Utah's Legislature can easily be split in two.

One is a place revolving around the mighty dollar where teachers get raises, taxes get slashed and roads are paved anew.

The other is infused with big time policy battles about public safety, ethics and health.

While Utah lawmakers may have pleased many by spreading around the state's enormous wealth, their record on the other, sometimes more emotional issues, is somewhat spotty.

The Salt Lake Tribune tracks public sentiment in a poll conducted before lawmakers embark on their annual 45-day session.

Legislators left the Capitol at midnight Wednesday locking in a historic budget and a session unusually devoid of angst.

On the money issues, survey respondents demanded a huge chunk of the $1.7 billion surplus go to public education. Next, they wanted to ease congestion on many of Utah's clogged streets. And finally, they liked the idea of a modest tax cut, particularly on purchases.

Politicians, advocates and political scientists alike say these goals were met.

"I've never had a session where I was able to do it all," Senate President John Valentine said Thursday at a forum at the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics. "It was amazing."

Lawmakers increased spending $500 million on public schools, which will provide big raises for teachers, new computers and an extended day kindergarten program. The only comparable area of the budget was transportation, which received a $510 million increase.

Legislators split the surplus into two categories: they have money they build into the annual budget (think of your paycheck) and cash (think of a bonus).

Public education received much more of the annual funding, while lawmakers spent cash to build roads and erect buildings. And because of that, House Minority Leader Ralph Becker said, "We came close to meeting the public's request."

He hedged because he believes some of the cash that went to roads could have been used to build new schools.

Republican lawmakers also avoided a debacle from the previous session by setting aside $2 million for emergency dental care for the poor. They refused to fund it in 2006, prompting Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. to find donors to cover the tab.

This year, they set aside cash, so low-income lobbyists will have to continue to scrap for funding next year. Three-fourths of the poll respondents supported funding emergency dental services.

More than half the public also called for a repeal of a law granting the children of undocumented immigrants resident tuition at state colleges, as long as they graduate from Utah high schools. Repeated attempts failed this session, with moderate Republicans joining Democrats to quash repeal efforts.

A proposal allowing police to ticket drivers solely for not wearing their seat belts was ripped apart, just as it had been for years, despite more than 60 percent of respondents backing the plan.

Two-thirds of the public also wanted to ban lobbyists from giving gifts to legislators. Such ethics bills perennially go nowhere, but this year was different. The Legislature passed a bill increasing the frequency of lobbyist disclosure forms. It also requires lobbyists to name any lawmaker who accepts a ticket to a sporting event. But it did not ban gifts.

The public also strongly supported a constitutional amendment that would declare affordable, accessible health care as a basic right. That idea, pushed by Democratic Sen. Scott McCoy, was quashed early by Republican leaders.

Sen. Pat Jones, D-Holladay said: "I do think legislators hear the public."

But they don't always agree.

mcanham@sltrib.com