• Sutherland research informed key modifications to increase election security in Utah.
• The App Store Accountability Act empowers parents to have more control over what content their children consume on their phones.
• Utah took a step in the right direction on federalism and transparency through the passage of SB 198.

​With the 2025 legislative session in the rearview mirror, Utahns can be pleased with many of the results. Sutherland Institute engaged with legislators in several policy areas, providing insights, research and analysis to help inform better policymaking. We highlight a few victories below.

Election Reform

Recent Sutherland research on voter confidence in elections brought important data to the table as legislators debated HB 300. In its research, Sutherland identified that Utah voters value the convenience of voting by mail, but also recognize the benefits of including certain information as part of the ballot (like identification) that would boost public trust in election security. This helped legislators strike a balance between the principle of election security and voter access.

Federalism

Federal government agencies at times send “guidance letters” to Utah state government entities, which influence what state agencies can do, despite the letters not being considered binding law. Sutherland actively supported SB 198, which requires Utah state agencies to publicly post these letters, providing a level of transparency to Utahns and a win for federalism.

Protecting Kids and Empowering Parents

Sutherland worked with Utah policymakers on SB 142, which implements age verification for minors trying to download apps from their phone’s app store. This law, considered the first of its kind, protects kids from harmful content and empowers parents to have more control over what content their children consume. We discussed this bill in depth on our podcast, Defending Ideas, and provided an FAQ for parents looking to learn more.

Religious Freedom

Sutherland supported, and the Legislature passed HB 390, a bill that protects students at Utah universities from discrimination in their ideological clubs and groups. Provisions include that if a student religious organization wants to select as its leader someone whose faith aligns with that group’s tenets, it is protected in doing so.

Welfare Reform

Utah is already leading when it comes to addressing poverty, as the state is currently No.1 in the nation for upward mobility. The state’s “One Door” model, where welfare and workforce services are located in a single government agency, provides a unique approach to helping families receive stabilizing assistance paired with education, training and work opportunities. This session, Sutherland was heavily involved in advocating for funding for a pilot program to help families on public assistance transition off of those programs into work-based self-reliance. This new appropriation will use $6 million in TANF funding to help families more easily navigate the transition from welfare to work and self-reliance with financial planning tools and enhanced coaching and mentoring, while collecting data to identify future reform areas.