Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

S.B. 200 (2020GS)

Sponsor

Sen. Bramble, C.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/28/2020

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Gary R. Herbert

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• defines terms;
• modifies redistricting requirements and related provisions;
• modifies the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission;
• establishes the commission's membership and term;
• addresses commission function, action, meetings, and staffing;
• provides for acquisition and use of materials, software, and services, including legal services, by the commission;
• describes the duties of the commission;
• provides for presentation of commission maps to the Legislature's redistricting committee;
• requires the Government Operations Interim Committee to conduct a review of the commission; and
• repeals existing independent redistricting commission provisions.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

REDISTRICTING AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Curtis S. Bramble
House Sponsor: 
Carol Spackman Moss
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill addresses provisions relating to the Utah Independent Redistricting
Commission and redistricting.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ defines terms;
▸ modifies redistricting requirements and related provisions;
▸ modifies the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission;
▸ establishes the commission's membership and term;
▸ addresses commission function, action, meetings, and staffing;
▸ provides for acquisition and use of materials, software, and services, including legal
services, by the commission;
▸ describes the duties of the commission;
▸ provides for presentation of commission maps to the Legislature's redistricting
committee;
▸ requires the Government Operations Interim Committee to conduct a review of the
commission; and
▸ repeals existing independent redistricting commission provisions.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
This bill appropriates in fiscal year 2021:
▸ to the Department of Administrative Services - Finance - Mandated - Redistricting
Commission, as a one-time appropriation:
• from Legislature - Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel,
One-time, $1,000,000. 
Other Special Clauses:
This bill provides a special effective date.
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
63G-7-201
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapters 229 and 248
63G-7-301
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapters 229 and 248
ENACTS:
20A-20-101
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-102
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-103
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-201
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-202
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-203
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-301
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-302
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20A-20-303
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
REPEALS:
20A-19-101
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-102
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-103
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-104
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-201
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-202
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-203
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-204
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
20A-19-301
, as enacted by Statewide Initiative -- Proposition 4, Nov. 6, 2018
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
20A-20-101
 is enacted to read:
CHAPTER 20. UTAH INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION
Part 1. General Provisions
 20A-20-101.
Title.
This chapter is known as the "Utah Independent Redistricting Commission."
Section 2. Section 
20A-20-102
 is enacted to read:
 20A-20-102.
Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Commission" means the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission created in
Section 
20A-20-201
.
(2) "Committee" means the Legislature's redistricting committee.
(3) "Decennial year" means a year during which the United States Bureau of Census
conducts a national decennial census.
(4) "Regular decennial redistricting" means redistricting required due to a national
decennial census.
(5) "Special redistricting" means redistricting that is not a regular decennial
redistricting.
Section 3. Section 
20A-20-103
 is enacted to read:
 20A-20-103.
Review by interim committee.
During the 2022 Legislative interim, the Government Operations Interim Committee
shall conduct a review of the commission and the commission's role in relation to the
redistricting process.
Section 4. Section 
20A-20-201
 is enacted to read:
Part 2. Commission
 20A-20-201.
Utah Independent Redistricting Commission -- Creation --
Membership -- Term -- Quorum -- Action -- Meetings -- Staffing -- Website.
(1) (a) There is created the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission.
(b) The commission is housed in the Department of Administrative Services for
budgetary purposes only.
(c) The commission is not under the direction or control of the Department of
Administrative Services or any executive director, director, or other employee of the
Department of Administrative Services or any other government entity.
(2) Except as provided in Subsection (4), the commission comprises seven members
appointed as follows:
(a) one member appointed by the governor, which member shall serve as chair of the
commission;
(b) one member appointed by the president of the Senate;
(c) one member appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives;
(d) one member appointed by the legislative leader of the largest minority political
party in the Senate;
(e) one member appointed by the legislative leader of the largest minority political
party in the House of Representatives;
(f) one member appointed jointly by the president of the Senate and the speaker of the
House of Representatives; and
(g) one member appointed jointly by the legislative leader of the largest minority
political party in the Senate and the legislative leader of the largest minority political party in
the House of Representatives.
