Overruling the Will of the People

Overruling the Will of the People

In November the majority of Utahns voted in favor of Proposition 3. Now, regardless of whether or not you specifically voted for the measure, I’d invite you to consider the actions of our elected "representatives".

I put “representatives” in quotes here because many of them are no longer seeking to represent the people that elected them into office. Proposition 3 sought to expand Medicaid to everyone up to 138% of the poverty level (150,000 people), a number that is important because it then ensures the government will pick up 90% of the cost. However, Utah lawmakers decided to rewrite the law such that it would only cover people up to 100% of the poverty level (90,000 people), making the state ineligible for the additional federal funding, unless we were able to obtain a waiver from the Trump administration.

If this were all, this would be concerning. Overriding a law the people put in place should not be done lightly, but there are more concerning things in this new law. If the waiver is not granted, the law is rolled back, and nobody receives the benefits granted in the law passed last November. While the state may keep asking for waivers, Proposition 3 would be effectively dead. But the icing on the cake is that this new law that our legislature is seeking to pass also comes with a block on any repeals that come through additional referendums, preventing the people from having further direct voice on the topic.

This is not something we should be seeing from our representatives. When the people pass a law, our lawmakers should respect the will of the people, and not overrule it, or block any further attempts from the people.

This article was written by BJ Taylor, a member of the United Utah Media Advisory Committee. This article represents the views of the author and not necessarily all members of the United Utah party. We highly encourage all citizens to continue to research this and other issues to arrive at personal conclusions. Civic engagement and diversity of opinions are fundamental to the United Utah Party's unique approach to politics.