Melissa G. Ballard

Voted for House Bill 258, which requires a health plan that covers hormones or surgery for a sex transition to also cover the hormones or surgery needed to reverse one. It applies to plans that start or renew in 2027 or later. The Utah House passed it 53-16 and it was signed into law.

February 5, 2026Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 284, which tells the Utah Department of Health and Human Services to ask the federal government for permission to have Medicaid pay for doulas. A doula gives support, but not medical care, during pregnancy, birth, and the weeks after. If the federal government says yes, Medicaid must cover it. The department must also set training and sign-up rules for doulas who serve Medicaid patients. The Utah House passed it 55-16 and it was signed into law.

March 5, 2025Supports Healthcare Affordability

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 314, which tells the state health department to teach the public about sleep health and sleep problems, such as narcolepsy and sleep apnea. The goal is to help people spot the signs, get tested and treated, and see the risks of sleep problems left untreated, including on the road and at work. The department may work with schools, insurers, doctors' groups, and others to spread the word. The Utah House passed it 56-14 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2026Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 252, which requires state agencies to save water on the grounds of state buildings. When an agency puts in or replaces a lawn, it must plant a grass that needs little water, unless the state finds the land makes that impractical. Sprinkler systems put in from May 6, 2026 must spread water evenly, scoring at least 75 percent on a standard test. The state's facilities office must check state sites and list the repairs needed to meet that mark. The Utah House passed it 41-28 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2026Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 337, which raises Utah's taxes on tobacco and nicotine, starting July 1, 2026. The cigarette tax rises to 11 cents a cigarette, or $2.20 for a pack of 20, up from $1.70. The tax on e-cigarettes and other nicotine devices rises from 56 to 71 percent of the maker's sale price. Nicotine pouches are now taxed $1 a package plus 5 cents for each pouch over 20. Other nicotine products are taxed at 73 percent of the maker's price instead of by weight. The Utah House passed it 51-19 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2026Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 296, which lets a water supplier count water it sets aside for the Great Salt Lake as part of its water conservation plan. The act adds a commitment of available water to uses on the lake to the list of steps a conservation plan may include. The Utah House passed it 48-19 and it was signed into law.

February 6, 2026Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 60, which narrows the reasons Utah's state engineer may use to turn down a request for a new water right. To judge harm to the public, the engineer may now look only at how the plan affects the use, amount, quality, or supply of water, plus factors a law names. The engineer may not turn down a request over a harm that another agency is better placed to handle, or one that is small. Protests count only if they speak to those points. Only a person who would be hurt in a direct, personal way may ask a court to review a decision. The Utah House passed it 54-17 and it was signed into law.

February 3, 2026Opposes Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 402, which bars public schools from selling, giving out, or serving food on school grounds during the school day if it holds any of nine additives, starting in the 2026-2027 school year. The list covers potassium bromate, propylparaben, and seven artificial colors, among them Red No. 3 and Yellow No. 5. A parent may still bring those foods in for students, and a teacher may hand them out with permission from the students' parents at the start of each semester. The limits do not reach concession stands at school events or vending machines, and they do not apply at a charter school or district with 5,500 students or fewer. The Utah House passed it 38-34 and it was signed into law.

February 27, 2025Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 119, which limits how far a homeowners association may go in blocking rooftop solar. Before this act, the recorded rules of a neighborhood could ban solar panels outright on a detached house. The act takes that power away. An association may still add a new ban, but only if at least 67 percent of owners vote for it, and it now takes only 51 percent of owners to change a ban that is already in place. An association may still set rules on the size and placement of a system, so long as the rules cut its output or raise its cost by no more than 5 percent. The Utah House passed it 42-31 and it was signed into law.

February 11, 2025Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 251, which makes Utah's pollinator program permanent. It had been a three-year pilot due to end in 2026. The state may now pay up to 75% of the cost of planting native flowering plants on public or private land, where the pilot paid up to 25%. The act also removes the $60,000 yearly ceiling on that spending. The Utah House passed it 52-21 and it was signed into law.