(3) An appointing authority described in Subsection (2):
(a) shall make the appointments no later than:
(i) February 1 of the year immediately following a decennial year; or
(ii) if there is a change in the number of congressional, legislative, or other districts
resulting from an event other than a national decennial enumeration made by the authority of
the United States, the day on which the Legislature appoints a committee to draw maps in
relation to the change;
(b) may remove a commission member appointed by the appointing authority, for
cause; and
(c) shall, if a vacancy occurs in the position appointed by the appointing authority
under Subsection (2), appoint another individual to fill the vacancy within 10 days after the day
on which the vacancy occurs.
(4) (a) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(a) fails to timely make
the appointment, the legislative leader of the largest political party in the House of
Representatives and the Senate, of which the governor is not a member, shall jointly make the
appointment.
(b) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(b) fails to timely make the
appointment, the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(d) shall make the
appointment.
(c) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(c) fails to timely make the
appointment, the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(e) shall make the
appointment.
(d) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(d) fails to timely make the
appointment, the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(b) shall make the
appointment.
(e) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(e) fails to timely make the
appointment, the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(c) shall make the
appointment.
(f) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(f) fails to timely make the
appointment, the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(g) shall make the
appointment.
(g) If the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(g) fails to timely make the
appointment, the appointing authority described in Subsection (2)(f) shall make the
appointment.
(5) A member of the commission may not, during the member's service on the
commission:
(a) be a lobbyist or principal, as those terms are defined in Section 
36-11-102
;
(b) be a candidate for or holder of any elective office, including federal elective office,
state elective office, or local government elective office;
(c) be a candidate for or holder of any office of a political party, except for delegates to
a political party's convention;
(d) be an employee of, or a paid consultant for, a political party, political party
committee, personal campaign committee, or any political action committee affiliated with a
political party or controlled by an elected official or candidate for elective office, including any
local government office;
(e) serve in public office if the member is appointed to public office by the governor or
the Legislature;
(f) be employed by the United States Congress or the Legislature; or
(g) hold any position that reports directly to an elected official, including a local
elected official, or to any person appointed by the governor or Legislature to any other public
office.
(6) In addition to the qualifications described in Subsection (5), a member of the
commission described in Subsection (2)(f) or (g):
(a) may not have, during the two-year period immediately preceding the member's
appointment to the commission:
(i) been affiliated with a political party under Section 
20A-2-107
;
(ii) voted in the regular primary election or municipal primary election of a political
party; or
(iii) been a delegate to a political party convention; and
(b) may not, in the sole determination of the appointing authority, be an individual who
is affiliated with a partisan organization or cause.
(7) Each commission member shall, upon appointment to the commission, sign and file
a statement with the governor certifying that the commission member:
(a) meets the qualifications for appointment to the commission;
(b) will, during the member's service on the commission, comply with the requirements
described in Subsection (5);
(c) will comply with the standards, procedures, and requirements described in this
chapter that are applicable to a commission member; and
(d) will faithfully discharge the duties of a commission member in an independent,
impartial, honest, and transparent manner.
(8) For a regular decennial redistricting, the commission is:
(a) formed and may begin conducting business on February 1 of the year immediately
following a decennial year; and
(b) dissolved upon approval of the Legislature's redistricting maps by the governor, or
the day following the constitutional time limit of Utah Constitution, Article VII, Section 8,
without the governor's signature, or in the case of a veto, the date of veto override.
(9) (a) A member of the commission may not receive compensation or benefits for the
member's service, but may receive per diem and travel expenses in accordance with:
(i) Section 
63A-3-106
;
(ii) Section 
63A-3-107
; and
(iii) rules made by the Division of Finance pursuant to Sections 
63A-3-106
 and
63A-3-107
.
(b) A member of the commission may decline to receive per diem or travel expenses.
(10) The commission shall meet upon the request of a majority of the commission
members or when the chair calls a meeting.
(11) (a) A majority of the members of the commission constitutes a quorum.
(b) The commission takes official action by a majority vote of a quorum present at a
meeting of the commission.
(12) Within appropriations from the Legislature, the commission may, to fulfill the
duties of the commission:
(a) contract with or employ an attorney licensed in Utah, an executive director, and
other staff; and
(b) purchase equipment and other resources, in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 6a,
Utah Procurement Code, to fulfill the duties of the commission.
