UTAH
Crowded meeting with few masks 'foolish,' governor says
SALT LAKE CITY — People crowding into a public meeting in Utah to push for an exception to mask requirements in schools was "foolish" and suggested an "almost mob mentality" on the issue, Republican Gov. Gary Herbert said July 16.
Herbert spoke the day after local officials in Utah County abruptly canceled the meeting because the crowd did not follow social-distancing guidelines meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Utah has been experiencing a surge of coronavirus cases in recent months.
The three-member county commissioners had planned to vote on whether to ask for a partial exemption from Herbert's statewide mask mandate for schools. Attendees at the board meeting in Provo booed after the commissioners opted to push the vote to a later date because of health concerns.
Video footage showed the meeting was packed with people who opposed the mandate, few of whom were wearing masks.
Health experts say masks can prevent the spread of the disease by catching respiratory droplets that contain the virus when people exhale or cough. Critics argue mask mandates overstep government power.
The proposal from Utah County Commissioner Bill Lee would have the county health director ask state officials for a "compassionate exemption" from the mask mandate issued a week earlier by Herbert.
IDAHO
Grizzlies remain endangered, court rules, ending hunt plans
BOISE — A federal court has upheld a decision to keep grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem under the protections of the Endangered Species Act, ending plans in Idaho and Wyoming to allow grizzly hunts.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with a 2018 district court decision blocking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from removing the bears from the endangered species list. The district court case began in 2017 as Idaho and Wyoming planned to issue tags for 2018 grizzly hunts. Idaho planned to issue a single tag, as it has the smallest grizzly population of the three states.
The July 8 decision by the appeals court appears to put an end to future grizzly hunts unless the Fish and Wildlife Service again succeeds in removing the bears from the federal protections.
Grizzlies first received Endangered Species Act protections in 1975, two years after the legislation went into effect. In 2007, the Fish and Wildlife Service declared grizzlies in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem — in eastern Idaho, northwest Wyoming and southwest Montana — a "distinct population segment," which removed them from the endangered species list. The agency was ordered by federal courts in 2009 to restore protections. In 2017, the Fish and Wildlife Service declared this population segment recovered and no longer qualified for Endangered Species Act protections. That opened the door for hunts in Idaho and Wyoming.
The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem population has expanded outside its original recovery zone, and in the last year, grizzly bears have been caught on trail cameras or identified via tracks and DNA samples in places they haven't been seen in decades.
Conservation groups said that's not an indication that their populations are healthier. Instead, they argue the bears have been forced to expand their range as climate change and habitat destruction affect their food sources.
WYOMING
Relief bill advances to help struggling tourism industry
CHEYENNE — Following the cancellation of many summer events in Wyoming, including Cheyenne Frontier Days, state lawmakers advanced a bill on July 18 designed to offer relief to organizers trying to keep their operations afloat, as well as to lodging businesses that have seen a downturn in activity.
Wyoming lawmakers already approved a trio of grant programs to help businesses recover from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic during their special session in May.
The bill, which would need to gain approval from the full Legislature during a special session sometime this fall to become law, would provide grants of up to $2 million to community events forced to cancel due to the pandemic.
The cancellation of Frontier Days has forced its organizers to dip into essentially all of the rodeo's savings to get to next year, but the canceled events cover more than just rodeos. Cheyenne Animal Shelter CEO Sue Castaneda told lawmakers that the shelter was forced to cancel its annual Fur Ball fundraiser back in March, leaving them without the roughly $200,000 that usually comes from the event.
The bill advanced by the committee earmarks $100 million from the state's federal CARES Act money for the canceled events, which only qualify for the stipends if they have at least 100 attendants annually, a charitable branch to their operations, and a proven, local economic impact.
The bill also appropriates an additional $250 million for Wyoming hotels, dude ranches and other lodging businesses that had to close during the COVID-19 pandemic.
NEW MEXICO
Democrat Luján has money edge in US Senate race
RIO RANCHO — Democratic U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján has a nearly 6-to-1 fundraising advantage over his GOP opponent in a race for an open U.S. Senate seat in New Mexico.
Federal records show the Nambé Democrat raised nearly $1 million from mid-May to June 30. He has more than $3.3 million cash on hand going into the general election.
Luján's campaign says it will not accept corporate PAC money.
Meanwhile, Republican Mark Ronchetti reported raising $532,500 during the same time period. The former television weatherman had $571,000 cash on hand.
Ronchetti charged that Luján is receiving campaign donations from residents in California, New York and Oregon while he is focusing on New Mexico residents.
Both are seeking to replace Democratic U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, who is retiring.
The latest fundraising numbers come after Luján released his first television campaign ad, highlighting his role as an "11th generation New Mexican" and his desire to represent rural values.
The congressman doesn't mention his opponent or President Donald Trump. Luján said his campaign will try to reach the state's 33 counties through a virtual road trip.
KANSAS
Congressman forced to leave committees after felony charges
TOPEKA — A freshman Kansas congressman facing felony criminal charges over previously listing a UPS Inc. postal box as his residence on a state voter registration form has been forced to temporarily give up his House committee assignments.
Republican Rep. Steve Watkins said July 17 that he is "temporarily and voluntarily" leaving the three committees on which he serves. But the House Republican conference's rules require members facing a potential felony conviction to leave their committee posts.
He also lost the backing of Kansans for Life, the state's most influential anti-abortion group. It had endorsed him and a GOP rival, State Treasurer Jake LaTurner, and now is endorsing only LaTurner.
Watkins stepped aside from his committees two days after three felony charges and one misdemeanor charge against him were filed by the local district attorney in state district court in Shawnee County, which includes his hometown, the state capital of Topeka. He is accused of voting illegally in a Topeka City Council race in November 2019 and providing false information to a sheriff's deputy who was investigating whether he broke state election laws.
Watkins had been serving on the House education, foreign affairs and veterans' affairs committees.
The congressman and his staff have said he inadvertently listed his mailing address instead of his residential address by mistake. He later twice corrected his address to an apartment, but it is not in the same city council district as the UPS store, raising questions about potential illegal voting.
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