Latest news with #SB178
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Senate budget hopes for $200 million for citrus industry, study on emerging crops
A mural featuring the sights of the Florida A&M University experience painted at the Efferson Student Union on Dec. 31, 2024. (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) The Senate approved its version of the state budget for the fiscal year that opens in July on Wednesday, and it includes $200 million for Florida's beleaguered citrus industry. Senators hope to secure $190 million for field trials for planting preparation, pest management, and disease management. Much of the $190 million initially would be made available to producers with fewer than 2,500 acres. 'Mark my words, Florida citrus is not going down on my watch. We're on the edge of something special. Florida citrus is making a comeback, one tree at a time,' Senate President Ben Albritton said in a news release. 'This heritage industry is not only vital to our state's economy, but it is truly a part of our DNA. Citrus has been a pillar of our state since the 1500s, serving as a key economic driver within our vital agricultural industry.' The remaining $10 million would go to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for an 80% cost-share with citrus packinghouses for equipment maintenance or purchase. While the Senate focuses on funding research to revive the citrus industry (Albritton is a fourth generation citrus farmer), it is looking to support farmers who could grow other crops in the meantime. The Senate cast unanimous yeas to research crops better suited to sustain Florida's agriculture industry as citrus greening ravages the state's crop of pride. Sen. Darryl Rouson, a Democrat representing parts of Hillsborough and Pinellas counties, led SB 178, which would commission a Florida A&M University study to determine whether there are 'viable crops or products' that agricultural producers could raise instead of citrus. Citrus industry, 'decimated' by greening, clings to hope, Simpson says 'FAMU is uniquely positioned to lead this study as a university with a strong history of agricultural research,' Rouson said on the Senate floor Wednesday. 'Their expertise will ensure that the study will provide practical and science-based recommendations to support our growers and maintain Florida's leadership in agriculture.' The Senate budget proposes $1 million in general revenue for the study. FAMU, if appropriated the money, would research alternative crops' environmental impact, suitability to Florida's climate, and expected economic benefit. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Over the past 20 years, the citrus industry in Florida has declined by 90%. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Florida farmers produced nearly 300 million boxes of citrus in 2004. By 2024, harvests yielded about 20 million boxes. The forecast for 2025 is 14.1 million boxes, according to the USDA. Citrus greening, the insect-carried tree disease that first hit Florida in 2005, has 'decimated' the industry, Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson told the Senate Agriculture Committee on Jan. 14. Psyllids, or plant lice, infect citrus trees, damaging yields and ultimately killing the tree. In 2019, citrus farmers reported that about 80% of their trees were infected. Researchers at the University of Florida announced earlier this year that they've found 'one of the most promising discoveries to date' related to greening, although growers are still about five years away from determining how effective UF's findings are. The bill heads to the House, which does not have a companion bill. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Cox applauds bills taking aim at ‘destructive' apps and cellphones
Gov. Spencer Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson at a ceremonial signing event on tech safety bills at the Utah State Capitol on April 4, 2025 (Alixel Cabrera/Utah News Dispatch) In Milan Venegas' high school in Provo, students are already required to keep their cellphones tucked away in class. If they get caught scrolling their teacher places the phone into a magnetically locked box until the end of the school day. Despite some initial resistance from his classmates, Venegas said he's noticed some positive effects since the cellphone ban was established during the second semester of his senior year. He even learned the names of the kids sitting in front of him in his English class. 'They're really cool. They also had lots of great thoughts about what we were reading in our classes and all that stuff that I wish that we maybe had our first semester if they were not on their phones,' Venegas said after a news conference hosted by Gov. Spencer Cox. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The change came after lawmakers unveiled plans to pass a bill establishing a universal no-phone policy for all Utah public schools. That new policy is set to extend to schools across Utah, as a new law that bans students from using cellphones, smart watches or other emerging technology devices during classroom hours will take effect July 1. A cellphone ban in Utah schools is closer to reality with overwhelming support in Legislature In a ceremonial signature event for three tech safety bills, Cox, who has championed efforts to lower social media usage, especially among teens, said the bills have the potential to redefine the online landscape, not only in Utah but in the country. 