This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Editor's Note: Each year, at the beginning of the Utah Legislature, it is tradition for the House Speaker to address the body and establish priorities for the upcoming 45-day session. Below is probably not the opening day speech of House Speaker Greg Hughes, but it could be.

HOUSE SPEAKER GREG HUGHES:

My fellow representatives;

As we convene the 2017 General Session of the Utah Legislature, we do so in a very different America — an America that my main man Donald is finally making great again.

So it is fitting, as Utahns and as elected officials, that we roll up our sleeves and do our part in the effort. I wanted to talk today about what we have done and what we will do in the coming weeks to #MakeUtahGreatAgain.

Let me start with education. Some in the business community have said we haven't done enough for education, that our abysmal funding, overcrowded classes and poor teacher retention have stifled educational opportunities.

Well, in recent years we've taken this problem head-on. We raised the gas tax and made major earmarks, and today we now spend $1.5 billion every year in transportation, ensuring our children have more opportunity to learn about highways and on-ramps than any students this side of New Jersey.

We are preparing these children for a bright future, from being road engineers to working on road crews to being the guys who pick up roadkill. We can proudly tell our young people: In Utah, you can be anything you want to be, just as long as it involves roads.

[Applause]

On air quality, we have heard your voices — despite the incessant wheezing and hacking coughs. We did not stand idly by. Thanks to the bold leadership of Sen. Todd Weiler, those kids may still have to stay in during recess, but they won't be looking at internet boobies when they're stuck inside. And this session we promise to do more to address this deadly public health crisis … the porn one, not the air thing.

[Applause]

For several years now, we have barely been able to pick up a newspaper or turn on the television without seeing a story about how Utah's liquor laws are hurting the state's reputation and costing the state tourism business.

Now Rep. Norm Thurston has the solution we've been looking for. We will act quickly to lower the legal blood alcohol limit to 0.05 percent — not just when driving but for news media covering the Legislature, thus ensuring the immediate arrest of most of the Capitol press corps. The rest of them will have to cover the Legislature from behind a 7-foot-tall Zion Curtain, thus assuring we will no longer have to put up with news stories about our really splendid alcohol laws.

[Standing Ovation]

Last session, the Legislature took the first steps to partner with Salt Lake City to begin addressing our rampant homelessness issue. After exploring several innovative ideas, including using excess Democratic staff office space as an overflow shelter, we are now embarking on building four new shelters in cooperation with Mayor Jackie Biskupski.

The mayor would like to have been here today, but unfortunately she ended up getting thrown under that orange Ben McAdams campaign bus. We wish her well.

In a show of bipartisanship, we will pass into law Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck's "death with dignity" bill, at least as it applies to all of the other legislation Democrats propose. We recognize that every Democratic bill deserves respect and self-esteem when it is defeated.

[Applause]

These are just some of the ways that we will Make Utah Great Again. And it is my pleasure to work with you all as the speaker of this esteemed body — at least until the Trump people call with a better offer. Then I'm gone. And I'm taking Rep. Mike Noel with me.

[Democrats applause]

God bless you, and bless the great State of Utah. You're gonna need it.

[Standing Ovation]