Utah Education Association President Phyllis Sorensen said she's seen more business done behind closed doors and in leadership than ever before. She said one new representative told her he didn't even know why he came. Mansell flatly denied the accusation. He said leadership spoke with the Republican caucus before they signed off on anything. Stephens said proof that legislators weren't left out of the loop is that there weren't many motions from the floor.
People are happy with it.
One noticeable difference this year was the banishment of lobbyists and journalists from the floor, a move that irritated former House Speaker turned lobbyist Rob Bishop. They spread misinformation and the quality of legislation suffers. In his day, lobbyists flowed in and out of the chambers chatting with legislators at will. Big-time lobbyists such as the Eagle Forum and Utah Education Association also lost their office privileges during the session. Phyllis Sorensen, president of UEA, said the change hasn't hurt them but has made keeping track of things a little more inconvenient.