This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Two bills that will dramatically aid homeless people were signed into law Friday by Gov. Gary Herbert at a ceremony at the Fourth Street Clinic that serves the less fortunate.
One bill, HB436, will provide $9.5 million to build new shelters and improve services. Advocates hope it is the first of three years of such funding.
The second piece of legislation, HB437, extends Medicaid to the 16,000 most needy, including homeless and mentally ill people, along with those recently released from prison.
"This is a significant occasion," the governor said. "It is compassion for the less fortunate."
Herbert said that Utah is having success lifting people out of poverty. The poverty rate here is 10 percent, compared to the national rate of 15 percent, he said. He added that Utah's poverty rate for children is 13 percent compared to the national rate of 27 percent.
"This is indeed a Good Friday in many ways," the governor said. "This will help homeless people get their lives back in order and help them become self-sufficient."
Homeless advocate Pamela Atkinson said the success at the Legislature was due to the governor and lawmakers, along with others, working together for a common goal.
"This process has given our homeless friends hope," she said. "That hope becomes a motivator... and self-esteem starts to grow."
Business magnate Gail Miller said the passage of the legislation will allow service providers to "do something monumental."
"In serving our homeless, we will learn to love them and get them back on their feet," she said, noting it will take both public and private funding.
Although it signals a major accomplishment, Miller said a lot remains left to do. "We need to keep going," she said, "and strike while the iron is hot."