Red states take anti-government fervor to a new level by deleting federal data.
Hits & Misses
By Katharine Biele @kathybiele
Miss: In The Dark
Of course, conspiracy theorists and believers in the "Deep State" would want to keep the public from knowing, well, anything. Thanks to a July 15 report by the Utah Investigative Journalism Project, Utahns now know of an effort to keep them in the dark—especially from the federal government. The conservative Reason Magazine calls it the "anti-commandeering doctrine," which says "while states and localities can't actively impede federal enforcement of laws and rules created in D.C., they don't have to expend a single dime or drop of sweat to assist the feds." Never let it be said that we'd spend any energy to have good data available—particularly if it was from the feds. Drew Mingl, who worked for Utah's Open Data Catalog, helped build it into a model of transparency for state governments, but was stopped by a new boss who ordered him to get rid of all public data from federal sources. We're talking about health care, water, fire and tax return data, for instance. Mingl was fired and the new boss is gone, but the issue of data transparency continues.
Hit: Something New
Finally—maybe—a real plan to tackle homelessness. "I'm excited. I'm excited because for 30 years we've been doing it the same way and I'm frankly tired and I want us to do something different," District Attorney Sim Gill told Fox-13 News on July 19. He was talking about an aspirational if compassionate 5-year $42 million plan unveiled by Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson to focus on housing, law enforcement and criminal justice reform, and systemic gaps needing aid. Better sooner than later after the U.S. Supreme Court opened the door to aggressive removal of homeless encampments. Of course, the county has to access funding, but some of that is already available. Count this as a win for a systemic solution to a growing problem.
Miss: Cost of Living
If homelessness is a problem, so is home ownership. Analysts from real estate resource AgentAdvice found that Utah homeownership rates have been decreasing since 2014. You probably don't need data to see that. And a Utah Foundation report underlines the problem: Recent household incomes were only about 20% higher than in 1985, it reported, while home prices increased 90%, adjusting for inflation. "Ultimately, high home prices are putting the American Dream out of reach for a growing share of Utahns." Worse off were millennials, though housing affordability affected everyone. In Utah, renting may be preferable, but rents, too, are at a high. Maybe it's good news that SLC and Utah are popular places to live. But supply has to catch up—despite the building boom. The Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute estimates a shortage of 37,000 homes. Don't count on new ones being affordable.
About The Author
Katharine Biele
A City Weekly contributor since 1992, Katharine Biele is the informed voice behind our Hits & Misses column. When not writing, you can catch her working to empower voters and defend democracy alongside the League of Women Voters.
More by Katharine Biele
-
Utah's embarrassing legislative hangover—no mail-in voting, no Pride flags, no fluoride and no Sundance.
Hits & Misses
- Apr 2, 2025
-
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox says Tesla protesters should go to jail for property damage.
Hits & Misses
- Mar 26, 2025
-
Scared white men get to work wiping America's history of women and minority characters.
Hits & Misses
- Mar 19, 2025
- More »
Latest in Hits & Misses
