Lacey Whyte knows all about the “scarlet E” that comes with having an eviction on your record and how difficult it makes it to get into new housing. She also knows that record will follow you even if you weren’t evicted. Even if you paid all that you owed. Even if you did everything right and had an eviction complaint against you dismissed.
“I’m like, I can’t fight anymore,” Whyte said recalling the conversation. “I feel like I’m just screaming into the wind.” Another bill Smith warned of was renewed legislation by Rep. Gaylynn Bennion, D-Cottonwood Heights, that would require landlords to give 24 hours notice to enter apartments in almost all cases.Dailey-Provost’s legislation, HB119, was heard in committee and was challenged by an eviction lawyer from the Cullimore firm, the Utah Apartment Association and a representative of the Utah Realtors Association.
She recognizes landlords’ need to vet renters, but added that it’s critical renters be given a second chance. Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, is a longtime developer, with ownership in 14 development-related businesses. Senate budget Chairman Jerry Stevenson, R-Layton, has a stake in two real-estate investment companies and Cullimore, the attorney, serves as assistant majority whip.
Dave Buhler is a political science professor at the University of Utah with a long pedigree in state and local politics, having served on the Salt Lake City Council in the early 2000s and previously as a Republican state senator in the ‘90s. He said the real estate profession has always been deeply entwined in Utah politics.