Published by Paul Ivinskas · Politically neutral. No endorsements.
Wednesday, November 4, 2026

Utah, on the record.

Same sections for every candidate. Every fact linked to its source. How we stay neutral →

Utah bill tracker

H.B. 488: Standards and Curriculum Amendments

2026 General Session · Originating chamber: House

Saved official records and Ledger coverage. The outcome below is from the Legislature’s own step list.

What the bill does

Did not pass both chambers; the bill was filed on March 6, 2026.

This bill amends provisions related to social studies instructional materials and art standards.

  • Requires the State Board of Education to develop high-quality open educational resource instructional materials for social studies and civics education
  • Requires open educational resources to be updated when social studies standards are revised
  • Requires social studies instruction on American Exceptionalism and comparative government systems
  • Requires instruction on the Bible as a literary and historical text
  • Requires integration of founding documents in English language arts assessments
  • Requires instruction on the roles and responsibilities of government officials
  • Allows local education agencies to determine whether applied crafts and technical arts courses meet fine arts credit requirements
  • Makes technical and conforming changes

The description and list come from the bill's own long title as recorded by the Legislature. Read the official bill. The Ledger takes no position on it.

Subjects: Education · K-12 Education · State Board of Education · Standards and Curriculum

How it moved

  1. · House1st reading (Introduced)Rules Committee
  2. · Housefiledfile for bills not passed

Steps as the Legislature recorded them; clerical and fiscal-staff entries are left out. Numbers such as 54-14-7 are yeas, nays and absent.

Fiscal note

From the Legislative Fiscal Analyst's note on H.B. 488, dated February 10, 2026. A fiscal note estimates direct costs and revenue; it is not an appropriation.

  • State revenue: Enactment of this legislation likely will not materially impact state revenue.
  • State expenditures: Enactment of this legislation could cost the State Board of Education $8,000,000 one-time from the Income Tax Fund in FY 2027 to development open-education content for social studies and civics education as outlined in the bill.
  • Local government: To the extent a Local Education Agency (LEA) opts to participate in the open educational resources developed by the state as outlines in the bill, an LEA may experience cost savings associated with purchasing fewer curriculum materials. On average, LEAs spend approximately $3.3 million statewide on textbooks for each grade.
  • Individuals and businesses: Enactment of this legislation likely will not result in direct expenditures from tax or fee changes for Utah residents and businesses.

Bill overview

Sponsor: Tiara Auxier

Legislature passed-list status: Not available in the saved metadata.

Passed-list membership is not a finding that a bill was signed or took effect. A bill absent from that list is not necessarily pending or defeated.

Latest recorded action

filed
Action date:

The full step list is above. Find the bill in the official session list for status, hearings and committee records.

Recorded floor votes

No floor-vote records for this bill and session are available here. This does not mean no vote occurred; consult the official bill record.

Ledger coverage

No Ledger stories with an explicit source link to this bill and session are listed here.