(13) The commission shall maintain a website where the public may:
(a) access announcements and records of commission meetings and hearings;
(b) access maps presented to, or under consideration by, the commission;
(c) access evaluations described in Subsection 
20A-20-302
(8);
(d) submit a map to the commission; and
(e) submit comments on a map presented to, or under consideration by, the
commission.
Section 5. Section 
20A-20-202
 is enacted to read:
 20A-20-202.
Software and software services.
The Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel shall, when procuring
software, licenses for using the software, and software support services for redistricting by the
Legislature, include in the requests for proposals and the resulting contracts that the
commission may purchase the same software, licenses for using the software, and software
support services, under the contracts at the same cost and under the same terms provided to the
Legislature.
Section 6. Section 
20A-20-203
 is enacted to read:
 20A-20-203.
Exemptions from and applicability of certain legal requirements --
Risk management -- Code of ethics.
(1) The commission is exempt from:
(a) except as provided in Subsection (3), Title 63A, Utah Administrative Services
Code;
(b) Title 63G, Chapter 4, Administrative Procedures Act; and
(c) Title 67, Chapter 19, Utah State Personnel Management Act.
(2) (a) The commission shall adopt budgetary procedures, accounting, and personnel
and human resource policies substantially similar to those from which the commission is
exempt under Subsection (1).
(b) The commission is subject to:
(i) Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act;
(ii) Title 63A, Chapter 1, Part 2, Utah Public Finance Website;
(iii) Title 63G, Chapter 2, Government Records Access and Management Act;
(iv) Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code; and
(v) Title 63J, Chapter 1, Budgetary Procedures Act.
(3) Subject to the requirements of Subsection 
63E-1-304
(2), the commission may
participate in coverage under the Risk Management Fund created by Section 
63A-4-201
.
(4) (a) The commission may, by majority vote, adopt a code of ethics.
(b) The commission, and the commission's members and employees, shall comply with
a code of ethics adopted under Subsection (4)(a).
(c) The executive director of the commission shall report a commission member's
violation of a code of ethics adopted under Subsection (4)(a) to the appointing authority of the
commission member.
(d) (i) A violation of a code of ethics adopted under Subsection (4)(a) constitutes cause
to remove a member from the commission under Subsection 
20A-20-201
(3)(b).
(ii) An act or omission by a member of the commission need not constitute a violation
of a code of ethics adopted under Subsection (4)(a) to be grounds to remove a member of the
commission for cause.
Section 7. Section 
20A-20-301
 is enacted to read:
Part 3. Proceedings
 20A-20-301.
Public hearings -- Private conversations.
(1) (a) The commission shall, by majority vote, determine the number, locations, and
dates of public hearings to be held by the commission, but shall hold no fewer than seven
public hearings throughout the state to discuss maps, as follows:
(i) one in the Bear River region, which includes Box Elder, Cache, and Rich counties;
(ii) one in the Southwest region, which includes Beaver, Garfield, Iron, Kane, and
Washington counties;
(iii) one in the Mountain region, which includes Summit, Utah, and Wasatch counties;
(iv) one in the Central region, which includes Juab, Millard, Piute, Sanpete, Sevier, and
Wayne counties;
(v) one in the Southeast region, which includes Carbon, Emery, Grand, and San Juan
counties;
(vi) one in the Uintah Basin region, which includes Daggett, Duchesne, and Uintah
counties; and
(vii) one in the Wasatch Front region, which includes Davis, Morgan, Salt Lake,
Tooele, and Weber counties.
(b) The commission shall hold at least two public hearings in a first or second class
county but not in the same county.
(c) The committee and the commission may coordinate hearing times and locations to:
(i) avoid holding hearings at, or close to, the same time in the same area of the state;
and
(ii) to the extent practical, hold hearings in different cities within the state.
(2) Each public hearing must provide those in attendance a reasonable opportunity to
submit written and oral comments to the commission and to propose redistricting maps for the
commission's consideration.
(3) The commission shall hold the public hearings described in Subsection (1) no later
than August 1 of the year following a decennial year.
