Stuart Adams

Jabez Stuart Adams is the Republican senator for the Utah State Senate's 7th District. Prior to redistricting, he represented the 22nd District. Adams was appointed to the Utah House of Representatives in 2002 and then to the Senate in 2009. In 2012, he was chosen to be the Senate majority whip. In 2018, he was chosen to be Senate president.

Personal life, education, and career

Adams graduated from Layton High in 1972 and earned his BA from the University of Utah in business finance. He is a businessman by profession. Adams is married to his wife, Susan, and they have four children together. In 2002, he received the Business Person of the Year award from the Utah State Chamber of Commerce and the Builder of the Year award from the Northern Wasatch Home Builders Association. Adams previously served as the President of the Northern Wasatch Home Builders Association.

Political career

Adams is a former chairman of the Utah State Transportation Commission. He served as chairman of the Military Installation Development Authority. Prior to his legislative service, Adams served nine years on the Layton City Council.
Adams served for over four years in the Utah State House of Representatives. He commenced his service in the Senate on September 16, 2009. He was appointed to both of these positions. In 2004, then-Representative Adams was named the 2004 Legislator of the Year by the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, the 2004 Legislator of the Year by the International Code Council, and the 2004 Representative of the Year by the Davis County Republican Women.
In 2016, Adams served as the majority whip. He has also served on the following committees:

Executive Appropriations Committee
Infrastructure and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee
Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee
Senate Business and Labor Committee
Senate Transportation and Public Utilities and Technology Committee
Sexual Activity Law

In 2024, he suggested a law change that meant an eighteen-year-old, if enrolled as a high school student, who engaged in sexual activity with a thirteen-year-old could be charged with unlawful sexual activity rather than child rape. The law was adopted by Utah as part of SB 213. This allowed Adams's eighteen-year-old granddaughter to avoid serious punishment for raping a child. Adams denied that his family relationship was the reason he promoted the law change.

COVID response controversies

During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic in Utah, Adams supported legislation to stockpile the experimental medication hydroxychloroquine. Soon it emerged that Utah had purchased $800,000 worth of the drug, at vastly inflated prices, from a local pharmacy with personal connections to Adams.
In 2022, Adams, as the Utah Senate president, opened the 2022 general session of the 64th legislature in person, without a mask. Having contracted COVID-19 the week before, Adams said he had recovered before speaking to the Senate at the start of the session. It was later revealed that he had tested positive for COVID-19 twice that morning. Adams continued his legislative duties unmasked, conversing in close contact with fellow senators, staff, and dignitaries, only masking when meeting with members of the media.

2021 congressional redistricting

In 2018, an independent redistricting commission was formed to better represent the public's voice when it came to redrawing Utah's congressional maps. A bipartisan group was formed to recommend congressional, state senate, state house, and state school board district boundaries based on public feedback and a strong focus on representation of "communities of interest." On November 1, 2021, the commission delivered its 12 recommendations that were vetted through 16 public hearings across the state to the legislature. The Princeton Gerrymandering Project gave favorable reviews to the maps the council drew. The state legislature, under the leadership of Senate President Stuart, ignored the commission's recommendations and drew and approved their own maps. They divided Salt Lake County, the largest and most diverse county in the state, into the four congressional districts.

Elections

Legislation

2016 sponsored bills

2017 sponsored bills

Bill Number	Bill Title	Bill Status
	Waste Management Amendments	Governor Signed 3/24/2017
	Bail Amendments	Governor Signed 3/15/2017
	Animal Care and Control Appreciation Week	Governor Signed 3/14/2017
	Health Education Amendments	Governor Signed 3/20/2017
	Refinery Sales and Use Tax Exemption Amendments	Governor Signed 3/25/2017
	Parent-time Amendments	Governor Signed 3/17/2017
	Water Infrastructure Revisions	Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/9/2017
	Upstart Amendments	Governor Signed 3/28/2017
	Sudden Cardiac Arrest Prevention Act	Senate/Filed for bills not passed 3/9/2017
	Energy Development Amendments	Governor Signed 3/28/2017
	Joint Resolution Supporting Creation of Citizens Equity Funds	Governor Signed 3/16/2017