February 11, 2025Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 267, which barred state and local governments, including school districts, from bargaining with unions for public workers or signing union contracts. It also barred using public money or property to help unions. Unions paid through payroll had to report their spending each year. The Utah House passed it 42-32 and it was signed into law. Lawmakers repealed it in a December 2025 special session.

January 27, 2025Opposes Labor Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 277, which changes who decides when the government must hand over a public record. Those appeals went to the State Records Committee. It had seven members, among them private citizens, a city or county official, and a person from the news media. The act ends the committee. The work goes to the director of a new Government Records Office, chosen by the governor and confirmed by the Senate. The director serves four years and can be fired only for cause. The law says the director must be able to rule on appeals fairly, and a survey of the director's work is taken every two years. A person who loses before the director may still go to court. The Utah House passed it 44-23 and it was signed into law.

March 5, 2025Opposes Anti-Corruption

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 192, which removes the state's limits on what a vehicle safety inspection station may charge. Before, a station could charge no more than $14 for a motorcycle, $30 for most cars, and $40 for a four-wheel-drive or other vehicle that takes more work to inspect. Now a station may charge any reasonable fee for its labor, as long as it posts the price before the inspection. The Utah House passed it 40-31 and it was signed into law.

February 5, 2026Opposes Cost of Living Reduction

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 48, which lets a court send a teen convicted of aggravated murder to an adult prison instead of a youth lockup. This applies if the teen was 17 at the time of the crime, is at least 18 at sentencing, and would be a danger to others in the youth lockup. A prosecutor may also ask the parole board to move such a person to adult prison. The act also has state agencies report wider measures of how often people return to crime. The Utah House passed it 52-15 and it was signed into law.

March 5, 2026Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 360, which widens state help for lower-cost housing. Utah's Homes Investment Program places state money with a lender, which then lends it out at a low rate to build homes that ordinary buyers can afford. The act lets Utah's largest cities use that money to buy and fix up single-family houses and sell them, with a deed requiring the home to stay owner-occupied for at least five years. It runs the program one more year, to 2028, and drops the 2026 end date for the Utah Housing Corporation. School districts may sell or lease surplus land for moderate income housing. The act also lets a city or county close a meeting to discuss a proposed development on its own land, if an open discussion would cost it the best terms. The Utah House passed it 48-21 and it was signed into law.

March 7, 2025Supports Housing Affordability

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 78, which creates a state watchdog, called an ombudsman, to look into complaints about the groups that serve homeless people. The job sits inside the Office of Homeless Services. The ombudsman must run a website showing people how to complain. Each group must post the ombudsman's phone number and website where clients can see them. The ombudsman picks which complaints to take up. If a group has broken the law, the ombudsman must say so to the person who complained, to the office, and to a prosecutor. The Utah House passed it 43-28 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2025Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 100, which requires a school in the national lunch program to give free lunch to a student who already qualifies for a cheaper meal. The State Board of Education pays the school the difference. A school may not publicly single out a student who cannot pay. It must send notes about unpaid meal charges only to the student's parent. If lawmakers do not set aside enough money, the board splits what it has, and a school may ask parents to pay the rest. The Utah House passed it 47-24 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2025Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 297, which tightens state oversight of the residential programs that house children away from home, known as congregate care. Each program must file its admissions rules with the state and turn away a child who does not meet them. A program must report a critical incident to the state and to the child's parent within one business day. That covers self-harm, the use of restraint or seclusion, a denied or delayed request for medical care, a child running away, and any claim of abuse. The act creates a state ombudsman, an official who takes and looks into complaints. Each program must post the ombudsman's contact details and give children a private phone to call at any time. The Utah House passed it 53-19 and it was signed into law.

March 5, 2025Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 403, which orders the Utah Department of Workforce Services to ask the federal government for permission to stop people from using food stamps to buy soft drinks. The act counts a sweetened fizzy drink as a soft drink. It leaves out drinks with milk in them and drinks that are more than half juice. The department had to file the request by July 1, 2025. If the request is granted, the state must act within six months. If it is refused, the state must file again within three months, and then once a year until it is granted. Nothing changes for shoppers unless the federal government agrees. The Utah House passed it 54-14 and it was signed into law.

