Spencer Cox Archives - The Virginia Star

Utah Governor Signs Bill Barring Men from Using Women’s Restrooms

February 1, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

Republican Gov. Spencer Cox of Utah signed a bill on Tuesday that bans men from using women’s restrooms and locker rooms and creates a legal definition for male and female.

The bill, introduced by Republican state Rep. Kera Birkeland, would designate restrooms in schools and public spaces as only “designated for the exclusive use” of females and males, according to the text. The bill was passed by the state House of Representatives on Friday before being signed by Cox this week, according to the press release.

Cell Phone Bans in Public Schools are Trending Nationwide

October 30, 2022 The Center Square

Seven years ago, the former New York City Schools Chancellor said the city’s decision to lift a ban on cell phones in schools was “common sense.”

Last week, the Philadelphia Board of Education approved a contract of up to $5 million with a company that makes locking phone pouches that allow educators to make classrooms phone-free.

‘Unprecedented Level of Federal Overreach’: 16 Governors Urge Biden to Rescind Costly Wall Street Climate Rules

June 1, 2022May 31, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

A coalition of 16 Republican governors sent a letter Tuesday to President Joe Biden, urging him to rescind a proposal introducing a series of climate requirements for companies.

The recent Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposal, which forces publicly-traded companies to share so-called climate change risks and greenhouse gas emissions, would harm businesses and investors by adding high compliance costs, the governors argued in the letter addressed to both Biden and SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. The climate disclosure rule, they added, would also represent an overstepping of the SEC’s authority.

Republican Governor of Utah Vetoes Transgender Sports Ban Bill

March 24, 2022March 23, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

On Tuesday, another Republican governor vetoed a popular bill passed by the state legislature that would have prohibited so-called “transgender” athletes from competing on sports teams of the opposite gender.

As reported by Axios, Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R-Utah) justified his veto by saying that “rarely has so much fear and anger been directed at so few.”

Republican Governor of Indiana Vetoes Bill to Ban Transgenders from Competing in Women’s Sports

March 23, 2022March 22, 2022 Admin

On Monday, the Republican governor of Indiana vetoed a bill that would ban so-called “transgenders” from competing in sports for the opposite gender.

As reported by ABC News, Governor Eric Holcomb (R-Ind.) vetoed the bill, HEA 1041, after it passed through both houses of the state legislature, despite previously voicing his support for the same bill last month. In his veto, Holcomb claimed that the bill “falls short” of implementing a policy that would be consistent at the statewide level, and thus would not be able to provide “fairness in K-12 sports.”

‘Devastating’: Biden Ignores Lawmakers’ Pleas, Orders Massive Expansion of Utah Monuments

October 12, 2021October 11, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

President Joe Biden will order the Department of the Interior Friday to vastly expand two Utah monuments which the Trump administration reduced in size.

The president will restore protections for both the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante monuments located in Utah, the White House announced. Biden’s order will re-expand the monuments from their reduced size of slightly more than 1 million acres to 3.2 million acres.

States, Not Congress, Could Pose the Biggest Threat to Tech Companies

August 31, 2021August 30, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Despite calls for increased regulation of the tech industry, Congress has yet to pass any major legislation, leaving it up to the states to take action curbing tech companies’ power and influence.

Meanwhile, state legislatures have introduced and enacted legislation on data privacy, antitrust, and content moderation, while state attorneys general have issued a number of legal challenges alleging anticompetitive business practices.

Utah Teachers’ Union Offers Endorsement to Lt. Governor Following Veto of Special Ed Bill

June 22, 2020June 21, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

The biggest teachers’ union in Utah has offered its endorsement of incumbent Lieutenant Governor Spencer Cox after his administration vetoed a special education bill that the union opposed.

The bill in question was House Bill 332, introduced by state representative Mike Schultz (R-Utah). The main purpose of the bill was to provide greater funding to special needs programs across the state, and sought to do so by creating a new individual/corporate tax credit that would provide the funding for a new scholarship program for such students. This not only would provide more assistance for the roughly 80,000 students in the state classified as special needs, but would do so from a new source of revenue rather than diverting any more funds from the currently existing education budget.