'I remember getting criticism two years ago for our first social media bills, that we were trying to be a nanny state, to take power away from parents. And it's the exact opposite,' Cox said on Friday. 'What we are trying to do is to give parents and families back the power over these destructive and corrosive apps and cellphones.' During the event, Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson ceremoniously signed SB178, the bill that establishes a statewide cellphone ban policy — unless any school board decides otherwise. They also signed HB418, which directs social media companies to have a common data infrastructure, and SB142, a legislation that would require Google and Apple to verify the ages of their customers before they make app store purchases. With these new laws, Cox said, the state is aiming to empower Utahns in the online world, which he said is going in a worse direction with artificial intelligence providing even more tools to expand social media's addictive qualities. 'It's not just the anxiety, depression and self harm that I mentioned,' Cox said. 'But it's literally tearing us apart and the fabric of our country. It's making us hate each other as we get addicted to the outrage that is out there.' Sponsored by Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, R-South Jordan, SB178 sets a statewide policy that prohibits students from using their cellphone during school hours. A few schools in Utah had policies banning cellphones, but Utah law didn't set a default policy, which,Fillmore argued, was itself a policy through inaction that allowed electronic devices. '(Constant notifications) turn school into, 'I am constantly under the fear of missing out on what is going on in the virtual world apart from me, I'm surrounded by my peers and friends in what is the most formative time in my life, and I'm focused on Taylor Swift,'' Fillmore said. The bill does allow school districts to implement their own phone policies. An earlier proposal initially sought $4.8 million in one-time money to fund equipment, such as magnetic locking pouches for the phones or other types of lockers to store phones during class time. However, lawmakers ultimately did not appropriate any money for the bill, with legislators expressing little appetite to pay for the equipment. While the bill still allows some flexibility for local school officials to set their own rules, Cox said it's one of the most important education policies approved in the state in the last decade. But, he said there's still some room for improvement. 'We didn't get 'bell to bell' here,' he said about other policies in other states that forbid phones during the whole school day. 'I just can't let this moment pass to say it is a mistake not to do 'bell to bell.' All of the research is 100% clear that 'bell to bell' does protect our kids so much more than going to recess and getting on your phones, going to lunch and immediately being back on your phones. So I hope we are not done here.' Cox said Rep. Doug Fiefia, R-Herriman, made quite an impression for passing an unprecedented bill as a freshman. With HB418, Utah became the first state in the nation to adopt a law requiring social media platforms to have interoperability systems, meaning having the necessary infrastructure so customers can communicate and share data from different platforms, just like how cellphone companies allow users from different carriers to call each other and carry their phone numbers even if they switch companies. Utah's latest data and social media laws could 'change the world,' Gov. Cox says 'It's a shifting point. It is the turning point. It's a moment in history where we choose people over platforms, families over profits, the greater good over an unchecked algorithm. It's where we shift power back to where it always should remain, with the people with Utah', Fiefia said about his bill. Cox, who had already described the legislation as one with the potential 'to change the world,' praised the bill again on Friday. 'I don't think most people understand how groundbreaking this bill is. It is the first of its kind in the country,' Cox said. 'And it really does have the potential to change everything, to break up the monopolies, to give us, again, back our identity.' The bill takes effect in July 2026, which Fiefia said gives companies time to figure out how to achieve interoperability. Any first-year law school student learns that children can't legally sign contracts, said Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, who sponsored SB142, titled App Store Accountability Act. However, every time a minor downloads or updates an app, they are accepting binding terms and conditions. 'You might say, 'big deal,'' Weiler said on Friday. 