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Wayne Harper

Wayne Harper
Harper in February 2014
Member of the Utah Senate
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 1, 2013
Preceded byMichael G. Waddoups
Constituency6th district (2013–2023)
16th district (2023–present)
President of the National Conference of State Legislatures
Incumbent
Assumed office
2024
Preceded byBrian Patrick Kennedy
Member of the Utah House of Representatives
from the 43rd district
In office
January 1, 1997 – December 31, 2012
Succeeded byEarl Tanner
Personal details
Born (1956-02-27) February 27, 1956 (age 69)
NationalityAmerican
Political partyRepublican
ResidenceTaylorsville, Utah
Alma materBrigham Young University

Wayne A. Harper[1] (born February 27, 1956) is an American politician and a Republican member of the Utah State Senate representing District 16 since 2023. Prior to redistricting, he represented District 6 starting in 2013. from January 1, 1997, until December 31, 2012, Harper represented District 43 in the Utah House of Representatives

Early life, education, and career

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Harper earned his Bachelor of Arts in History and Master of Science from Brigham Young University.[2] He is married to KaLee, and together they have eleven children.[3] Harper is a Certified Archivist, Certified Real Estate Consultant, and Certified Real Estate Developer.[3] He works as a Business and Economic Development Consultant, and for Taylorsville City.[2] In his professional career, Harper has been affiliated with the Conference of Inter-Mountain Archivists, the International Economic Development Council, and the International Council of Shopping Centers.[2] He resides in Taylorsville, Utah.[4][5]

Political career

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Harper started his political career as a West Jordan City Councilman.[2] He has also served as the President of the Streamline Sales Tax Governing Board and on the Utah State Historical Records Advisory Board, Utah State Capitol Preservation Board, and Utah Alliance for Economic Development.[2] Harper served in the House of Representatives from 1997–2012, and was elected to the Utah Senate in 2012.[2] During the 2016 Legislative Session, Harper served on the following committees:[6]

  • Business, Economic Development, and Labor Appropriations Subcommittee
  • Infrastructure and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee (Senate Chair)
  • Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee
  • Senate Transportation and Public Utilities and Technology Committee[2]

In 2024, he became president of the National Conference of State Legislatures.[7]

Elections

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In 2012 when Senate District 6 Republican Senator Michael G. Waddoups left the Legislature and left the seat open, Harper was selected from two candidates by the Republican convention for the November 6, 2012, General election, which he won with 28,073 votes (83%) against Democratic nominee John Rendell,[8] who had run for Legislative seats in 2008 and 2010.

Election results history

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2024 Utah State Senate election District 16
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 24,923 57.5%
Independent Monnica Manuel 18,447 42.5%
Total votes 43,370 100%
2020 Utah State Senate election District 6
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 23,525 55.6%
Democratic Erika Larsen 18,774 44.4%
Total votes 42,299 100%
2016 Utah State Senate election District 6
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 19,325 56.4%
Democratic Celina Milner 12,682 37.0%
Libertarian Jim Dexter 2,266 6.6%
Total votes 34,273 100%
2012 Utah State Senate election District 6
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 19,961 60.5%
Democratic John Rendell 13,049 39.5%
2010 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 4,802 62.4%
Democratic Brian Yardley 2,559 33.3%
Constitution D. Mark Faux 334 4.3%
Total votes 7,695 100%
2008 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 6,432 57.3%
Democratic Brian Yardley 4,794 42.7%
write-in 15 0.1%
Total votes 11,226 100%

[9]

2006 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne A. Harper 4,538 72.8%
Constitution Barbara J. Neville 1,183 19.0%
Green Tom King 448 7.8%
write-in 24 0.2%
Total votes 12,135 100%
2004 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne A. Harper 4,912 82.8%
Green Tom King 1,003 9.8%
Libertarian D. Mark Faux 768 7.5%
Total votes 12,135 100%
2002 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 4,062 57.7%
Democratic James Bramble 2,698 38.3%
Libertarian D. Mark Faux 161 2.3%
Total votes 7,209 100%
2000 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne Harper 4,772 58.7%
Democratic Tanya Henrie 3,361 41.3%
Total votes 8,525 100%
1998 Utah State House of Representatives election District 43
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Wayne A. Harper 3,021 55.9%
Democratic Mary K. Hammond 2,380 44.1%
Total votes 5,401 100%

[10]

Legislation

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2016 sponsored bills

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[11]
Bill Number and Title Status of Bill
S.B. 6 Infrastructure and General Government Base Budget Governor Signed 2/16/2016
S.B. 11 Cancellation of Auto Insurance Coverage Governor Signed 3/21/2016
S.B. 22 Foreclosure of Residential Rental Property Governor Signed 3/28/2016
S.B. 31 Tax Commission Levy Process Governor Signed 3/28/2016
S.B. 65 Sales and Use Tax Reporting Requirements Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/10/2016
S.B. 68 Property Tax Amendments Governor Signed 3/28/2016
S.B. 74 Aviation Amendments Governor Signed 3/28/2016
S.B. 82 Child Welfare Modifications Governor Signed 3/23/2016
S.B. 86 Sales and Use Tax Compliance Amendments Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/10/2016
S.B. 135 Administrative Law Judge Amendments Governor Signed 3/23/2016
S.B. 151 Community Development and Renewal Agencies Act Revisions Governor Signed 3/28/2016
S.B. 158 Juvenile Court and Child Abuse Amendments Governor Signed 3/28/2016
S.B. 160 Federal Funds Budget Reserve Account Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/10/2016
S.B. 182 Sales and Use Tax Revisions Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/10/2016
S.B. 193 Utah Communications Authority Act Amendments Governor Signed 3/22/2016
S.B 210 Unmanned Vehicle Revisions Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/10/2016
S.B. 220 Non Judicial Foreclosure Amendments Governor Signed 3/25/2016
S.C.R. 2 Concurrent Resolution in Support of Sales and Use Tax Transactional Equity Governor Signed 3/17/2016
S.J.R. 3 Proposal to Amend Utah Constitution-Property Tax Exemptions Senate/To Lieutenant Governor 3/16/2016

