SALT LAKE CITY — Rep. Joseph Elison's bill has been hijacked by his House Republican colleagues and he's OK with it.
The southern Utah Republican is now the unlikely sponsor of a resolution to push for more action to save the Great Salt Lake.
"I think the [Great] Salt Lake is important to everybody in Utah," he told FOX 13 News on Thursday. "It just happens to be I have a resolution I can make available and we’re late in the session, so we’re here to help."
House Concurrent Resolution 9 will be taken, gutted, and rewritten to urge President Trump and Congress to start moving to help Utah in its efforts to reverse the Great Salt Lake's declines. The resolution, Rep. Elison said, was originally written to demand Congress to stop spending so much and balance the federal budget.
But that isn't going anywhere with other priorities in the final days of the 2026 Utah State Legislature, and lawmakers want to build off the momentum of President Trump's support for saving the lake.
"We’re calling on the federal government to come and help," Rep. Elison, R-Toquerville, said. "Let’s partner up, let’s look at this regionally and find a solution to get more water to the Great Salt Lake."
President Trump pledges to help Utah save the Great Salt Lake:
While lawmakers have pushed several bipartisan bills aimed at saving the Great Salt Lake (particularly pushing more water into it), some are unhappy about legislation being left behind. On Wednesday, a couple of dozen people staged a rally on Utah's Capitol Hill in support of Senate Bill 250, which has stalled in the legislature.
"Let it go through the session like it deserves to do," said Autumn Featherstone, a youth climate activist who supports the bill.
She and others called out lawmakers for refusing to let the bill advance. SB250, sponsored by Sen. Nate Blouin, D-Salt Lake City, would shift $200 million from the stalled Bear River Pipeline project to Great Salt Lake rescue efforts.
Sen. Blouin, who is running for Congress in the newly-created 1st Congressional District, said he is still pushing for SB250 to advance. During his remarks to the crowd on Wednesday, he was critical of some of his colleagues and did not express optimism about President Trump's promises.
But Featherstone told FOX 13 News she did like the attention President Trump's social media post is bringing to the lake.
"Honestly? I was surprised. But I’m happy to see all the attention on the Great Salt Lake we can get," Featherstone said. "So long as that attention is followed up with real, concrete action."
Except for SB250, Great Salt Lake bills have largely enjoyed broad support on Utah's Capitol Hill. Rep. Elison said he believed President Trump's support has helped build momentum.
"He’s an America-first president, right? And this is very much an America-first policy. We do need to prioritize it. We’re in the desert. We do need to save the Great Salt Lake in terms of getting more water to the Great Salt Lake," he said. "So I think he sees this is a great thing to do, and I’m grateful for it."
This article is published through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, a solutions journalism initiative that partners news, education and media organizations to help inform people about the plight of the Great Salt Lake—and what can be done to make a difference before it is too late. Read all of our stories at greatsaltlakenews.org.
