Policies

Issues & Policies

Affordable Housing

Most of the land-use and zoning decisions in Utah County are made at the municipal level, however, the Utah County General Plan and Land Use Ordinance provides guidance. The Plan includes a significant component encouraging the development of moderate income housing. Obviously, the county doesn’t control land prices or construction costs. What the County can do is create a long term growth plan which manages transportation, infrastructure and land use policy which will allow for abundant, affordable housing as the population of the County doubles over the next 30 to 40 years. Without careful planning, our children and grandchildren won’t be able to afford to live in Utah County. As a commissioner, I will make sure we develop a durable long-term Strategic Plan to guide the growth long past my term.

ICE

Every person convicted of a first or second-degree felony who is in the United States illegally should be deported immediately upon release from jail or prison. That’s easy and 90% of Americans agree on that. 

In July of 2025 the Utah County Sheriff’s Department entered into a 287(g) agreement with ICE for cooperation on two fronts: the Warrant Service Officer and Task Force Model programs. I opposed that agreement at the time and I oppose it now for the following reasons:

  • It makes us less safe. When some Utah County Sheriff’s deputies are detailed to ICE, under the Task Force Model, it has to be assumed that anyone in that uniform could be with ICE. If you are an immigrant, or among the 16% of Utah County that are Hispanic, and someone commits a crime against you, how likely are you to report that crime if an ICE agent might show up? Even if you’re a US citizen, you don’t want to deal with ICE these days. If crimes go unreported, criminals go unapprehended and go on to commit more crimes, making all of us less safe. Utah County Sheriff’s deputies are well-trained for professionals who are generally well-respected in the community, and being associated with ICE erodes that hard-earned trust.
  • The 287(g) agreement is unfunded. Though the Sheriff’s Department denies it, I think County tax payers are paying Utah County Sheriff’s deputies to do ICE’s job, which is strange because ICE just got $75 billion in supplemental funding on top of their $28 billion annual budget. I don’t mind paying deputies to process prisoners into ICE custody, or paying deputies to assist in targeted ICE operations, but I want Utah County Sheriff’s deputies directly and clearly accountable to the Sheriff, not ICE. I don’t want resources diverted from Utah County law enforcement to help ICE chase down roofers and cooks with no criminal history. ICE recently gave the County a $100,000 truck in appreciation of the Sheriff’s cooperation.
  • The 287(g) agreement is redundant. ICE exists to deport criminal aliens. Every time a dangerous felon is released from Utah County jail, ICE should be there to detain and deport them. As a commissioner, I will be paying attention to this issue. How many dangerous felons have been released into Utah County in recent years because ICE failed to pick them up?

Education

I believe in the power of education. As a commissioner, I will work with the–what will soon be–five school districts in the County and for which the County collects property taxes. Decisions about education should be made in communities as close to the families of students as possible. The County should support the educational mission of the districts with as little interference as possible.

Law Enforcement

I support law enforcement and the Utah County Sheriff’s Department in particular. I have had friends in the Sheriff’s Department over many years and have some limited insight into the Department. Public safety, mostly the Sheriff’s Department, takes up about 77% of the County budget, so it requires front-and-center attention. The Sheriff’s Department has helped make Utah County one of the safest in the country, however, it isn’t magically efficient, it is just as susceptible to waste as any other government entity and requires continuing oversight.

Taxes

Utah County has generally been very well run. Our tax burden is 25th lowest out of 29 counties in the State of Utah, which I consider to be very good. Also, considering that we are the second most populous county in the State and our county services generally rate highly, we are doing pretty well. My first job is to not fix what ain’t broken. If you understand that the job of a County Commissioner is primarily administrative in nature, dealing with budgets and taxes, you know that the commission has no magical powers to command markets or change laws. I will use best practices to achieve Goldilocks tax policies: Low enough to help keep Utah County affordable and attractive to businesses and families, but adequate to maintain world-class public safety, public health and infrastructure to match projected growth. We can be fiscally responsible and still take care of each other.

Democracy

I will defend democracy in Utah County, including vote-by-mail and I will work with the Utah County Clerk’s Office to fight every effort to disenfranchise the voters of Utah County by state and federal officials.

Commission Pay

The Utah County Commission has a history of giving itself a pay raise after every election cycle. Pay has increased from $105,000/yr in 2015 to $170,000 in 2025. Some of that is fair, but average salaries in the county have risen about 21% over the last 10 years, while commission pay has increased about 71%. I won’t vote for a commission pay raise for the next four years.

Healthcare

The Utah County Health Department provides critical services to residents of the County, including vaccinations, communicable disease control, mental health services and substance abuse recovery services. I support the Health Department, more importantly, I support the broader goal of finding affordable health care solutions for the residents of Utah County.

Transportation

The population is Utah County expected to double over the next 40 years, and we already have people stuck in traffic every day. To meet the challenge of population growth we need transportation policies that focus on long-term, practical solutions, which account for the County’s unique geographic constraints. As County Commissioner, I will work with the municipal stake holders, as well as State and Federal agencies to advocate for solutions that prevent problems from getting worse and ease the burdens on citizens today. Right now, Utah County is in line for billions of dollars in transportation investments in the coming years, I will make sure we get those allocated funds and use them wisely. I have met with the UDOT Region 3 director to discuss those long term plans and projections and was impressed by the fact that they are a data-driven organization.

County Employees

County Employees are a valuable asset to the County. Many years of executive management have taught me that an efficient and successful organization takes care of its employees and views them as critical stakeholders in the growth and mission of the enterprise. Utah County provides world-class services because it has world-class employees. Utah County employees just went through a period of several years where their pay was frozen, while the county commission pay continued to increase; that should never happen again. At its best, civil service is noble and necessary.

AI Data Centers

Data centers make modern online life work. You could be living near a data center and never notice. AI data centers are different. The difference between a conventional data center and an AI data center is the difference between a bus stop and an international airport. In the communities where they are located, they often consume tremendous resources without returning jobs or significant tax revenue to the community. There are some jobs involved in construction, but they are short-lived. What’s left is a building full of computer and communications equipment with a handful of people maintaining it. Many communities across the country have seen the cost of electricity rise as the local utility builds out capacity for the data center, then passes the cost on to rate payers. There are currently at least 12 data centers in Utah County with more coming. Because of water and other resource constraints, we may soon have to choose whether we want families or AI data centers in our county. I am opposed to new large data center projects without extensive community support.

Ether Peak
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