(4) (a) A member of the commission may not engage in any private communication
with any individual other than other members of the commission or commission staff,
including consultants retained by the commission, that is material to any redistricting map or
element of a map pending before the commission or intended to be proposed for commission
consideration, without making the communication, or a detailed and accurate description of the
communication including the names of all parties to the communication and the map or
element of the map, available to the commission and to the public.
(b) A member of the commission shall make the disclosure required by Subsection
(4)(a) before the redistricting map or element of a map is considered by the commission.
(5) The committee chairs and the chair of the commission shall, no later than two
business days after the day on which the Legislature appoints a committee, under Subsection
20A-20-201
(3)(a)(ii), for a special redistricting, jointly agree on a schedule for the commission
that:
(a) reasonably ensures that the commission may complete the commission's duties in a
timely manner, consistent with the time frame applicable to the committee and the Legislature;
(b) establishes deadlines for the following:
(i) holding the public hearings described in Subsection (1);
(ii) preparing and recommending maps under Subsection 
20A-20-302
(2);
(iii) submitting the maps and written report described in Subsection 
20A-20-303
(1);
and
(iv) holding the public meeting described in Subsection 
20A-20-303
(2); and
(c) provides that the commission dissolves upon approval of the Legislature's
redistricting maps by the governor, or the day following the constitutional time limit of Utah
Constitution, Article VII, Section 8, without the governor's signature, or in the case of a veto,
the date of veto override.
Section 8. Section 
20A-20-302
 is enacted to read:
 20A-20-302.
Selection of recommended maps -- Map requirements and standards.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Map type" means one of four map types, as follows:
(i) a map of all Utah congressional districts;
(ii) a map of all state Senate districts;
(iii) a map of all state House of Representatives districts; and
(iv) a map of all State School Board districts.
(b) "Total population deviation" means a percentage determined as follows:
(i) calculating the ideal district population by dividing the total population by the
number of districts;
(ii) calculating the percentage difference between the population of the district with the
greatest population and the ideal district population;
(iii) calculating the percentage difference between the population of the district with
the lowest population and the ideal district population; and
(iv) combining the percentage differences described in Subsections (1)(b)(ii) and (iii).
(2) The commission shall, no later than 20 days after the day of the final public hearing
described in Subsection 
20A-20-301
(1), prepare and recommend three different maps for each
map type, as follows:
(a) three different maps for congressional districts, with the number of congressional
districts apportioned to Utah;
(b) three different maps for state Senate districts, with 29 Senate districts;
(c) three different maps for state House of Representatives districts, with 75 House of
Representative districts; and
(d) three different maps for State School Board districts, with 15 State School Board
districts.
(3) (a) To the extent possible, each map recommended by the commission shall be
approved by at least five members of the commission.
(b) If the commission is unable to obtain the approval of at least five members for all
maps required under Subsection (2) for a particular map type, the commission shall, for that
map type:
(i) if possible, recommend one map that is approved by at least five members of the
commission; and
(ii) recommend two additional maps that are approved by a majority of commission
members, as follows:
(A) one of the maps shall be approved by a majority that includes the commission
member described in Subsection 
20A-20-201
(2)(f); and
(B) one of the maps shall be approved by a majority that includes the commission
member described in Subsection 
20A-20-201
(2)(g).
(4) The commission shall ensure that:
(a) each map recommended by the commission:
(i) is drawn using the official population enumeration of the most recent decennial
census;
(ii) for congressional districts, has a total population deviation that does not exceed
1%;
(iii) for Senate, House of Representatives, and State School Board districts, has a total
population deviation of less than 10%;
(iv) does not use race as a predominant factor in drawing district lines; and
(v) complies with the United States Constitution and all applicable federal laws,
including Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act; and
(b) each district in each map is:
(i) drawn based on total population;
(ii) a single member district; and
(iii) contiguous and reasonably compact.
(5) The commission shall define and adopt redistricting standards for use by the
commission that require that maps adopted by the commission, to the extent practicable,
comply with the following, as defined by the commission:
(a) preserving communities of interest;
(b) following natural, geographic, or man-made features, boundaries, or barriers;
(c) preserving cores of prior districts;
(d) minimizing the division of municipalities and counties across multiple districts;
(e) achieving boundary agreement among different types of districts; and
(f) prohibiting the purposeful or undue favoring or disfavoring of:
(i) an incumbent elected official;
(ii) a candidate or prospective candidate for elected office; or
(iii) a political party.
