Committee roundup: licensing recodification, data‑sharing, and DMV consolidation advance

The Senate Revenue & Taxation Committee advanced multiple procedural and technical bills on Feb. 5 and recommended them to the full Senate with favorable recommendations.

Representative Peterson presented First Substitute HB 40, a nearly 100‑page recodification of contractor‑licensing statutes described as non‑substantive; the committee approved the substitute and recommended the bill to the full Senate. Representative Shelley presented HB 46, which authorizes a direct data‑share from the Driver’s License Division to county assessors for residential‑exemption verification; the committee recommended the second substitute.

Senate Bill 237, sponsored by Sen. Harper, would direct the Department of Public Safety and the Utah State Tax Commission to study whether driver’s‑license and motor‑vehicle functions should be consolidated, and to report by Nov. 30 on costs, legal barriers, and operational feasibility. The sponsor agreed to add the Revenue and Taxation interim committee to the study’s oversight at the committee’s request and the bill passed out favorably.

All three bills were reported out of committee by voice vote; each will proceed to the Senate floor.