House District 59 candidates agree on repealing development law

Republican Luke Searle and Democrat Celeste Johnson agree on one thing: Senate Bill 258 needs to go.

The two candidates for Utah House District 59 found broad common ground on development and local control at an Oct. 15 forum hosted by KPCW and the Heber Leadership Academy. They split on taxes and how to handle data centers.

District 59 covers Wasatch County and parts of Summit County, including Park City and part of the Snyderville Basin, according to KPCW. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Searle, a Wasatch County Council member, and Johnson, a former two-term Midway mayor, both called for repealing SB258. The 2024 law created a pathway for landowners to establish preliminary municipalities outside conventional local planning processes, according to The Park Record.

“What we don’t need is the state telling us what to do,” Searle said, according to the newspaper. He said repeal was a top priority and that he had discussed it with House leadership. Johnson called the law a “terrible bill.”

MIDA

Both candidates criticized the Military Installation Development Authority, the state entity involved in Deer Valley Resort’s East Village and a data center project in Box Elder County, KPCW reported.

Searle called for substantially scaling back MIDA. Johnson said it should be “taken off the books altogether,” according to The Park Record’s forum coverage.

In an Oct. 2 Park Record interview, Searle questioned whether eliminating MIDA was practical given its outstanding bonds. He said land-use authority should remain with elected officials.

Data centers and taxes

Both candidates said the Wasatch Back is not the place for data centers. Johnson supported a moratorium pending more information about their impacts. Searle favored ending statewide tax incentives but questioned whether a moratorium would undermine local control, according to The Park Record.

Johnson supported eliminating taxes on food and groceries while protecting education funding. Searle advocated eliminating taxes on seniors’ Social Security income and reducing property taxes, KPCW reported.

Both also said developers should bear the costs of growth rather than shifting those costs to existing residents, according to The Park Record.

Voting deadlines

Voter registrations must reach the county clerk by 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 23. Eligible voters who miss that deadline can register in person during early voting or on Election Day with two forms of identification, according to Utah’s election office.

Mail ballots must reach the voter’s county clerk by 8 p.m. Nov. 3. Voters can also return ballots to an authorized drop box by that deadline, according to the state’s ballot-return instructions.