(6) The commission may adopt a standard that prohibits the commission from using
any of the following, except for the purpose of conducting an assessment described in
Subsection (8):
(a) partisan political data;
(b) political party affiliation information;
(c) voting records;
(d) partisan election results; or
(e) residential addresses of incumbents, candidates, or prospective candidates.
(7) The commission may adopt redistricting standards for use by the commission that
require a smaller total population deviation than the total population deviation described in
Subsection (4)(a)(iii) if the committee or the Legislature adopts a smaller total population
deviation than 10% for Senate, House of Representatives, or State School Board districts.
(8) (a) Three members of the commission may, by affirmative vote, require that
commission staff evaluate any map drawn by, or presented to, the commission as a possible
map for recommendation by the commission to determine whether the map complies with the
redistricting standards adopted by the commission.
(b) In conducting an evaluation described in Subsection (8)(a), commission staff shall
use judicial standards and, as determined by the commission, the best available data and
scientific methods.
Section 9. Section 
20A-20-303
 is enacted to read:
 20A-20-303.
Submission of maps to Legislature -- Consideration by Legislature.
(1) The commission shall, within 10 days after the day on which the commission
complies with Subsection 
20A-20-302
(2), submit to the director of the Office of Legislative
Research and General Counsel, for distribution to the committee, and make available to the
public, the redistricting maps recommended under Section 
20A-20-302
 and a detailed written
report describing each map's adherence to the commission's redistricting standards and
requirements.
(2) The commission shall submit the maps recommended under Section 
20A-20-302
 to
the committee in a public meeting of the committee as described in this section.
(3) The committee shall:
(a) hold the public meeting described in Subsection (2):
(i) for the sole purpose of considering each map recommended under Section
20A-20-302
; and
(ii) for a year immediately following a decennial year, on or before September 15; and
(b) at the public meeting described in Subsection (2), provide reasonable time for:
(i) the commission to present and explain the maps described in Subsection (1);
(ii) the public to comment on the maps; and
(iii) the committee to discuss the maps.
(4) The Legislature may not enact a redistricting plan before complying with
Subsections (2) and (3).
(5) The committee or the Legislature may, but is not required to, vote on or adopt a
map submitted to the committee or the Legislature by the commission.
Section 10. Section 
63G-7-201
 is amended to read:
63G-7-201.
Immunity of governmental entities and employees from suit.
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, each governmental entity and each
employee of a governmental entity are immune from suit for any injury that results from the
exercise of a governmental function.
(2) Notwithstanding the waiver of immunity provisions of Section 
63G-7-301
, a
governmental entity, its officers, and its employees are immune from suit for any injury or
damage resulting from the implementation of or the failure to implement measures to:
(a) control the causes of epidemic and communicable diseases and other conditions
significantly affecting the public health or necessary to protect the public health as set out in
Title 26A, Chapter 1, Local Health Departments;
(b) investigate and control suspected bioterrorism and disease as set out in Title 26,
Chapter 23b, Detection of Public Health Emergencies Act;
(c) respond to a national, state, or local emergency, a public health emergency as
defined in Section 
26-23b-102
, or a declaration by the President of the United States or other
federal official requesting public health related activities, including the use, provision,
operation, and management of:
(i) an emergency shelter;
(ii) housing;
(iii) a staging place; or
(iv) a medical facility; and
(d) adopt methods or measures, in accordance with Section 
26-1-30
, for health care
providers, public health entities, and health care insurers to coordinate among themselves to
verify the identity of the individuals they serve.
(3) A governmental entity, its officers, and its employees are immune from suit, and
immunity is not waived, for any injury if the injury arises out of or in connection with, or
results from:
(a) a latent dangerous or latent defective condition of:
(i) any highway, road, street, alley, crosswalk, sidewalk, culvert, tunnel, bridge, or
viaduct; or
(ii) another structure located on any of the items listed in Subsection (3)(a)(i); or
(b) a latent dangerous or latent defective condition of any public building, structure,
dam, reservoir, or other public improvement.