'Well, these contracts … often (give) permission to collect their data, sometimes to access their microphone, even their cameras, to use their data, to sell their data.' His bill isn't about controlling content, Weiler added. It's about contracts. The bill mostly applies to Apple and Google, which run the country's two major app stores. Under the law, with some provisions set to become effective in May, the app stores will be required to collect guardians' information, who will then allow any identified minor to download an app requiring a terms of service agreement. Meta, X and Snap issued a joint statement supporting the legislation saying, 'parents want a one-stop shop to verify their child's age and grant permission for them to download apps in a privacy-preserving way.' However, Kareem Ghanem, director of public policy at Google, one of the companies that will bear the responsibility to verify ages, said in a blog post that a series of legislative proposals pushed by Meta 'introduce new risks to the privacy of minors, without actually addressing the harms that are inspiring lawmakers to act.' Weiler's bill, Ghanem said, opens up the potential for bad actors to sell the data or use it for other 'nefarious purposes.' 'This level of data sharing isn't necessary — a weather app doesn't need to know if a user is a kid. By contrast, a social media app does need to make significant decisions about age-appropriate content and features,' Ghanem wrote. 'As written, however, the bill helps social media companies avoid that responsibility despite the fact that apps are just one of many ways that kids can access these platforms.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gov. Cox signs three bills impacting child safety online
In the Utah Capitol's Gold Room on Friday morning, Gov. Spencer Cox ceremoniously signed three bills regarding tech safety. He was joined by the bills' sponsors and individuals and groups who helped push the legislation forward. Before inviting the bill sponsors to speak about their legislation, Cox talked more generally about what these new laws aim to achieve. He described their larger purpose as returning power back to parents and ensuring safety for children online. 'I truly believe it's our free will that's being taken away from us,' Cox said. 'And we know it's going to get worse with the advent of AI. These social graphs will know more about us than we know about ourselves.' Cox continued, 'It's tearing us apart, the fabric of our country, it's making us hate each other.' SB142: App Store Accountability Act — requires app developers to verify a user's age category and confirm that the user's parent gave yearly parental consent to the app store. It also allows parents of harmed minors to sue developers or the app store if they violate these provisions. HB418: Data Sharing Amendments — gives users the right to own, control and manage their data, ensuring that they can permanently delete their own information. SB178: Devices in Public Schools — this bill prohibits students from using their cellphones, smartwatches and other nonschool provided technology during classroom hours. The sponsor of the data sharing amendments bill, Rep. Doug Fiefia, R-Herriman, stated his legislation is 'a turning point' for Utahns. 'It's where we shift power back to where it should have always remained,' Fiefia said. Invited to stand behind the governor with Fiefia and other bill helpers was Frank McCourt, the founder of Project Liberty. His nonprofit aided Fiefia in pushing the legislation and has grown since its establishment in 2021 to shift power from large tech companies to users. The project consists of 'technologists, academics, policymakers and citizens committed to building a better internet — where the data is ours to manage, the platforms are ours to govern, and the power is ours to reclaim," per Project Liberty's site. Before signing, Cox thanked Fiefia for his bill, adding that it is 'the first of its kind in the country.″ Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, spoke next on his App Store Accountability Act. He began by describing the battle to get his legislation through the House and Senate. 'Everyone in this room knows, and every first year law school student knows, that kids can't enter contracts,' Weiler said. But the way app stores have worked for decades goes against this. Weiler explained, 'Every time someone downloads an app or an app changes, and it pops up and says do you accept these terms and conditions, we're allowing our 11-year-olds, our 13-year-olds and our 15-year-olds to enter into binding contracts.' Many of these contracts, Weiler said, are asking for permission to collect the child's data, sometimes to access their microphone and camera. Weiler compared privacy levels to when he was a child, and stated, 'Now we have app developers accessing our kids in the middle of the night in their bedrooms ... and this bill says, 'this is not OK.'' Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, R-South Jordan, and Rep. Douglas Welton, R-Payson, spoke lastly on their bill banning cellphone from classrooms. Fillmore began by saying, Welton, who works as a school teacher in Payson, was initially opposed to the bill when it was first proposed in 2023. 'Just watching how it effects kids in classrooms changed his mind.' The most dangerous thing cellphones do in classrooms is distract kids from their education, Fillmore said. Welton also took a moment to speak. 'We spend millions of dollars on mental health, counselors, a lot of things like that, and it costs a lot of money, and it seems like one of the basic thing we could do to cut down on that expense and increase mental health for our students is to eliminate cellphones in schools,' he said. While signing, Cox said he hopes the next step taken with this bill is to increase it from just a ban during class time to a ban from the start to the end of the school day.
