2007 General Session Legislative Summary

In this issue

Results from the Session: New Laws and Failed Bills

UCASA's Day on the Hill

Looking Ahead:

Legislation in the Works
Public Policy Advocacy Training
How You Can Get Involved

The 2007 General Session of the Utah Legislature brought mixed results for victims of sexual violence and for prevention efforts. Several bills that enhance penalties for certain sex offenses or heighten monitoring of convicted sex offenders were passed and will be signed into law. However, this session brought no direct state funding for victim services or for prevention efforts, and one bill that would have offered a measure of protection for victims of sexual violence that occurs within a dating relationship through protection orders, failed to pass the Senate.

This issue of the e-Update contains a report on the seven bills that UCASA followed. It also includes information on important efforts that UCASA and our partners in the movement will make in the coming months to prepare for the 2008 Legislative session, including potential legislation for 2008 now in the works. We invite your feedback, ideas and partnership.

Thank you to all who were active this session and communicated with your legislators on these and other important bills.

If you have questions or comments about these issues, or other issues not included, please contact Laurel Duncan, Executive Director, at (801) 746-0404 or laurel@ucasa.org. And as always, we invite your feedback and ideas.

Results from the Session: New Laws and Failed Attempts

The seven bills on which UCASA took positions this session are outlined in the charts below. Of those seven, UCASA supported four and originally opposed three. Three of the four bills we supported passed. We share in the disappointment of many of you that House Bill 28 Domestic Violence and Dating Amendments (described below) did not pass the Senate, despite the best efforts of many, including bill sponsors Representative David Litvak and Senator Scott McCoy.

Of the three bills UCASA opposed, two were defeated. As for the third, House Bill 375 Sex Offender Residence Restrictions, the portion of the original bill that UCASA opposed was ultimately dropped from the bill before it was passed and signed into law. UCASA is neutral, although concerned, about the language of the substitute bill that did pass.

Bills That Passed

Bill Title and Number Bill Sponsor Summary UCASA's Position

HB 5 Internet Sexual Predator Penalties

 

 Paul Ray (R) Amends the penalty for enticing a minor in order to commit a first degree felony sexual offense, so that the enticement offense is a first degree felony with a specified penalty. Provides that if a defendant commits the offense of enticing a minor to commit any felony sexual offense, and the defendant has previously committed a sexual offense or kidnapping against a minor, the court may not shorten the prison sentence. SUPPORT
HB 31 Driver License or ID Card Requirement for Sex Offenders Paul Ray (R) Modifies the Uniform Driver License Act regarding identification cards to provide that a person required to register as a sex offender must maintain a current ID card if the person does not have a driver license. The bill requires that sex offenders subject to registration must keep a current state ID card if the offenders do not have a driver license. SUPPORT
HB 93 Capital Offenses Amendment Paul Ray (R) Provides that the commission or attempt to commit specified offenses, including sexual offenses, against a child as part of the commission of the homicide constitutes aggravated murder whether or not the specified offenses were committed intentionally or knowingly. SUPPORT
HB S375 Sex Offender Restrictions Greg Hughes (R)

Originally introduced as a measure to restrict registered sex offenders residency by requiring that registered sex offenders not live within 500 feet of schools, public parks, swimming pools, or playgrounds, the substitute bill now limits where registered adult and juvenile sex offenders, convicted of a crime against a minor or child, may go. These "protected areas" include day care, preschool facilities, public swimming pools, and community parks. The bill allows for an exemption if the offender must be present in order to carry out necessary parental responsibilities.

The protected area includes any area that is 1,000 feet or less from the residence of the victim. UCASA's concern is that this would mean that Corrections would need to notify offenders where their victims live if there is concern that the offender is within this proximity. This means that not only are we tracking offenders, we also begin tracking victims.

If the victim is an immediate family member residing with the sex offender, the "protected area" does not apply. Because 91.4% of offenders are known to the victim (Rape in Utah) and only 2% of rapists are convicted (U.S. Senate Judicary Committee), the protected areas likely offer little to no protection.

 UCASA opposed the original HB 375

* UCASA's concerns regarding sex offender residency restrictions: Sadly, sex offenders come from our communities and as communities we need to decide the safest location for them to reside when they return to our communities. We can not simply list places where we don't want them to go, we need to identify effective solutions to preserve community safety.