(4) A governmental entity, its officers, and its employees are immune from suit, and
immunity is not waived, for any injury proximately caused by a negligent act or omission of an
employee committed within the scope of employment, if the injury arises out of or in
connection with, or results from:
(a) the exercise or performance, or the failure to exercise or perform, a discretionary
function, whether or not the discretion is abused;
(b) except as provided in Subsections 
63G-7-301
(2)[
(k)
]
(j)
, (3), and (4), assault,
battery, false imprisonment, false arrest, malicious prosecution, intentional trespass, abuse of
process, libel, slander, deceit, interference with contract rights, infliction of mental anguish, or
violation of civil rights;
(c) the issuance, denial, suspension, or revocation of, or the failure or refusal to issue,
deny, suspend, or revoke, any permit, license, certificate, approval, order, or similar
authorization;
(d) a failure to make an inspection or making an inadequate or negligent inspection;
(e) the institution or prosecution of any judicial or administrative proceeding, even if
malicious or without probable cause;
(f) a misrepresentation by an employee whether or not the misrepresentation is
negligent or intentional;
(g) a riot, unlawful assembly, public demonstration, mob violence, or civil disturbance;
(h) the collection or assessment of taxes;
(i) an activity of the Utah National Guard;
(j) the incarceration of a person in a state prison, county or city jail, or other place of
legal confinement;
(k) a natural condition on publicly owned or controlled land;
(l) a condition existing in connection with an abandoned mine or mining operation;
(m) an activity authorized by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration
or the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands;
(n) the operation or existence of a pedestrian or equestrian trail that is along a ditch,
canal, stream, or river, regardless of ownership or operation of the ditch, canal, stream, or river,
if:
(i) the trail is designated under a general plan adopted by a municipality under Section
10-9a-401
 or by a county under Section 
17-27a-401
;
(ii) the trail right-of-way or the right-of-way where the trail is located is open to public
use as evidenced by a written agreement between:
(A) the owner or operator of the trail right-of-way or of the right-of-way where the trail
is located; and
(B) the municipality or county where the trail is located; and
(iii) the written agreement:
(A) contains a plan for operation and maintenance of the trail; and
(B) provides that an owner or operator of the trail right-of-way or of the right-of-way
where the trail is located has, at a minimum, the same level of immunity from suit as the
governmental entity in connection with or resulting from the use of the trail;
(o) research or implementation of cloud management or seeding for the clearing of fog;
(p) the management of flood waters, earthquakes, or natural disasters;
(q) the construction, repair, or operation of flood or storm systems;
(r) the operation of an emergency vehicle, while being driven in accordance with the
requirements of Section 
41-6a-212
;
(s) the activity of:
(i) providing emergency medical assistance;
(ii) fighting fire;
(iii) regulating, mitigating, or handling hazardous materials or hazardous wastes;
(iv) an emergency evacuation;
(v) transporting or removing an injured person to a place where emergency medical
assistance can be rendered or where the person can be transported by a licensed ambulance
service; or
(vi) intervening during a dam emergency;
(t) the exercise or performance, or the failure to exercise or perform, any function
pursuant to Title 73, Chapter 10, Board of Water Resources - Division of Water Resources;
(u) an unauthorized access to government records, data, or electronic information
systems by any person or entity; or
(v) an activity of wildlife, as defined in Section 
23-13-2
, that arises during the use of a
public or private road.
Section 11. Section 
63G-7-301
 is amended to read:
63G-7-301.
Waivers of immunity.
(1) (a) Immunity from suit of each governmental entity is waived as to any contractual
obligation.
(b) Actions arising out of contractual rights or obligations are not subject to the
requirements of [
Sections
] 
Section
63G-7-401
, 
63G-7-402
, 
63G-7-403
, or 
63G-7-601
.
(c) The Division of Water Resources is not liable for failure to deliver water from a
reservoir or associated facility authorized by Title 73, Chapter 26, Bear River Development
Act, if the failure to deliver the contractual amount of water is due to drought, other natural
condition, or safety condition that causes a deficiency in the amount of available water.