February 27, 2025Opposes Social Programs and Welfare

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 58, which requires public schools to track attendance more closely. They must tell parents within two school days of an unexcused absence, watch for students who miss 10% or more of school, and step in with added help. The state school board must audit attendance records, and it may hold back state money from a school system that fails to fix bad records. The Utah House passed it 48-22 and it was signed into law.

March 4, 2026Supports Public Education Quality

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 69, which widens Utah's school phone ban to the whole school day. Before, students could not use a cellphone, smart watch, or similar device during class time. Now the ban runs from the first bell to the last, including lunch, recess, and the time between classes. Schools may still set their own exceptions. They must also let a parent ask for a child to use a phone briefly, in a set spot, outside class time. The Utah House passed it 46-21 and it was signed into law.

February 25, 2026Supports Public Education Quality

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 233, which bars a public school that gets state money from letting any group that performs elective abortions, or its staff or partner groups, teach any health lesson. Such groups also may not supply health materials they made, paid for, donated, or branded. The state school board may fine a school system that breaks the rule. The Utah House passed it 52-13 and it was signed into law.

March 7, 2025Opposes Women's Reproductive Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for House Bill 209, which sets up a split ballot for elections starting in November 2026. A voter who has not given papers proving U.S. citizenship may vote only in races for federal office, such as Congress. It also has election officers check voter rolls for people who are not citizens. A voter gets notice and 30 days to dispute before being removed. The Utah House passed it 51-16 and it was signed into law.

March 5, 2026Supports Election Integrity

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for House Bill 300, which requires a voter who mails in a ballot to write the last four digits of a Utah driver license, state ID, or Social Security number on the envelope. Starting in 2029, voters get a mail ballot only if they ask for one. A request can last up to eight years. The state must also join a federal program that checks immigration status, and look for address problems on voter rolls. The Utah House passed it 56-15 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2025Supports Election Integrity

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for House Bill 259, which gives parents the right to see all of their minor child's medical records, with a few exceptions such as sexual assault counseling. Hospitals and clinics may not block parents from a child's online records. They face a $1,000 fine for each record not handed over within five business days, and starting in 2028 a $1,000 fine for each day they block online access. The Utah House passed it 56-14 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2026Opposes Data Privacy

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 295, which applies Utah's ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs to school clubs. A school may not approve a class-linked club whose purpose centers on a trait such as race, sex, or religion, and no club may limit who joins by such traits. Public colleges must also host debates and events that show differing views on public issues. The Utah House passed it 48-16 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2026Opposes Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for House Bill 209, which sets up a split ballot for elections starting in November 2026. A voter who has not given papers proving U.S. citizenship may vote only in races for federal office, such as Congress. It also has election officers check voter rolls for people who are not citizens. A voter gets notice and 30 days to dispute before being removed. The Utah House passed it 51-16 and it was signed into law.

March 5, 2026Opposes Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for House Bill 174, which ends the path that let some minors start cross-sex hormones under a state approval process. Starting in January 2027, doctors may not give the hormones to a minor who was under 16 when the law took effect or who had not already started them. Doctors may still help a minor stop treatment. The Utah House passed it 53-15 and it was signed into law.

March 2, 2026Opposes Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 68, which lets a Utah person or business that is sued over a website disabled people cannot use sue back if the first lawsuit was abusive. A suit counts as abusive if its main aim was to get paid rather than to fix the website. The law presumes abuse if the business tried in good faith to fix the problem within 30 days of a detailed notice, or fixed it within 90 days. A court may award legal fees, plus punitive damages and sanctions of up to three times those fees. The attorney general may bring the claim. The law ends in 2031. The Utah House passed it 58-15 and it was signed into law.

February 26, 2026Opposes Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 404, which lets landlords, including private owners of dorms, boarding houses, and shared rentals, set aside housing for one sex where tenants share a bedroom or bathroom. They may limit it to people of that sex at birth, and Utah's fair housing law no longer counts this as unlawful bias. The rule does not cover housing run by state or local governments. The Utah House passed it 50-20 and it was signed into law.

