Biden, Cox, Huntsman, Utah's Economy and More
Politics and policies top the business news in Utah for the week of Jan. 18-24, 2021
Sometimes it seems that everyone holds their collective breath to see if worst fears are realized. Or not.
And thankfully, last Wednesday was one of those days when worst fears were not realized and the system that’s been in place for over 225 worked exactly as it was supposed to work.
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To be clear, I’m referring to the fact that Senator Joe Biden became President Joe Biden this past Wednesday.
And lest anyone be confused about this, the President of the United States definitely has an impact on #business in America and that includes business in the state of #Utah.
30 Executive Orders Signed in Three Days, at Least Nine of which Impact Utah Businesses
Specifically, in his first three days in office, President Biden signed 30 #ExecutiveOrders. By my review, nearly one-third of these will have a direct (or indirect) impact on #businesses in the State of #Deseret.
These nine Executive Orders are outlined below, listed in chronological order based upon when they were signed, along with my impression of the likely impact on the people, businesses, and governments of Utah. To wit:
Construction of the Border Wall has been halted. (Minimal Immediate Impact on Utah’s economy and/or businesses; long-term affect: TBD)
Non-Citizens to be counted in future U.S. Census with possible adjustment to apportionment of U.S. Representatives. (Zero Immediate Impact, with U.S. Supreme Court review likely. Long-term impact: TBD)
Construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline has been halted; federal agencies were directed to reverse over 100 actions by former President Trump on the environment. (Immediate and Long-term Impact: TBD)
The U.S. will rejoin the Paris Climate Accord. (Minimal Immediate Impact; potentially significant Long-term Impact)
Current pause on Student Loan Payments & Interest extended through at least Sept. 30, 2021. (Immediate Impact: High for all former students, their families, and financial institutions that provide student loans.)
#Covid19 national moratorium on Foreclosures & Evictions extended until at least March 31, 2021. (Immediate Impact: High for all homeowners and renters currently experiencing financial struggles due to Covid-19; also High for landlords and mortgage lenders.)
Mask Wearing mandate for use of public transportation and in public airports. (Immediate Impact: Moderate)
International travelers must provide Proof of a Negative Covid-19 Test before being granted entrance into the U.S. (Minimal Negative Impact)
Groundwork laid for establishing a National Minimum Wage of $15/Hour. (Immediate Impact: None; Long-Term Impact: TBD. Will likely require an Act of Congress.)
All indications are that President Biden will continue his Executive Order end-run approach to Congress this coming week and likely into February and beyond.
My recommendation is to keep abreast of such action that might impact you and/or your business directly or indirectly.
Spencer Cox Becomes as Utah’s New #Governor; Unveils the One Utah Roadmap
Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you know that Utah has a new Governor: Spencer J. Cox (the former Lt. Governor of the state), with Deidre Henderson serving as the new Lt. Governor.
Last Tuesday, the Governor unveiled what is called the One Utah Roadmap. Consider it the plan to of what to accomplish in the first 500 days of the new administration.
The One Utah Roadmap includes six different areas of emphasis, one of which is titled Economic Advancement.
Seven different industries in the Economic Advancement section are identified in the Roadmap as “Current Targets,” namely
Advanced Manufacturing;
Aerospace and Defense;
Energy;
Financial Services;
Life Sciences and Health Innovation;
Software and Information Technology; and
Tourism and Film.
As lists go, especially one focused on the Utah industries with the greatest impact potential, these are industries worth emphasis.
That said, I believe one critical target was left off this list:
Agriculture and Food.
If the worldwide pandemic has taught us anything as both a society, and as Utahns, it’s that most of us are a lot closer to being Food Insecure than not.
Remember, at one point 30 million Americans were out of work in 2020.
And those stories about farmers
plowing crops under because they had no companies to process and/or buy them, or
burying livestock alive because the meat processors were closed due to Covid-19 shutdowns and they couldn’t afford to keep feeding their animals …
those were not imaginary stories. They really happened.
As it turns out, Utah State University has one of the top Agricultural programs in the world, not just in the U.S. And if anything, I feel we should be doing more to boost the world class institution that is Utah State University.