Notable legislation

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In 2016 Senator Harper passed Senate Bill 210, which outlines and regulates the use of recreational drones in Utah. The law also gives local police the authority to shoot down drones if they are not in compliance with the law, and if being shot down does not pose a threat to people or animals. This bill does not apply to commercial drones.[12]

Controversial legislation

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In 2018 Harper sponsored SB136 which was signed into law. Among other provisions, SB136 includes an additional annual registration fee of up to $120 on clean air vehicles.[13] The additional fees were opposed by air quality advocates such as the nonprofits Breathe Utah, and Utah Clean Energy which has stated the fees are misguided.[14][15][16] Clean air advocates have voiced concerns that the additional fees will slow electric vehicle adoption and promote poorer air quality in Utah. There are an estimated 1,000–2,000 deaths in Utah annually due to poor air quality,[17] and emissions from gasoline and diesel powered vehicles, are the primary cause of pollution.[18]

In 2021 Harper sponsored HB209[19] to increase EV fees in Utah to $300 annually in addition to normal registration costs.[20] HB209 did not pass. In 2023 Harper sponsored HB301, which passed, and will levy a tax of 12.5% on electricity at EV charging stations.[21] This adds a third tax at charging stations in Utah on top of existing sales and franchise taxes, and some analyses estimate some EV owners will pay twice as much tax as gasoline fueled vehicle drivers.[22]

In February 2025, Harper introduced SB195, which removed Salt Lake City's authority to plan its own streets.[23][24] In support of the bill, Harper cited a paper critical of the city's safe streets initiative that was reportedly largely AI-generated.[25]

References

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  1. ^ "Wayne Harper's Biography". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Harper, Wayne". Utah State Senate. Archived from the original on October 7, 2010. Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  3. ^ a b "Wayne Harper's Biography". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  4. ^ "Wayne Harper and Monnica Manuel hope to capture Utah Senate District 16 seat". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2025-07-29.
  5. ^ Beal-Cvetko, Bridger; Aug. 7, KSL com | Posted-; P.m, 2024 at 1:07. "Utah state Sen. Wayne Harper to lead National Conference of State Legislatures". www.ksl.com. Retrieved 2025-07-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ "District 6 Senator - Utah State Senate". senate.utah.gov. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
  7. ^ "NCSL Current and Past Presidents, 1975-2024". NCSL. Retrieved August 17, 2025.
  8. ^ "2012 General Canvass Report". Salt Lake City, Utah: Lieutenant Governor of Utah. Archived from the original on March 4, 2014. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
  9. ^ "Wayne Harper - Ballotpedia". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  10. ^ "Election Results". www.saltlakecounty.gov. 2024-04-23. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  11. ^ "2016 -- Legislation(Senate)". le.utah.gov. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  12. ^ "New drone bill proposed in Utah –police could potentially shoot drones out of the sky | JD Supra". JD Supra. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  13. ^ Harper, Wayne A. "S.B. 136 Transportation Governance Amendments".
  14. ^ "SB 136 Transportation Governance Amendments". Breathe Utah. Retrieved Nov 30, 2019.
  15. ^ O'Donoghue, Amy Joi (Mar 1, 2018). "Clean energy advocates decry proposed electric, hybrid vehicle fees". KSL. Retrieved Nov 30, 2019.
  16. ^ Craft, Josh; Emerson, Kevin (Mar 17, 2018). "Commentary: The 2018 Utah legislative session brought us a win for clean energy and climate". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved Nov 30, 2019. When Utahns are taking personal steps to improve air quality by purchasing a clean vehicle, tacking on another fee is misguided.
  17. ^ "Heart and Blood Vessels". uphe.org. Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment. Sep 7, 2019. Retrieved Dec 7, 2019.
  18. ^ "Pollution Sources". kued.org. KUED. Archived from the original on January 16, 2018. Retrieved Nov 24, 2019.
  19. ^ "H.B. 209 Vehicle Registration Fee Revisions". utah.gov. Utah State Legislature. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  20. ^ Hutson, Sonja (February 1, 2021). "Utah Bill To Raise Electric Vehicle Fees By Up To 400% Sparks Debate On Air Quality And Road Usage". KUER. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  21. ^ "H.B. 301 Transportation Tax Amendments". utah.gov. Utah State Legislature. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  22. ^ Harden, Tracy (February 23, 2021). "Tracy Harden: Added tax on EV users won't improve Utah's air quality". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  23. ^ "Updated: Salt Lake City's plans to build safer streets may hit a dead end — at least for a while". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2025-07-14.
  24. ^ "Big transportation bill raises conerns about state control over Salt Lake City streets". ABC4 Utah. 2025-02-22. Archived from the original on 2025-02-23. Retrieved 2025-07-14.
  25. ^ Anderson, Taylor (2025-07-07). "Did Two University of Utah Professors Use AI to Take SLC's Streets Away?". Building Salt Lake. Retrieved 2025-07-14.
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