February 10, 2026Opposes Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 11, 2026

Voted for House Bill 477, which says that speaking at a school board meeting cannot by itself show the intent to annoy that the school trespass law requires. That holds so long as the comment follows the board's own rules on time, place, manner, and staying on topic. It also narrows what counts as school property for that crime. The law now reaches a school itself, and no longer reaches the offices or other property of a school district or charter school. The Utah House passed it 49-19 and it was signed into law.

February 28, 2025Supports Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for House Bill 49, which lets more people with a felony record serve on a Utah jury. Before this act, a felony conviction barred someone from jury service unless it had been expunged. The act adds a second way back: a conviction that has been reduced to a misdemeanor no longer bars service. It also limits the bar to convictions from a state or federal court in the United States. The Utah House passed it 45-25 and it was signed into law.

February 4, 2025Supports Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted for Senate Bill 165, which adds steps a city must clear before it may start an internet service of its own. The city must hold a public hearing and hire an outside consultant to study ten years of costs and revenue. It must then hold two more hearings, at least three weeks apart. Voters must approve before the city may sell bonds for the network. A city may not use money from its other utilities to pay for the service, and the staff who run the network must be kept apart from the staff who regulate private companies. A city that had already approved the service before March 1, 2025 skips the new steps but still faces the operating limits. A city that had bonded for a network by January 1, 2025, or had run one for three years, is exempt from nearly all of the act. The Utah House passed it 56-17 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2025Opposes Public Infrastructure

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

On 2023-03-13, Utah's official legislative bill history recorded H.B. 206, Airport Land Use Amendments, sponsored by Rep. Melissa G. Ballard, as Governor Signed.

March 13, 2023

Source: le.utah.gov · researched September 9, 2026

Voted against House Bill 355, which widens what sand, gravel, and rock quarries may do over the objection of local government. A quarry that has been running legally now counts as a vested use, and the old cutoff of January 1, 2019 is gone. A vested quarry may spread onto next-door land it held by 2026. It may dig more, change its methods, and mix concrete and asphalt. A city or county cannot simply say no. It may step in only if it finds that an expansion puts public health or safety at risk. Even then it may ask only for steps no stricter than a state permit, and the quarry may accept them and go ahead. The act also puts the burden of proof on whoever argues that a quarry is not vested. The Utah House passed it 41-29 and it was signed into law.

March 7, 2025

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted against House Bill 37, which adds new ways for a Utah city to meet the state's moderate income housing rules. A city may now grant a density bonus for homes that people own and live in, both for single houses and for apartments. When it does, it may attach conditions, such as reserving most of the homes for owner-occupiers for five years, keeping a quarter of them affordable, or giving local buyers a first look for up to 30 days. Joining the state's home investment program also now counts as one of the housing steps a city can take. The act separately lowers the number of people needed to form a new town from 100 to 75. The Utah House passed it 39-30 and it was signed into law.

March 7, 2025

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted against House Bill 263, which makes the video of ballot processing a public record. Before this act, only a short list of officials could watch it. Election officers must now keep the paperwork that tracks where ballots have been for as long as they keep the ballots. They must also publish a count of the ballots they sent out and got back, broken down by how each one was sent and returned. County councils and other government bodies may look at electronic copies of ballots and envelopes. They must do so at the county clerk's office and may not take copies away. The Utah House passed it 47-23 and it was signed into law.

March 7, 2025

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026

Voted against Senate Bill 181, which limits how big a city or county may require a parking space to be at a house or townhome. Covered parking may not be required to exceed 10 feet by 20, and uncovered parking nine feet by 20, and one space behind another or a two-car garage must count as two spaces. Those parking rules reach only larger local governments: cities in the four largest size classes, a smaller city of at least 5,000 people in a populous county, and the larger counties. Separately, and in every city and county, a garage may not be required at all for an owner-occupied home priced at 80% of the county's median home price, though parking on the lot may still be required. The law counts a home as owner-occupied only if the owner lives there as a main home for at least five years. The Utah House passed it 50-20 and it was signed into law.

March 6, 2025

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 10, 2026