Add to this the successes and impact of such agriculture and food organizations and programs in the State of Deseret as
the Savory Fund of Mercato Partners,
Sizzling Platter, LLC (the Murray-based restaurant company with nearly 500 restaurants in its portfolio across 12 U.S. states and in Mexico as well ),
Grov Technologies, and (of course),
The entire Welfare Program of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
just to name a few. {Oh, and let’s not leave out the 18,000+ farmers and ranchers in the state.}
So when I claim that the One Utah Roadmap missed the mark by leaving out Agriculture and Food as another critical industry segment, I really mean it.
If you disagree with me, fine. I’d like to know why you feel that way.
But if you agree, I hope you’ll let the Governor’s Office know how you feel.
World Trade Center Utah Lands Jon Huntsman Jr.
It doesn’t matter the industry or locale; it’s a big deal when a corporation lands a high-profile former politician to its executive ranks.
That DEFINITELY happened last week when World Trade Center Utah announced that former corporate titan, Utah Governor, and three-time U.S. Ambassador, Jon M. Huntsman, Jr., agreed to become its Chairman.
If you’re not familiar with WTC Utah or the role it plays in helping Utah businesses and organizations succeed outside of the state, but especially outside the U.S., I invite you to read the news release announcing Huntsman’s selection and then poke around the WTC Utah website to learn more about this impressive organization.
Utah’s Unemployment Rate Hit 3.6% in December
For the first time since March 2020, the #unemployment rate in Utah dropped below four percent, hitting 3.6% in December 2020.
This news comes courtesy U.S. Department of Labor via the Governor’s office in this news release.
According to the announcement, it’s estimated that approximately 61,000 Utahns are out of work, roughly 20,000 more than before the Covid-19 pandemic roiled the state economy and the globe.
Historically, any number under 5% has been considered Full Employment, meaning everyone able to work who wanted a job had one.
Clearly, that’s not a perfect metric, but 3.6% unemployment is a wickedly low number. Bravo, Utah!
Ute Nation Cries Foul Against Biden
Obviously, very few leaders make everyone happy.
But after just a few days on the job after becoming the leader of the Free World and the Ute Indian Tribe lambasted President Biden for actions it claims
Attack its sovereignty,
Violate long-standing treaties, and
Its right to self-determination.
For specifics, check out the letter below sent by the tribe last Thursday to Scott de la Vega, Acting Secretary of the Department of the Interior.
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Additional details about this dust-up between the Ute Indian Tribe, the Department of the Interior, and the Biden Administration generated several articles, including from Reuters, Washington Times, and The Blaze.
A Few More Utah Business Tidbits
When a #VentureCapital-backed company announces it has hired a legit, world class Chief Financial Officer, you can bet that’s a good sign the company is preparing to raise some significant moola — whether via private or public markets.
And when it actually spells out in a press release
“… a possible future IPO …”
let’s just say you’d have to have been asleep at the wheel to miss the implications behind such an announcement.
Oh — who made such an announcement last week? Lehi-based Pattern.
And its new CFO? Yeah, that’s Jason Beesley. Dude’s legit.
And the only reason why Pattern won’t go public in the near-future is because Beesley will help the firm raise a crap-load of #VC / #PrivateEquity dollars.
Additionally, look for the Qualtrics #IPO to happen sometime this week as parent company, SAP, looks to raise over $1 billion by offering shares in the Experience Management company to the public.
This Bloomberg story provides some interesting insights into SAP and the pending Initial Public Offering of Qualtrics.
Should be a fun week.
Last of all, I’m planning my first in-depth feature story about a fairly high-profile, publicly traded Utah company and one of its former officers / board members.
Look for this single story issue on Thursday.
Until then, please feel free to reach out if you have any thoughts on a business story for the State of Deseret you think others would find worthwhile. Thanks.
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About the Author
David Politis is a Marketing Mercenary, which is a fancy way of saying that organizations and individuals hire him to solve their marketing problems. To learn more, please feel free to visit David’s LinkedIn Profile or the website for his business: The David Politis Company. If you have a story idea for him (or would just like to connect), you can reach him at me@davidpolitis.com.