Greg S. Bell
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| Gregory S. Bell | |
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Utah State Senator
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| In office January 20, 2003 – Current |
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| Preceded by | Terry R. Spencer |
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| Constituency | State Senate, District 22 |
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| Born | October 16, 1948 Ogden, Utah |
| Political party | Republican Party |
| Spouse | JoLynn |
| Residence | Fruit Heights |
| Occupation | Real Estate Developer |
| Religion | Latter-day Saint |
| Website | Legislative Website |
Gregory S. Bell (born October 16, 1948) is an American politician and land-use attorney from Utah. A Republican, he is a member of the Utah State Senate, representing the state's 22nd senate district in Davis County. [1]
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[edit] Early life and career
Bell was born on October 16, 1948 in Ogden, Utah. He graduated from Weber State University in 1972 with a B.A., and from the University of Utah College of Law in 1975 with a J.D. [2] Bell is married to JoLynn and is the father of six children including sons Braden, Christian, Davis and Ryan and daughters Andrea and Eliza. [2] Bell was employed as Vice President of United Savings from 1977 to 1981 in Ogden, Utah. United Savings was subsequently acquired by Washington Mutual Bank in 1996. Bell owned the Gregory S. Bell and Associates Law firm from 1981 to 1984 and was made a partner in Kirton & McGrukie Law firm in 1984 and stayed with the firm until 1997 when he became partner in Raddon/Bell Properties. [2]
It was while at Kirton and McGrukie that Bell was elected to the Farmington City Council in 1990 and served on the Council until he was elected Mayor of Farmington, Utah in 1994. [2] Bell then served as Mayor of Farmington until he was elected to the Utah Senate in Utah's 22nd Senate district in 2002. Bell is currently employed as a partner with Raddon/Bell Properties which focuses on Real Estate Development. [2]
[edit] Senate career
- Further information: List of Utah State Legislatures
[edit] 55th Utah Legislature
Bell took office on January 20, 2003 and introduced 4 bills during his first legislative session in the State Senate. Two bills dealing with health care and two with the sale of motor vehicles. S.B. 60 and S.B. 232, both dealing with health care, failed to pass out of the Senate while S.B. 217 and S.B. 218, which dealt with motor vehicles, were defeated in the House. [3] During the 2004 General Session Bell sponsored 9 bills, of which 6 were passed into law and 3 were defeated in the Senate. 4 of the 6 bills he was able to pass dealt with criminal justice issues while the others dealt respectively with interlocal agreements and the state insurance code. [4] Bell also served as Chairmen of the Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and Criminal Justice Standing Committee and was a member of the Revenue and Taxation Standing Committee and Capital Facilities and Administrative Services Appropriation Subcommittee during the 55th Utah State Legislature.
[edit] 56th Utah Legislature
Bell sponsored 15 bills during the 2005 General Session, 10 of which were signed by the governor, 4 defeated in the Senate and 1 defeated in the House. [5] Some of the most significant bills Bell sponsored to be defeated during the legislative session included S.B. 102, which made amendments to the Lobbyist Reporting requirements requiring "lobbyists [to] report more detailed information about expenses made to benefit public officials when the lobbyist spends more than $10." [5] S.B. 112 which made amedments to the "child protection and custody provisions of the Child and Family Services" provisions in the Utah Code was also defeated in the Senate. [5] S.B. 89, which was also defeated in the Senate, would have "extended some health and property-related benefits to those who cannot legally marry" [6] [7] and would have created "mutual dependence benefits contracts" allowing two adults who cannot legally marry to "share certain rights and responsibilities" including "health-related rights and responsibilities" and "property-related rights and responsibilities." [8]. While serving in the 56th Utah Legsislature, Bell was a member of the Health and Human Services; Judiciary, Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice; and Revenue and Taxation Standing Committees.
[edit] Electoral results
- Further information: 22nd Utah Senate District
Bell was first elected to the Utah State Senate in district 22 in the 2002 General Election held on Tuesday, November 5, 2002 with approximately 87% of the vote. His opponent was Green Party candidate David L. Rowland who obtained approximately 13% of the vote. Bell was up for re-election in the 2006 General Election held on Tuesday, November 7, 2006 and defeated Democratic Party candidate Dave Rowland by a margin of 71% to 23%. Also running in 2006 was Constitution Party candidate Sheryl Fluckiger who obtained approximately 6% of the vote.
| Utah State Senate election, 2006 | |||||
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| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Republican | Gregory S. Bell | 14,718 | 71.4 | ||
| Democratic | David L. Rowland | 4,699 | 22.8 | ||
| Constitution | Sheryl Fluckinger | 1,200 | 5.8 | ||
[edit] Political views
Bell supports all-day kindergarten, tax credits and vouchers for private school tuition and is a strong supporter of parent choice in education. [9] Bell generally supports increased funding for public education and has expressed his support for displaying the Ten Commandments in public schools.[10] He has also sponsored legislation that would grant same-sex couples "mutual dependence benefits" [8] and legislation seeking to reform the lobbying and ethics rules in State Government. [11] In terms of Criminal Justice issues Bell is a supporter of the death penalty, prisoner rehabilitation programs and ending parole for repeat violent offenders. [10]
[edit] Organizations
Bell served as Chair of Envision Utah's Steering Committee from 2001 to 2005 and currently serves as a member of that Committee. The Coalition for Utah's Future was founded in 1987 and would subsequently develop and implement the idea behind Envision Utah in 1997. Envision Utah is a public/private partnership that "work[s] toward quality growth within the Greater Wasatch Area of Utah" and to develop a "vision to protect Utah's environment, economic strength, and quality of life for generations to come." [12] Bell also serves on the Board of Trustees of the Coalition for Utah's Future.
[edit] Further reading
- Anderton, Dave. "Nuclear power amendment tossed", Deseret Morning News, November 30, 2005. Retrieved on 2006-02-06.
- Bulkeley, Deborah. "Hate-crimes bill gets a lobbyist", Deseret Morning News, January 29, 2005. Retrieved on 2006-02-06.
- Johnson, Whit. "School Vouchers Bill Passes Senate", KSL 5, February 9, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-03-03.
[edit] External links
Legislative Information
Voting Record
Financial Disclosures
[edit] References
- ^ Official Legislative Biography, Gregory S. Bell
- ^ a b c d e Vote Smart Biography, Gregory S. Bell
- ^ Bell, Gregory S., 2003 General Session - Sponsored Bills
- ^ Bell, Gregory S., 2004 General Session - Sponsored Bills
- ^ a b c Bell, Gregory S., 2005 General Session - Sponsored Bills
- ^ Riley-Roche, Lisa. "State's first gay senator is sworn in", Deseret Morning News, February 8, 2005. Retrieved on 2006-02-06.
- ^ Bernick, Jr., Bob. "Money abounds, but lawmakers feeling squeezed", Deseret Morning News, January 16, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-03-06.
- ^ a b Utah Legislature, S.B. 89 - Mutual Dependence Benefits Contract
- ^ Deseret Morning News, 2006 Candidate page
- ^ a b Project Vote Smart, 2002 NPAT
- ^ Bell, Gregory S., S.B. 102 - Lobbying Reporting Amendments
- ^ Envision Utah, http://www.envisionutah.org/
