By Aidan Mortensen | KOAL News
Serving as a major moment in the first week of the Utah State Legislature, Gov. Spencer Cox gathered the legislative branch together for his annual State of the State address on Thursday, Jan. 22.
Throughout his address, Cox spoke on housing, education, homelessness and social media, while encouraging a “return to virtue” in the state, and across the country.
Opening his remarks, the Governor discussed the meaning behind the pursuit of happiness portion of the Declaration of Independence: “To the Founders, the pursuit of happiness had everything to do with character. It was the result of self-mastery, moral formation, and a life oriented toward purpose and public service.” He added,” Happiness wasn’t feeling good – it was being good.”
Cox used this as a springboard into a message for legislators, encouraging them to remain virtuous, “build moral infrastructure.”
Moving to the meat of the address, Cox first discussed the ongoing early literacy crisis facing the state. A recent report found that nearly half of Utah’s kindergarten through third grade students can’t read at grade level. “A society that cannot read cannot reason together, and when reasoning breaks down, power rushes in to fill the void,” he said.
“Our goal is this: every child reading well, early, and with confidence. That means high standards and individualized support for struggling readers. Literacy is a policy choice. It means families, schools, and the state pulling in the same direction.”
Cox also addressed housing across the state and efforts to increase construction,” We must pull every lever to increase the supply of housing – reform zoning, streamline permitting, support infrastructure, and encourage innovation. If we want strong, stable, connected families and communities throughout Utah, we have to build more homes. That means less government, not more.”
The Governor switched his focus to fentanyl and addiction across the state,” why we are going after those trafficking fentanyl, while expanding treatment, recovery, and pathways back to stability for the people who are struggling. We’re starting with chronic homelessness – helping with mental illness and breaking the vicious cycle of addiction and crime. Our mission is to make Utah the worst place in the country to camp on the street – and the best place to get help.”
Cox’s final talking point of the evening saw him dive into a subject he has dedicated significant time to during his administration: cellphones in school and social media.
“We cannot preserve agency, virtue, and happiness if we outsource the moral formation of our children to algorithms designed for addiction,” expressed Cox. “This is about protecting the next generation’s capacity to focus, to relate, to read, to think, and to choose a meaningful life. It’s about giving them their childhood back. That’s why we need a bell-to-bell phone ban in schools across Utah. Let’s give the school day – the full school day – back to kids to learn, connect, and be kids again.”
Closing his remarks, Cox urged lawmakers and Utahns to approach the new year with confidence in one another. “Have faith in America. Have faith in Utah. And always – have faith.”
Cox’s remarks have drawn criticism from Utah Democratic Party Chair Brian King, who said in a statement that Utah needs “action, not rhetoric.”
“We agree that Utah’s future depends on strong communities and a resilient economy. But without fully funded public schools, affordable housing, and reliable health care, too many Utahns are being left behind. Utah can do better. If virtue is truly central to our state’s future, then our policies must reflect it by lowering costs, strengthening public education, protecting health care, and ensuring our government works for the people it serves.”
The entire transcription of the address can be found here.