News

Utah Democratic Party Delegates chose Daisy Thomas as their new party chair at Saturday’s organization convention.

Democratic delegates have selected Dr. Kathie Allen as their candidate in the special election to replace Congressman Jason Chaffetz. She won the nomination with 77% of the delegate vote over progressive activist Ben Frank and environmentalist Carl Ingwell.

In a surprise win, former state lawmaker Chris Herrod won the Republican nomination to replace Rep. Jason Chaffetz of the 3rd Congressional District.

Provo Mayor John Curtis will be on the primary ballot for Utah’s 3rd congressional district race but with very little support from Utah’s GOP delegates.

University of Utah administrators are taking steps to make the campus safer. The changes include mandatory sexual assault awareness training for students, faculty and staff.

Insurance companies are concerned congress may not fund an important federal subsidy approved under Obamacare for the coming year. That could mean higher healthcare costs for Utahns. 

A new facility is being built in North Salt Lake to turn food waste into energy. It’s the first of a kind in Utah.

Gov. Gary Herbert (R) helped kick off construction on Thursday.

Downtown Salt Lake City’s Gateway shopping center has been undergoing slow and steady adjustments since its change in ownership last year. The transformation is paying off: The Gateway is adding new tenants, including a Dave & Buster’s.

A Muslim-American Utah man is stuck in Kenya after allegedly being told he could not return to The United States. Yussuf Abdi’s attorney says airline officials told him the U.S. government had placed a hold on Adbi and would not allow him to board his return flight back to Salt Lake City with his wife and children.

Utah leaders are prodding the Trump administration to expedite the Lake Powell Pipeline. They’re not asking for money but to speed up governmental approval.

More drones are being used as tools, rather than toys these days. In the case of Rio Tinto’s Kennecott Copper Mine, drones are making work safer for employees and more efficient.

A recently published study from Brigham Young University shows that kids are sloppier writers when typing on a computer rather than with pencil and paper.

Earlier this month Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski nominated state Sen. Jim Dabakis (D-Salt Lake City) to represent the city on the Utah Transit Authority Board. But on Tuesday evening the city council voted down the nomination.

The Obama administration took heat in December for the image it used to tout the creation of the Bears Ears National Monument. Now the Trump administration has its own photo blunder.

On Monday attorneys announced a settlement in a class action lawsuit between the Disability Law Center and the Utah Department of Human Services. The plaintiffs wanted to decrease the number of mentally ill people who are stuck in jail awaiting trial.

A group of lawyers in Utah say some Justice Department policies often confuse and entrap refugees who don’t know their rights. On Tuesday, Refugee Justice League introduced what the group is calling a Refugee Rights Card. It’s designed to help refugees when they’re approached by law enforcement.

President Trump has renominated U.S. Attorney John Huber to serve as Utah's chief federal prosecutor, just three months after ordering his resignation. 

Two new reports out yesterday show that Utah ranks seventh in the nation for child well-being. But that number alone doesn’t tell the full story. 

U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is proposing to overhaul the Bears Ears National Monument in southeastern Utah, shrinking its size and expanding Congress’ role in protecting the area.

Utah Highway Patrol officers have seen an increase in methamphetamine coming through the state. Seizures of the drug are up 30 percent over the last six months.

Three candidates running in the 3rd Congressional District race to replace Jason Chaffetz met Monday's deadline to turn in signatures to get their name onto the ballot, including one newcomer. 

Kristine Hansen is finishing her 30th and final year teaching in the English Department at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. While she’s received teaching awards and been featured in numerous publications, for her it’s always been about helping students write better.

Business executives, wealthy donors and political leaders gathered in Park City on Friday for former Gov. Mitt Romney’s annual leadership and political summit, where speakers and attendees had a decidedly more upbeat take on President Trump’s first few months in office.  

State and local leaders are working on a strategic plan for developing the Point of the Mountain area in the heart of Utah’s Silicon Slopes. They're seeking input from people who live and work in the area. 

Teacher salaries have been on the rise throughout northern Utah, including Park City where new teachers will now be paid over $50,000 a year. That’s the highest entry level teacher salary in the state. On top of this shift a new ballot initiative called Our Schools Now aims to get even more money into Utah’s schools.

The Trump administration has proposed trimming funding for the nation’s national parks. The administration calls it a “balanced” approach, but others say the spending plan is headed down the wrong path.

UPDATE: KUER learned late Thursday that one of the kids featured in this story, D.P., plagiarized his contest winning the poem “Drowning in Blue”.

Much of the poem, including the title, was taken from the poet and novelist Ellen Hopkins.

Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings has removed the poem from its website and has awarded first place to a young poet from Wyoming.

Several juvenile offenders in Utah got high honors this week for their submissions to a national poetry contest. Utahns took 1st and 2nd place this year.