Bills That Failed

Bill Title and Number Bill Sponsor Summary UCASA's Position
HB 28 Domestic Violence & Dating Amendments David Litvak (D) Would have provided for the issuance, modification and enforcement of protective orders between parties who are, or have been, in a dating relationship with each other and one party commits abuse against the other. Without this legislation, there remains no option for a protective order for a person who has been abused and/or sexually assaulted within a dating relationship if they fall outside of the scope of cohabitant protective orders. Although stalking injunctions and no-contact orders may be options for some sexual assault victims, these are limited measures that are not accessible or applicable in many cases. SUPPORT
HB 235 Abortion Law Revisions Paul Ray (R) Would have provided that if Roe v. Wade is overturned, the provisions of this bill would immediately be in effect. Would have provided that no person may perform an abortion unless: (1) it is necessary in order to avert a woman's death or to avert a serious risk to a woman of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function; or (2) the woman is pregnant as the result of incest or rape that is reported to law enforcement before the abortion is performed. OPPOSE*
HB 105 Illegal Immigration Enforcement Act Paul Ray (R) Would have allowed local law enforcement officers to perform functions of a federal immigration officer. UCASA and UDVC joined in opposition to this bill on behalf of sexual assault and domestic violence victims. This legislation, which would have granted law enforcement the authority to act as federal immigration officials, would have jeopardized the relationship between victims of color and law enforcement and makes victims of sexual and domestic violence unlikely to report abuse and/or seek emergency medical attention, regardless of intensity, if there was a chance they might be deported. OPPOSE

* UCASA's specific concern with the Abortion Amendments bill was the stated requirement to report to police before a rape or incest victim can access abortion services. UCASA opposes policies that would deny medical, counseling or other services, including abortion, to victims who choose not to report. While UCASA generally encourages reporting, we understand that there are myriad personal factors that a victim of rape or sexual assault must consider in deciding whether to go to the police. According to the Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, the majority of rape victims do not report to police.

UCASA's Day on the Hill

During the second week of the session, UCASA staff and Board Members, joined by Heather Stringfellow of the Rape Recovery Center and Ned Searle of the Governor's Violence Against Women and Families Cabinet Council, spent a morning at the State Capitol talking with representatives about sexual violence issues facing their constituents. We spoke with dozens of legislators and initiated what we intend to be on-going dialogs with many of them about these issues.

We will continue to meet one on one with legislators throughout the year and plan to be at the capitol again next year, expanding our event to include senators as well as representatives. If you are interested in partnering with UCASA for a Day on the Hill in 2008 or in our meetings with legislators please contact Laurel at (801) 746-0404 or at laurel@ucasa.org.

Looking Ahead

Legislation in the Works

UCASA and other members of the Utah Sexual Violence Council, including the Rape Recovery Center, Utah Crime Victim Reparations, and Utah Crime Victims Legal Clinic, have been examining Utah’s existing Crime Victim’s Bill of Rights (§77-37-3) and exploring options to expand this legislation to make it more comprehensive. Some of the issues that we hope to address through amendments to this legislation include how victims receive information about their rights and the services available to them, how victims receive information about the status of their cases, and the need for interpreters and/or auxillary aids when victims report to law enforcement.

We are also exploring state funding. As many of you know, the State of Utah currently provides no funding designated for sexual assault victim services and rape prevention efforts. If Utah is serious about ending sexual assault, and identifying sexual predators, then we need to be serious about supporting their victims. Supporting victims and preventing rape in Utah, by making funds available statewide for victim services and prevention efforts, needs to be prioritized.

If you are interested in collaborating with UCASA on the items mentioned here or any other potential bills, or if you have ideas to share, please contact us.

Public Policy Advocacy Training

This spring, UCASA plans to host a Public Policy Advocacy Training in Salt Lake City to help our staff, board members, and others in the movement get better equipped to make real strides in advancing the interests of sexual assault victims and prevention work in Utah. We invite you to participate. The date is yet to be set and more information will follow. If you are interested, please contact Laurel as soon as possible.

How You Can Get Involved

If you have ideas and insight to share and are able to dedicate a few hours a month, consider joining UCASA's Governmental Affairs Committee. The committee, comprised of UCASA staff, board members and other members of the community, meets monthly throughout the year. We invite individuals interested in becoming active participants to contact Laurel Duncan at 746-0404 or laurel@ucasa.org for more information or to apply.

In addition, please contact UCASA anytime with ideas, feedback or questions. The task of advancing sound public policies that effectively serve the interest of victims of sexual violence and helps to make our communities safer is no small challenge. Collaboration and consistency within the movement is critical.

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