Utah Legislature is both messy and remarkable

Former state Senate majority leader Sheldon Killpack's guilty plea to drunken driving last week serves as an interesting prelude to the 2011 legislative session, which begins tomorrow, and not necessarily in a bad way.

It reminds everyone concerned that Utah has a government by and of the people. That can be both messy and remarkable.

An old friend and former lawmaker called me the other day to say he firmly believes lawmakers should earn a lot more for their efforts than the current $117 a day during the session. Give them something closer to $40,000, he said, and they won't take gifts from lobbyists or succumb to so many outside pressures.

It's a compelling thought — one I've entertained through the years. Its only flaw is that the more a lawmaker gets paid, the closer the job inches toward a full-time occupation.

Utah is one of only six states with a true citizen Legislature and with minimal full-time staff. When lawmaking is a full-time job, lawmakers tend to lose touch with the people they serve.

I can hear many of you now protesting that Utah lawmakers have done a fairly good job losing touch on only $117 a day. It is true that well-heeled interests and powerful party delegates command more of a lawmaker's attention than the average citizen. But it's also true that, for many Utah lawmakers, the 45-day session really does mean time away from work, family and friends. And when it's all over, they have to return to face those obligations and people again.

That may have something to do with some of the stranger bills that get filed each year. Lawmakers are chosen from among the people, and if you're like me you know some people with nutty ideas and some with profound thoughts, and some with both. And yet it also has something to do with the way Utah lawmakers have steered the state through murky recession-plagued waters while avoiding sharp rocks and shattering rapids.

If there is a theme to legislatures nationwide this year, it is that they wish it were legal for them to declare bankruptcy. This is the year in which federal bailouts to states will end and when lawmakers have to grapple with pension obligations, unions and the balance between the public welfare and fiscal sanity. California Gov. Jerry Brown said it will be a time for "courage and sacrifice," according to the Associated Press. That state faces a $25.4 billion deficit. Things are about the same in Texas, Illinois and a lot of other places. South Carolina's governor wants to stop paying for museums and art programs and give public employees a 5 percent pay cut. There aren't many alternatives.