(2) Immunity from suit of each governmental entity is waived:
(a) as to any action brought to recover, obtain possession of, or quiet title to real or
personal property;
(b) as to any action brought to foreclose mortgages or other liens on real or personal
property, to determine any adverse claim on real or personal property, or to obtain an
adjudication about any mortgage or other lien that the governmental entity may have or claim
on real or personal property;
(c) as to any action based on the negligent destruction, damage, or loss of goods,
merchandise, or other property while it is in the possession of any governmental entity or
employee, if the property was seized for the purpose of forfeiture under any provision of state
law;
(d) subject to Subsection 
63G-7-302
(1), as to any action brought under the authority of
Utah Constitution, Article I, Section 22, for the recovery of compensation from the
governmental entity when the governmental entity has taken or damaged private property for
public uses without just compensation;
(e) subject to Subsection 
63G-7-302
(2), as to any action brought to recover attorney
fees under Sections 
63G-2-405
 and 
63G-2-802
;
(f) for actual damages under Title 67, Chapter 21, Utah Protection of Public Employees
Act;
(g) as to any action brought to obtain relief from a land use regulation that imposes a
substantial burden on the free exercise of religion under Title 63L, Chapter 5, Utah Religious
Land Use Act;
(h) except as provided in Subsection 
63G-7-201
(3), as to any injury caused by:
(i) a defective, unsafe, or dangerous condition of any highway, road, street, alley,
crosswalk, sidewalk, culvert, tunnel, bridge, viaduct, or other structure located on them; or
(ii) any defective or dangerous condition of a public building, structure, dam, reservoir,
or other public improvement;
(i) subject to Subsections 
63G-7-101
(4) and 
63G-7-201
(4), as to any injury
proximately caused by a negligent act or omission of an employee committed within the scope
of employment; 
and
[
(j) as to any action or suit brought under Section 
20A-19-301
 and as to any
compensation or expenses awarded under Section 
20A-19-301
(5); and
]
[
(k)
] 
(j)
 notwithstanding Subsection 
63G-7-101
(4), as to a claim for an injury resulting
from a sexual battery, as provided in Section 
76-9-702.1
, committed:
(i) against a student of a public elementary or secondary school, including a charter
school; and
(ii) by an employee of a public elementary or secondary school or charter school who:
(A) at the time of the sexual battery, held a position of special trust, as defined in
Section 
76-5-404.1
, with respect to the student;
(B) is criminally charged in connection with the sexual battery; and
(C) the public elementary or secondary school or charter school knew or in the exercise
of reasonable care should have known, at the time of the employee's hiring, to be a sex
offender, as defined in Section 
77-41-102
, required to register under Title 77, Chapter 41, Sex
and Kidnap Offender Registry, whose status as a sex offender would have been revealed in a
background check under Section 
53G-11-402
.
(3) (a) As used in this Subsection (3):
(i) "Appropriate behavior policy" means a policy that:
(A) is not less stringent than a model policy, created by the State Board of Education,
establishing a professional standard of care for preventing the conduct described in Subsection
(3)(a)(i)(D);
(B) is adopted by the applicable local education governing body;
(C) regulates behavior of a school employee toward a student; and
(D) includes a prohibition against any sexual conduct between an employee and a
student and against the employee and student sharing any sexually explicit or lewd
communication, image, or photograph.
(ii) "Local education agency" means:
(A) a school district;
(B) a charter school; or
(C) the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind.
(iii) "Local education governing board" means:
(A) for a school district, the local school board;
(B) for a charter school, the charter school governing board; or
(C) for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, the state board.
(iv) "Public school" means a public elementary or secondary school.
(v) "Sexual abuse" means the offense described in Subsection 
76-5-404.1
(2).
(vi) "Sexual battery" means the offense described in Section 
76-9-702.1
, considering
the term "child" in that section to include an individual under age 18.
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection 
63G-7-101
(4), immunity from suit is waived as to a
claim against a local education agency for an injury resulting from a sexual battery or sexual
abuse committed against a student of a public school by a paid employee of the public school
who is criminally charged in connection with the sexual battery or sexual abuse, unless:
(i) at the time of the sexual battery or sexual abuse, the public school was subject to an
appropriate behavior policy; and
(ii) before the sexual battery or sexual abuse occurred, the public school had:
(A) provided training on the policy to the employee; and
(B) required the employee to sign a statement acknowledging that the employee has
read and understands the policy.
