Representative James A. Dunnigan visits Utah State students

Representative James A. Dunnigan visits Utah State students

Utah State Representative James A. Dunnigan addressed a group of Utah State University students majoring in Special Education on Wednesday about various government issues, including how the state government works, how tax money is used, how bills are created and what issues he faces daily as a state representative.

Dunnigan told the students that as a state representative he has learned the importance of gathering adequate information to make educated decisions. But the reality of the workload and the hectic pace during the final days of the Legislature each year means he often is faced with making tough decisions with limited information.

He said Utah’s shortage of funding for education is always a tough dilemma for Legislators. Utah’s taxes are the ninth highest in the nation, so some people argue that taxes should not be raised any higher. But the counter argument is that if more money could be spent on education, Utah could get a more highly-educated workforce and thereby attract more high paying jobs to the state, which, in turn, would bring in more tax revenue to pay for needed services.

Dunnigan is a member of several committees in the Utah House of Representatives, including the Executive Offices and Criminal Justice Appropriations Subcommittee, House Business and Labor Committee and the House Transportation Committee. He owns an insurance company in Taylorsville.

During his visit to campus, Dunnigan met with Utah State’s executive committee to discuss education issues in the state. He also met with Weldon Sleight, associate vice president for Extension and the associate dean for Continuing Education.

Dunnigan visited campus at the invitation of his niece, Emily Stayner, who is a special education major at Utah State and in a class called Special Education Policies and Procedures. Ronda Menlove, who teaches the class, said Dunnigan’s visit was a valuable, real-world part of a class discussion about legislator perceptions regarding teacher education.