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House Resolution Encouraging Strong Family Units (converted from a joint resolution per JR4-5-104)
2026 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Nicholeen P. Peck
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This resolution promotes strengthening families.
Highlighted Provisions:
This resolution:
highlights the contributions made and benefits from stable family relationships;
promotes the Success Sequence to teach students how to create strong family units; and
encourages policies creating family stability and a strong foundation for Utah children.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the state of Utah:
WHEREAS, marriage and stable family relationships provide significant social, emotional,
and economic benefits to children, adults, and communities;
WHEREAS, strong families contribute to reduced poverty, improved educational
outcomes, healthier communities, and long-term economic stability;
WHEREAS, Utah has historically maintained strong marriage and family formation rates,
which have contributed to the state's prosperity and community cohesion;
WHEREAS, recent demographic trends indicate declining marriage rates, delayed family
formation, and declining fertility rates both nationally and within Utah;
WHEREAS, many young adults express a desire for marriage and children but report
economic, cultural, technological, and social barriers that influence family decisions;
WHEREAS, policymakers benefit from accurate and coordinated information regarding the
economic, cultural, and social conditions that affect marriage and family formation;
WHEREAS, strengthening families is a shared public interest that respects pluralism,
religious liberty, and individual choice while promoting the well-being of future generations;
WHEREAS, Utah is committed to creating strong families;
WHEREAS, Utah promotes the Success Sequence where children are encouraged to
complete at least a high school education, obtain full-time work, and marry before having
children;
WHEREAS, the Success Sequence teaches students the importance of education, financial
responsibility, and intact, healthy marriages;
WHEREAS, many grandparents raising grandchildren and single-parent families find
themselves in a less-than-ideal situation when raising children;
WHEREAS, grandparents raising grandchildren and single-parent families work diligently
and often raise remarkable children despite the hardships they face;
WHEREAS, grandparents raising grandchildren and single-parent families should never be
stigmatized; and
WHEREAS, Utah's early-childhood tax credit provides financial relief to families during
the early, formative years of a child's life:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the state of
Utah commits to provide children with the greatest opportunities for success in life by
prioritizing intact families in legislation language, including maintaining the terms mother,
father, and parents in Utah code and adding those terms into legislation when possible in order
to maintain a state focus on families and to direct attention towards creating strong families for
Utah's children.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the state of Utah
encourages and promotes two-parent families, strong marriages, and healthy family
communication.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the state of Utah
prioritizes intact families, promotes the Success Sequence, and continuing and increasing the
early-childhood tax credits for parents and grandparents who struggle to meet the needs of
their children and grandchildren, including providing for food and child care, to create
financial security, upward mobility, and family stability that creates a strong foundation for
Utah children.
3-13-26 8:45 AM