(4) (a) As used in this Subsection (4):
(i) "Higher education institution" means an institution included within the state system
of higher education under Section 
53B-1-102
.
(ii) "Policy governing behavior" means a policy adopted by a higher education
institution or the State Board of Regents that:
(A) establishes a professional standard of care for preventing the conduct described in
Subsections (4)(a)(ii)(C) and (D);
(B) regulates behavior of a special trust employee toward a subordinate student;
(C) includes a prohibition against any sexual conduct between a special trust employee
and a subordinate student; and
(D) includes a prohibition against a special trust employee and subordinate student
sharing any sexually explicit or lewd communication, image, or photograph.
(iii) "Sexual battery" means the offense described in Section 
76-9-702.1
.
(iv) "Special trust employee" means an employee of a higher education institution who
is in a position of special trust, as defined in Section 
76-5-404.1
, with a higher education
student.
(v) "Subordinate student" means a student:
(A) of a higher education institution; and
(B) whose educational opportunities could be adversely impacted by a special trust
employee.
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection 
63G-7-101
(4), immunity from suit is waived as to a
claim for an injury resulting from a sexual battery committed against a subordinate student by a
special trust employee, unless:
(i) the institution proves that the special trust employee's behavior that otherwise would
constitute a sexual battery was:
(A) with a subordinate student who was at least 18 years old at the time of the
behavior; and
(B) with the student's consent; or
(ii) (A) at the time of the sexual battery, the higher education institution was subject to
a policy governing behavior; and
(B) before the sexual battery occurred, the higher education institution had taken steps
to implement and enforce the policy governing behavior.
Section 12. 
Repealer.
This bill repeals:
Section 
20A-19-101
,
Title.
Section 
20A-19-102
,
Permitted Times and Circumstances for Redistricting.
Section 
20A-19-103
,
Redistricting Standards and Requirements.
Section 
20A-19-104
,
Severability.
Section 
20A-19-201
,
Utah Independent Redistricting Commission -- Selection of
Commissioners -- Qualifications -- Term -- Vacancy -- Compensation -- Commission
Resources.
Section 
20A-19-202
,
Commission Code of Conduct -- Quorum -- Action by the
Commission -- Assessment of Proposed Redistricting Plans -- Open and Public Meetings
-- Public Hearings -- Ex Parte Communications.
Section 
20A-19-203
,
Selection of Recommended Redistricting Plan.
Section 
20A-19-204
,
Submission of Commission's Recommended Redistricting
Plans to the Legislature -- Consideration of Redistricting Plans by the Legislature --
Report Required if Legislature Enacts Other Plan.
Section 
20A-19-301
,
Right of Action and Injunctive Relief.
Section 13. 
Appropriation.
The following sums of money are appropriated for the fiscal year beginning July 1,
2020, and ending June 30, 2021. These are additions to amounts previously appropriated for
fiscal year 2021. Under the terms and conditions of Title 63J, Chapter 1, Budgetary Procedures
Act, the Legislature appropriates the following sums of money from the funds or accounts
indicated for the use and support of the government of the state of Utah.
ITEM 1
To Department of Administrative Services -- Finance-Mandated
From Legislature -- Office of Legislative Research and
 General Counsel, One-time
$1,000,000
Schedule of Programs:
Redistricting Commission $1,000,000
The Legislature intends that:
(1) appropriations provided under this section be used for the Utah Independent
Redistricting Commission, for the purposes of, and in accordance with, Title 20A, Chapter 20,
Utah Independent Redistricting Commission; and
(2) under Section 
63J-1-603
, appropriations provided under this item not lapse at the
close of fiscal year 2021 and the use of any nonlapsing funds is limited to the purposes
described in Subsection (1) of this provision of legislative intent.
Section 14. 
Effective date.
If approved by two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, this bill takes effect
upon approval by the governor, or the day following the constitutional time limit of Utah
Constitution, Article VII, Section 8, without the governor's signature, or in the case of a veto,
the date of veto override.