Axios
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Here are 12 bills headed to the governor as Utah wraps 2025 legislative session
Utah's 45-day legislative session came to a close Friday. What we're watching: Gov. Spencer Cox has until March 27 to sign, veto or allow bills to pass without his signature. He declined to say during a Friday press conference which bills were on his veto list. Here are some of the bills headed to his desk: 🏳️🌈 Pride flags would be banned from being displayed in schools and government buildings under HB 77. The big picture: The bill's Senate sponsor, Sen. Dan McCay (R-Riverton) argued the legislation would neutralize government buildings and classrooms from political speech. The latest: The bill has received staunch pushback from LGBTQ+ and civil rights groups. In a statement, Equality Utah said the bill targets free expression and that it would support legal action to fight it in court. 🗳️ Any citizen-led initiatives that raise taxes would have to win 60% voter approval, rather than a simple majority, under a state constitutional amendment proposed in SJR 2. Case in point: Medicaid expansion and the medical cannabis program that passed in 2018 would have failed under this amendment. Since it's a constitutional amendment, SJR 2 would still have to get voter approval in the 2026 general election. Meanwhile, citizens who initiate a ballot measure would have to foot the bill to print the measure in newspapers, as required by the state constitution, under SB 73. 📱 Cell phones and smart watches would be prohibited in classrooms under SB 178 unless a school district establishes exemptions. 🗳️ Starting in 2026, voters would have to include the last four digits of their driver license or state ID on their mail ballot instead of their signature, per HB 300. To vote by mail, Utahns will have to opt-in before 2029. 🌿 Want to grow dank weed? Under HB 343, you'd have to submit a plan to the state to show your farm won't stink out the neighbors. ⛕ State transportation officials would be allowed to veto some of Salt Lake City's traffic-calming street design efforts under a measure in SB 195 that specifically targets Utah's capital city. 🍸 Bartenders would be allowed to sample cocktails using the " straw test" method in SB 238 to ensure quality. ⚖️ The governor would appoint the chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court if SB 296 passes. Justices currently elect the chief justice by a majority vote. 🌫️ Halogen emissions — a big contributor to winter inversions — would be subject to more study and regulation under HB 420. 👶 Infants could be relinquished to the state without penalty up to 90 days after birth, rather than 30, under SB 57. 🍱 Kids in public schools would have expanded access to free and reduced-price lunches under HB 100. 🚱 Utah would become the first in the nation to prohibit adding fluoride in public water systems if Cox signs HB 81. Zoom out: The move comes soon after U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. opposed the practice.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hang Up! Bill prohibiting cellphones in Utah's K-12 classrooms moves closer to becoming ‘default' statute
Anna Clayton recently conducted a two-week personal experiment. The Olympus High School junior deleted all her social media and left her cellphone in the car during school hours. 'What I found shocked me,' Clayton told the House Education Committee meeting Tuesday during its examination of the so-called 'No Cellphones During Classtime' bill. 'I became hyper-aware of the addiction to my phone that had taken over my life.' The teen added she is now enjoying conversations and school hallway interactions 'that I had shielded myself from (while) using my phone.' And without a cellphone perpetually within arm's reach, Clayton is discovering new levels of peace. Now Clayton is certain her peers would also benefit 'from a break from our phones in school' — a sentiment obviously shared by Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, R-South Jordan, the cellphone bill's sponsor. If ratified, Fillmore's SB178 would make Utah's primary and secondary classrooms 'cellphone free zones' during classroom instruction periods — unless local schools or districts opt for a different policy. The bill moved a pivotal step closer to becoming state statute Tuesday after committee members voted unanimously to advance it to the House Floor. Their counterparts in the Senate Education Committee took similar actions earlier this month. SB178 essentially resets Utah's 'default' policy, which currently allows cellphone use whenever or wherever K-12 students want unless local districts or schools articulate a prohibitive policy. If a school or district does not create their own customized policy, devices such as cellphones, smartwatches and 'emerging technology' would be prohibited in classrooms during instruction period, according to the bill. By modifying the state's default policy, Fillmore argued, schools and districts can begin asking a more constructive cellphone/school question: 'Instead of (schools and districts) asking, 'How can we restrict these in order to limit the damage' — it's, 'How can we use and integrate this technology to help our students thrive?'' SB178, the sponsor emphasized, defers to local governance. 