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Orrin Hatch foundation seeks $2 million of taxpayer money for a center in his honor

Posted at 7:50 PM, Feb 15, 2019
and last updated 2019-02-15 22:27:42-05

Washington • Supporters of former Sen. Orrin Hatch are asking the Utah Legislature to donate $2 million of taxpayer money to help fund a new center in Hatch’s name in Salt Lake City, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

Meg Holbrook, a former chairwoman of the Utah Democratic Party and now a top executive at Zions Bank, pitched the idea to the Business, Economic Development, and Labor Appropriations Subcommittee on Thursday, saying the public would benefit from the center.

“Its overall goal is to, one, store [Hatch’s] papers, which are invaluable,” she said, adding incorrectly that Hatch was the longest-serving senator in history (he’s the sixth-longest serving but is the longest-serving Republican senator).

“No. 2,” Holbrook said, is that the center will provide “programming that people can learn from his papers, and there are reams and reams of papers from him. Also, Senator Hatch will be on the ground for a lot of things to help instruct people on political things. That’s the overall high-level thing.”

The center, which is partnering with the University of Utah and plans to erect a building that includes a replica in downtown Salt Lake City of Hatch’s office, is aiming to raise $40 million initially. Previously, the Orrin G. Hatch Foundation had sought private money.

Click here to read the full story on The Salt Lake Tribune.