SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah House of Representatives on Friday introduced a resolution to begin address actions of Utah State Board of Education member Natalie Cline.
"This allows us to consider all options that are within our constitutional authority and this is the responsibility of the legislature," Rep. Robert Spendlove, R-Sandy, told his colleagues.
It passed unanimously.
Meeting with reporters on Friday afternoon, Rep. Spendlove and House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, said it would begin a process. But they did not know where that process would take them.
"The bill file that Rep. Spendlove opened would allow for all options, including impeachment," the Speaker said. "I think we need to be fair to school board member Cline through this process. I don’t want to get down into the level that she got down into."
Senate President J. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said the Senate was coordinating with the House on it and meeting with their own legal counsel.
"I've been disgusted and as elected officials we’re put in positions of trust. She serves on the state school board and to put a young child at risk, a young woman? And destroy her life and make it uncomfortable for her and her peers to do what any teenager wants to do? Is really despicable," said House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, who called on Cline to resign from office.
Cline, an outspoken social conservative, has faced a storm of criticism for some of her social media posts over the years. But it reached a peak earlier this week when she posted a teenage girl's picture on Facebook, insinuating the student athlete is transgender. She is not. Cline took down the post as political leaders across the aisle on Utah's Capitol Hill condemned her actions and called for her to resign.
The Speaker said he was "heartbroken" for the girl and her family. LGBTQ+ rights groups have said recent bills in the Utah legislature targeting transgender people have led to an environment where insinuating that someone is transgender can now be used as a culture war weapon.
On Friday, Equality Utah was on Capitol Hill with college students who were learning about the political process. Cline's post weighed on many of their minds.
"I find her actions harmful and frankly deeply unprofessional," said Chase Schetselaar, a student at Utah Valley University.
Asked about the impact of those laws, Speaker Schultz said: "I think just the opposite. I think this would be happening more if we hadn’t passed the law. If school board member Cline knew the law, she knew this wouldn’t be able to happen."
Cline has so far declined FOX 13 News' requests for comment, instead pointing to a Facebook post she made apologizing for the negative attention her post drew to "innocent students and their families."
On Thursday, FOX 13 News reported that Governor Spencer Cox and Lt. Governor Deidre Henderson had donated money to Cline's intraparty challenger in the race for Utah State School Board, Amanda Bollinger.
