Speaker Updates
Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz said Utah lawmakers are continuing work to keep energy affordable for families, as national fuel prices fall but drivers in Utah still feel squeezed.
“Four years ago, we started asking tough questions about Utah’s energy crisis,” Schultz said in an October update. “It wasn’t an easy conversation for anyone. But that’s our job as lawmakers to ask questions, push for answers, and always keep Utah families in mind. And guess what? Now we are seeing the results.”
Utah boasts some of the lowest energy costs in the nation because of the state’s all-of-the-above approach to power generation. Still, Schultz said, the regional gas market tells a different story. “Gas prices are dropping,” he said. “Yet, here in Utah – we haven’t seen the same relief – even though we have five refineries right here in our own front yard.”
Utah produces about 1.5 times the fuel it consumes; yet, Utahns don’t see the benefit at the pump.
A legislative analysis shows Utah builds refining capacity while bearing the full impacts on air quality and infrastructure, while neighboring states collect the sales tax revenue on exported fuel. Broader taxation approaches on fuel manufacturing could help lower pump prices for Utahns over time.
The state’s five refineries produce roughly 220,000 barrels of fuel per day, but up to 75,000 barrels are exported to meet demand in neighboring states. Schultz said, Utahns bear the full burden of those costs while other states share in the benefits. “I want a better deal than that,” he added.
House and Senate lawmakers are working closely with “refinery operators, fuel leaders and key stakeholders to push for lower gas prices for Utah drivers” as part of broader efforts to keep life affordable across the state. Policymakers are reviewing tax policy reforms that could ensure Utah drivers receive more of the economic benefit from locally refined fuel.
The speaker said Utah refineries are important to the state’s economy and workforce. However, states like California have adopted restrictive clean-fuel rules, reducing refinery capacity by about 12 percent in the past decade and driving up wholesale gasoline costs on the West Coast. That creates a supply pull into states such as Nevada and Idaho that compete for compliant fuels, raising costs in Utah as well.
“There’s only so much we can do as a state to impact gas prices, but we’re going to do what we can to ensure Utahns get a fair shake at the pump,” Schultz said. He added that higher fuel prices drive up costs for families on essentials like groceries and deliveries.
Speaker Mike Schultz is asking Gov. Spencer Cox to include a proposal in the fall special session of the Utah Legislature that would authorize Utah Forestry, Fire and State Lands to raise the Great Salt Lake causeway berm from 4,190 feet to 4,192 feet. The goal is to give state officials more flexibility to protect the lake’s critical South Arm ecosystem.
“We’ve taken a lot of great positive steps over the last several years to make sure that we don’t get to that level again,” Schultz said. “One of those was the berm management between the North Arm and the South Arm of the Great Salt Lake. That’s proven to be a really effective tool. Quite honestly, it’s probably what saved the Great Salt Lake a couple of years ago when we raised that berm.”
During a press conference with the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, Schultz sat alongside Jamie Barnes, director of Utah Forestry, Fire and State Lands, to explain the plan and its potential impact. Schultz will formally petition the governor to include the berm measure on the call for a fall special session, if it proves to be beneficial.
“We think that possibly could add some additional tools to the toolbox to help the ecosystem on the South Arm,” he said. “If it looks like it makes sense, we petitioned the governor to add it to the special session that we’re likely to have sometime this fall.”
Barnes said the state is evaluating the ecological tradeoffs of raising the berm, including the effects on water flow, salinity, and long-term management. Schultz acknowledged those uncertainties.
“It may help, may not,” Schultz said. “But let’s have the tools and the flexibility to do it if they think that it might help.”
The berm was last raised in 2022, a year when the lake reached historic lows and South Arm salinity spiked to 18.7 percent. That action is widely credited with avoiding ecosystem collapse. Schultz said the North and South Arms are now within six inches of each other.
“At some point in time that berm would get opened back up,” he said. “We’re here to save the whole Great Salt Lake.”
The proposed adjustment builds on previous legislation. Schultz highlighted House Bill 453, which created a water distribution management plan and set new conditions for mineral extraction companies operating on the lake.
“In HB 453, we also put in there that mineral companies have to stop taking water out after 4193 unless they entered into a voluntary agreement,” he said. “The ones that haven’t are getting cut off, and they’re not going to be able to take water out of the South Arm.”
Barnes praised the legislature’s role in building water protections into the law.
“The speaker’s done heroic efforts on Great Salt Lake,” Barnes said. “Those voluntary agreements that we’ve entered into with mineral companies, 255,000 acre feet donated by Compass Minerals in that voluntary agreement.”
Both Schultz and Barnes stressed that the state will continue using every available strategy to protect the lake. That includes invasive species removal, wetland restoration, and upstream forest management.
“I think it’s important for people to understand that we’re not taking our eyes off of this,” Schultz said. “We are still actively engaged in making sure that we manage the lake in a way to increase the levels and specifically protect the ecosystem that’s out there.”
When asked if the pause on new water legislation he called for last session might be lifted, Schultz said the state is ready to revisit policy ideas that are working.
Speaker Mike Schultz Emphasizes Importance of Local Food Processing
Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz recently joined a coalition of rural lawmakers in Washington, D.C., pressing federal officials for meaningful support for farmers, ranchers, and rural communities across Utah.
“Growing up in a small town and running a family ranch, I’ve seen firsthand how agriculture, land, and water shape daily life, not just in Utah, but across the country,” Schultz said following the trip.
The delegation met with leaders from the U.S. Forest Service, Environmental Protection Agency, and Department of Agriculture, where they shared feedback. Schultz highlighted a two-hour roundtable with USDA officials, including a direct dialogue with farmers and ranchers from across the country.
“We weren’t just talking. We were being heard,” Schultz said.
Schultz emphasized that Utah is advocating for reduced federal regulations and stronger investment in local food infrastructure, including processing and distribution systems.
“One of my top priorities is expanding Utah’s ability to produce and process more of our own food, so we don’t have to rely on other countries,” he said.
According to Schultz, the benefits of local food systems reach beyond agriculture. Many Utahns, he said, want to know where their food comes from, how it’s processed, and how they can support producers in their own communities.
“We have the land. We have the work ethic. We have the talent,” Schultz said. “What we need is the infrastructure.”
The Utah House aims to grow rural jobs and reduce the state’s reliance on out-of-state food processing. He called the visit to Washington a reminder of what makes Utah strong.
“This trip wasn’t just about meetings. It was a reminder of what makes Utah exceptional, and a call to protect and strengthen the way of life that defines us.”