful compromise. I hope we can retain this as our model and North Star.' The governor also shared a message directly to LGBTQ+ Utahns, acknowledging that 'recent legislation has been difficult.' 'Politics can be a bit of a blood sport at times and I know we have had our disagreements,' he said. 'I want you to know that I love and appreciate you and I am grateful that you are part of our state. I know these words may ring hollow to many of you, but please know that I mean them sincerely.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Drama over Utah's bid to keep Sundance heats up over LGBTQ+ flag ban bill
A pride flag flies at the Salt Lake City & County Building on Thursday, March 13, 2025. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch) The ongoing drama over whether the film festival that helped put Utah on the world map will stay in the conservative state — or move elsewhere — is heating up. Even though the Utah Legislature included $3.5 million in its 2025 budget to help entice the Sundance Film Festival to stay, a new wrinkle may be further jeopardizing the state's chances as festival organizers consider relocating to other states that have offered up millions more in tax incentives to lure it away. The issue? The Utah Legislature's recent approval of a bill aimed at banning pride or LGBTQ+ flags in schools and all government buildings, which its supporters say is meant to promote 'political neutrality' in government spaces. The Hollywood news site Deadline reported that bill, HB77, could be 'an eleventh-hour obstacle to the Beehive State's hopes of keeping' Sundance, which has called the Summit County ski town of Park City its home for the past 40 years. Utah Legislature bans pride flags from schools, public buildings Deadline quoted an unnamed 'Sundance insider' expressing frustrations with the bill on Tuesday after what the outlet described as a 'virtual meeting between united Utah leaders and members of the festival's selection committee.' 'What are they thinking?' Deadline reported the Sundance insider as saying. 'Utah is Utah, but this goes to the heart of the community Sundance has worked years and years to develop.' Deadline also reported that insider called the flag ban 'a terrible law, a terrible look for the state.' 'No matter what they say, we all know who it's aimed at — the LGBTQ+ community, and that's unacceptable,' the outlet quoted that insider saying. Groups including Equality Utah (the state's largest LGBTQ+ advocacy group) and the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah have urged the governor to veto HB77. 'The government should not be in the business of banning symbols that help people feel seen and welcomed,' the ACLU of Utah said in a letter to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox last week. 'Beyond stoking fear among LGBTQ+ Utahns, this bill sets a dangerous precedent that threatens free speech for everyone.' When asked late Friday night — the last day of the Utah Legislature's 2025 session — whether he would veto HB77, Cox initially told reporters he wouldn't, before hedging and giving a noncommittal response. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX 'No, I won't veto that bill. At least I don't think I will. I don't know. Maybe I will. I don't know,' he said, adding that he wouldn't talk that night about any potential vetos, saying he needed a chance to study the legislation. 'I don't know if I'm going to sign that one. I'll probably sign that one. I need to look at it.' Cox's office did not immediately return a request for comment Thursday about the Deadline story and how the flag bill may be impacting Utah's chances at keeping Sundance. However, Cox did tell Utah News Dispatch on Friday that he'll be looking into and weighing possible constitutional concerns with the bill — while he also acknowledged the arguments in favor of it. 'You know, I always hear, like, why would you want to do this? And then I ask the question, 'Would you be OK if your kid's teacher hung a MAGA flag in their room?' And they say, 'Of course not.' And I'm like, well, OK,' Cox said. 'This is supposed to be a neutral bill, that's the idea behind it, and if you're not OK with one type of flag, why would you be OK with the other?' Cox would not say whether he'd sign the bill or not, but he added, 'I hate these types of culture wars that we're seeing. Never been a fan of them, but we'll review the bill and see where we end up.' Deadline reported that the 'likelihood' that Cox will sign HB77 'has caused red-state Utah to find itself at deep odds with Sundance's expressed values of a 'vibrant, inviting and inclusive festival.'' 'Yes, HB77 could contribute to Sundance's decision to leave Utah,' Troy Williams, executive director of Utah, wrote in a post on X Wednesday, urging Cox, 'please … veto this bill.' State leaders have been working to keep Sundance in the state, putting taxpayer money where their mouth is. In his budget recommendation, Cox urged legislative leaders to prioritize $3 million for the festival. The Utah Legislature ultimately funded more than that — $3.5 million. However, there are some Republican lawmakers who would happily wave goodbye to Sundance — and weren't happy about including that much in the state's budget to get it to stay. 'Bye Felicia,' the Senate sponsor of the flag ban bill, Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton, posted on X on Wednesday in response to the Deadline article. 'Sundance promotes porn. Sundance promotes alternative lifestyles. Sundance promotes anti-lds themes. Sundance does not fit in Utah anymore.' McCay later posted again, adding, 'I'm fine with the first amendment and allowing alternative viewpoints but I am not fine giving @sundancefest $3.5M to facilitate their trash. I'd rather have a random drawing to give $3.5M to any young Utah family that has their first child.' Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton — the sponsor of HB77 — reposted McCay's post regarding the Deadline story. On Wednesday, Lee also reposted a photo of Salt Lake City flying an LGBTQ+ flag, saying, 'The days of pushing political agendas on the taxpayers dime is over in Utah.' His post also referred to 'May 7,' the date his bill will take effect as long as it's not vetoed. If it becomes law, only a prescriptive list of flags included in the bill would be allowed to be displayed in schools and on government property, including the U.S. flag, the state flag, military flags, Olympic flags, college or university flags, or others. On Friday night, as lawmakers were finalizing their 2025 session, Salt Lake City leaders raised an LGBTQ+ flag at the Salt Lake City & County Building seemingly in defiance of the flag ban bill, which won final legislative approval the day before. That flag continued to fly at City Hall as of Thursday. Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall — who is involved in efforts to keep Sundance in Utah — issued a prepared statement to Utah News Dispatch in response to the flag ban bill and its potential impact on Sundance's appetite to stay. 'There is not a state in this nation where inclusivity, diversity and empathy aren't under attack, and everyone has a role in standing up for those values,' Mendenhall said. 'Salt Lake City will never stop supporting our neighbors, including the LGBTQIA community, and Sundance is an incredible partner in that support. The power of amplifying voices and creating change through art is needed now more than ever in this ongoing work.' One of the Legislature's top Republicans, Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, also issued a statement Thursday expressing a desire to keep Sundance in Utah. 'As Sundance weighs its future, I sincerely hope they choose to stay in Utah, maintaining our valuable partnership,' Adams said. 'Our state has long embraced hosting events of global significance, such as the NBA All-Star Game and the Olympics, showcasing Utah's ability to bring people together from around the world. Our state's business-friendly landscape, world-class skiing and high volunteerism have played a pivotal role in shaping Sundance into what it is today.' Adams continued: 'Sundance is an example of Utah's creative spirit, flourishing amidst a supportive economic and community environment. I firmly believe its continued presence would benefit Utah, the film festival and its attendees.' Adams also highlighted legislation passed 10 years ago known as the 'Fairness for All' initiative, which included two bills that enshrined protections against discrimination toward LGBTQ+ people and protected religious freedom, which garnered national attention 'by uniting diverse perspectives to create fair policies that ensure equal protection and opportunities for everyone.' 'We are committed to continuing this approach by upholding the spirit of fairness in all aspects,' Adams said. Looking ahead to when its contract with Park City expires after the 2026 festival, Sundance organizers are considering three finalists for its new home. It could either stay in Utah by accepting a joint bid from Salt Lake City and Park City, or it could relocate to one of two new host cities: Boulder, Colorado or Cincinnati, Ohio. The Democratic-controlled state of Colorado could be a strong contender for the Sundance Film Festival. The Colorado House on Wednesday advanced a bill that would create up to $34 million in tax credits over the next 10 years (or $3 to $5 million per year) for the film festival. 'Colorado would be the perfect place for the Sundance Film Festival to call home,' said Rep. Brianna Titone, D-Arvada, in a prepared statement. 'This iconic film festival would solidify Colorado's reputation as a destination for the arts, boosting tourism and significant economic growth in the process. The legislation we advanced today encourages the world-renowned Sundance Film Festival to call Colorado home for the next ten years.' Salt Lake and Park City make the final cut to host Sundance in 2027 Cincinnati city officials have also approved a resolution allocating an initial $2.5 million to attracting Sundance — and city leaders have signaled they'd be prepared to add another $2.5 million if festival organizers pick their city. Last year, the Sundance Film Festival generated about $132 million in gross domestic product for Utah, 1,730 local jobs, $69.7 million in Utah wages, and $13.8 million in state and local tax revenue, according to its 2024 economic impact report. In January, Cox told reporters during his monthly PBS Utah news conference that he felt 'very good' about Utah's chances of keeping Sundance. 'It may not be the most lucrative package. There are some other states who can probably throw some more money at it,' Cox said at the time, though he argued Utah is part of Sundance's history and DNA, adding that the plan to have Salt Lake City and Park City work together to keep the festival is 'a brilliant plan.' 'So I would be surprised if they didn't stay, but again I don't get to make that decision. We're certainly hopeful,' Cox said. He added that Utah 'went through this' when the Outdoor Retailer trade show left the state in 2017 due to disagreements with then-Gov. Gary Herbert over public lands issues, but in 2023 it returned to Salt Lake City. 'Outdoor Retailers made a huge mistake. They thought it would be better. They chased the money and the politics, and they went somewhere else, and it didn't work out for them, and they came back,' Cox said. 'I hope that we don't have a repeat of that with Sundance, because Sundance is so important.' He added: 'Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two. So we're really hopeful that we can provide the type of package … to keep Sundance here.' Asked about Colorado's tax incentive offer in that January news conference, Cox said Utah is 'not going to throw $34 million in tax incentives' at Sundance. He said Utah is competitive in other ways. 'If it's only about chasing money, then they can do that,' he said. 'Colorado can do that. That's perfectly fine. … I don't think the taxpayers of Utah would appreciate a number of that size, but there are some things we can do.' While Cox added that he doesn't 'love all the movies at Sundance, many of them are not my taste,' he said he does appreciate 'the creativity that it brings to our state' and its economic impact. However, he said Utah's economy is robust enough that it would be just fine without Sundance. 'There's a reason why these other states are chasing it so desperately, because they're trying to catch up with Utah,' Cox said. 'They're desperate for some of the advantages that we have. Our economy will be OK, it won't take a hit if Sundance were to leave, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't do everything we can to keep it here.' 'I care deeply about Sundance,' he added, calling many of those involved 'dear friends.' He then directly addressed Sundance organizers and said, 'This is your home, and we desperately hope it will be your home for forever.' It's not yet clear exactly when Sundance organizers will decide on the festival's future host, but it's expected sometime soon. Last month, festival director Eugene Hernandez told Deadline, 'We hope to have a decision in place by end of March or early April.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