'Local school districts and school boards ought to be responsive to their students and their families and their taxpayers and their teachers — and they ought to be able to craft whatever policy they want,' he said. In fact, the bill allows for schools and districts to say 'anything goes' regarding cellphone use in K-12 classrooms. 'I think it would be stupid — and I would hope that that school board would face electoral consequences,' said Fillmore. 'But I'm just trying to illustrate that this is not a proscriptive bill. It only changes the default.' A former public school teacher and principal, Fillmore said today's multifunctional cellphones are a toxic presence in K-12 classrooms. Cellphone notifications are continually 'tapping students on the shoulder' — distracting them from learning or connecting with fellow students and teachers. 'This constant disruption is really rewiring kids' brains,' he said. Not surprisingly, the proposed state policy includes 'carve-outs' for emergencies or crisis situations that might emerge during classroom instruction. And students would still be allowed to use the devices during lunch period, recess, between class periods or during study hall — unless, again, local school districts decide otherwise. So how do Utah students feel about a state-legislated prohibition on cellphones in public school classrooms? Depends on who you ask. At Tuesday's House committee meeting, Anna Clayton and other teens voiced support for SB178. Avery Gonzalez is a senior high school student in the Cache County School District. Her class schedule includes concurrent-enrollment courses taught by instructors enforcing strict 'no cellphones during classtime' rules. 'About a week into these strict rules, I realized I was able to stay focused for longer, learn better, and that I was overall less distracted,' said Gonzalez. 'I'm just a happier human in general. I was also able to engage with meaningful conversations with my peers that otherwise I would just be sitting on social media.' And recently, the Deseret News spoke to several students from Highland's Lone Peak High School to gauge their response. Lone Peak senior Taylor Hurley is not a fan of a broad cellphone prohibition. 'Phones are helpful and they help people everyday.' The devices are a boon during art and painting classes for sophomore Zoe Roos. She utilizes her phone's search capabilities 'to find inspiration' for her art assignments. But she's quick to add she doesn't otherwise use her phone much in class outside of maybe sending an occasional text. 'For a lot of kids, the most distracting part of cellphones is when they are scrolling through their social media or stuff like that,' said Roos. 'It's not the communication parts (phone calls or texting) that are most distracting to kids.' Senior Natalie Khankan, 17, offered a unique perspective on the debate. A Syria native who has lived in Europe, Khankan is now a foreign exchange student at Lone Peak High. 'In Italy, we're not allowed to use our phones,' she said. 'So when I came here, I found out a lot of teachers didn't really care if we used our phones. So a lot of people go on TikTok or Instagram. 'It can be really distracting — but, yes, sometimes our cellphones can be helpful,' said Khankan, adding she supports SB178. If Fillmore's 'No Cellphones During Class Sessions' bill is ratified and makes it to Spencer Cox's desk, don't expect Utah's governor to interfere. 'Our children are especially vulnerable to the negative effects of cellphones,' wrote Cox in a Deseret News opinion piece last year. 'That's why I sent letters to our State Board of Education, district and charter school leaders, school principals and school community councils, urging them to restrict cellphones during class time.' Cox emphasized in his 2024 opinion piece that he's not advocating for a complete ban of cellphones in schools. 'But I am pushing schools and districts to work with parents to develop cellphone policies that will give every student the best environments to focus and learn — and I hope parents will advocate for phone-free instruction.' The governor added that students perpetually on their phones at school diminishes their abilities to connect and make friends. 'We need each other and school connections are great mental health protective factors.'
