By Anastasia Hufham | The Salt Lake Tribune | Photo courtesy of the Office of Gov. Spencer Cox

Utah lawmakers on Wednesday unanimously approved Gov. Spencer Cox’s pick to lead the state’s Department of Agriculture and Food, despite his history of controversy.

Cox announced Kelly Pehrson as his choice to run the department last month. Pehrson has served as UDAF’s deputy commissioner since 2019 and as interim commissioner since the prior department head’s retirement earlier this year.

“Utah agriculture has a bright future, and together, we can build a stronger and more resilient sector,” Pehrson said during his confirmation hearing Tuesday.

Members of the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Confirmation Committee, including two Democrats, unanimously recommended Pehrson’s confirmation to the full Senate.

During the Tuesday hearing, the legislators asked Pehrson about his plans for grant programs, helping both urban and rural farmers and hiring changes at the department. None of them pressed Pehrson on his checkered past.

In 2020, when Pehrson was deputy commissioner, a state audit found that Pehrson may have unfairly influenced the selection process for companies to get medical marijuana-growing licenses and that he inappropriately used a state-owned vehicle.

Read more at SLTrib.com.

This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aims to inform readers across the state.