Bills from the 2024 General Session of the Utah State Legislature have started going into effect as of May 1, 2024. These laws include updates to penalties for school threats and changes to the DUI testing requirements in the states.

House Bill 14, also known as the School Threat Penalty Amendments, mandates the suspension or expulsion of students who make a false emergency report targeted at a school. The bill also enhances the penalty for making a threat against a school from a class A misdemeanor to a third-degree felony.

House Bill 69, or the DUI Testing Amendments updated the testing requirements for DUI charges to include testing bodily fluids, including blood and urine samples to be performed by the Department of Health and Human Services at the expense of the arrested driver.

A bill that passed with near-unanimous support in the legislature was House Bill 432, the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Amendments. This changes the law so that members of the clergy can report ongoing abuse or neglect of a child, even if the perpetrator confessed to the clergy member. Support for this bill grew following a story by The Associated Press that brought light to the loophole some predators were using with clergy-penitent confidentiality.

On the Senate side of things, Senate Bill 69 amends the state individual income tax rate from 4.65% to 4.55%. According to Kiplinger Finance, this will save the average Utahn about $2 per week starting with the 2024 tax year.

Senate Bill 112 establishes a state license for eyelash and eyebrow technicians and instructors and reduces the training and experience requirements for cosmetologist/barber instructors, electrologist instructors, esthetician instructors, hair designer instructors, and nail technician instructors.

For a complete list of bills that went into law on May 1, you can visit the Utah State Legislature website found here.

*Photo courtesy of the Utah House of Representatives