No one spoke up last month when legislators recommended ending a program aimed at analyzing cases of racial profiling. They had just been told the state's current methodology wasn't providing adequate information.

Now, many leaders in the state's ethnic minority community say they weren't aware of the meeting beforehand, but they plan to let lawmakers know that racial profiling is a real issue.

Reps. David Litvack and Jennifer Seelig, both D-Salt Lake, are studying the issue and looking at ways to keep the state from ignoring the racial profiling issue.

"I am definitely very committed to this issue," Litvack said. "It's a critical issue, not just to racial and ethnic minority communities but to the entire community."

Seelig agreed, saying, "We've got to tweak it right or else it doesn't help anybody."

Without action, the 2002 law allowing people to provide information regarding their race on a driver's license application is set to expire next year. The committee recommended allowing the expiration and repealing another aspect of the legislation that requires officers to provide racial data on traffic stops.

When the committee took its action, both Litvack and Seelig were in the process of learning about the issue and were planning to meet with those close to it, including Mike Haddon, director of research for the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice.

And civil rights groups, including the Salt Lake and Ogden NAACP chapters, Image de Utah NUCHAC and the Utah Hispanic Legislative Task Force, are monitoring the issue.

Haddon, in charge of keeping the data for the state, said he'll continue to work on the issue, though he acknowledged, "It's just a difficult issue to do research on."

At the very least, Haddon suggests that law-enforcement officials continue collecting drivers' license race data for possible future research, while continuing to look at ways to target racial profiling.

Sen. Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse, co-chairman of the Transportation Interim Committee, said he was "very surprised" that no one spoke up on the issue during last month's meeting.

Killpack said the committee is concerned about racial profiling but is frustrated the existing program isn't producing valuable results.

"I think the basic question was, 'How effective was this; was it accomplishing the intended purpose?' " Killpack said. "There wasn't a resounding 'Yes!' "

Killpack said he'd be willing to take another look at the issue. "What I would want to see is a viable piece of legislation," he said.

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E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com