Gary Herbert in 2019 Governor's State of the State speeches


On Education: Invest $1B in schools & $30M in counseling

There is no better investment we can make than in our students. That's why we set a five-year goal to invest an additional $1 billion into public education, and $275 million into post-secondary education by the year 2021. We can help students who are at risk of academic failure and keep our schools safe by investing $30 million into counseling and mental health services. We can also put over $100 million into upgrading facilities, two-thirds of which should go in to school safety improvements.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Utah legislature Jan 30, 2019

On Education: Teach students the value of capitalism instead of socialism

I would like every student to have a better understanding of basic free market economics. I have been disturbed by some of the rising generation's fascination with socialism. I support [the] bill to strengthen the curriculum in our required financial literacy course to include instruction on the core economic principles that have given us our freedom and our prosperity. It is imperative that [they] understand the basic economic principles of free-market capitalism that have made America great.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Utah legislature Jan 30, 2019

On Energy & Oil: State can set example on green energy

One of the most complex challenges as a result of our growth is our air quality. The state itself is one of Utah's largest employers. So let us lead by example. Because tailpipe emissions are such a big part of the problem, let's reduce the miles driven by state employees by increasing state employee use of transit and accountable telework. Let's eliminate the dirtiest state vehicles and replace them with Tier 3 and electric automobiles. Let's improve the energy efficiency of State buildings. We can create incentives for the public to pull aging dirty diesel vehicles off the road; to replace more than 5000 wood burning stoves; and to swap out 25,000 pieces of gasoline-powered yard equipment for battery powered options. Let's make electric vehicle charging stations more accessible and convenient statewide by providing 300 electric vehicle chargers for public use at state facilities and providing incentives for an additional 800 charging stations at private businesses.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Utah legislature Jan 30, 2019

On Tax Reform: Broaden tax base & cut rates by 64%

All the goods and services that make up our modern economy should contribute to our tax base. As we broaden the tax base, we will slash the state sales tax rate. We will cut it by 64 percent from 4.85 percent to a mere 1.75 percent. That is a tax cut of $225 million, especially benefitting lower and middle income families. This would mean that nearly nine out of ten taxpayers will pay less sales tax tomorrow than they pay today.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Utah legislature Jan 30, 2019

The above quotations are from 2019 Governor's State of the State speeches.
Click here for other excerpts from 2019 Governor's State of the State speeches.
Click here for other excerpts by Gary Herbert.
Click here for other excerpts by other Governors.
Please consider a donation to OnTheIssues.org!
Click for details -- or send donations to:
1770 Mass Ave. #630, Cambridge MA 02140
E-mail: submit@OnTheIssues.org
(We rely on your support!)

Page last updated: Apr 02, 2019