House GOP dumps 'speed dating'
PAC fund-raisers plan reception at The Point
When the newly elected 55 GOP members of the state House hold their annual political action committee fund-raiser Thursday, it will be under the tried-and-true format of a reception, where legislators will just mingle with lobbyists and other paying guests, says Kat Dayton, who heads up fund raising for the House majority's PAC.
Last year, Dayton and GOP House members came under criticism for making the pre-legislative fund-raiser a "speed date." Using a format adopted by some adult dating services, lobbyists paid $100 and got several hours to move from one small table to another, talking to individual Republican House members.
"We took some flak last year, and we never fully understood why," said Dayton, adding that she thought the "speed dating" format "was done just for fun, just for a change."
But the "speed dating" format highlighted a fact already known, but wisely not accentuated, on Utah's Capitol Hill: That you often have to pay money to get quality face-time with Utah's 104 part-time lawmakers.
The speed-dating event also didn't raise as much money as hoped for, Dayton said Thursday.
On Tuesday the Senate Republicans held a breakfast fund-raiser at the Little America Hotel, and on Saturday — just two days before the 2007 Legislature convenes — legislative Democrats hold their annual Legislative Gala, also in the Little America Hotel.
The money donated to all of the legislative PACs goes toward helping candidates running for those specific offices.
Instead of getting into the House Republicans' reception for $100 — as was the case with the speed dating format last year — individuals will have to pay $300 a pop. Groups can also pay $2,500 or $1,500 for tables at the event.
Dayton said House Republicans hope to raise more than $30,000. Senate Republicans are anticipating collecting about $80,000 at their breakfast event, which carried a price tag of $1,800 a table.
There's one more twist to this year's event: It is being held at The Point, a reception center/restaurant on the top floor of the Huntsman Cancer Research Center at the University of Utah.
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., the son of industrialist/philanthropist Jon Huntsman Sr., who founded the cancer research center/hospital high on Salt Lake City's east bench, used to be the chairman of the private family foundation that runs the cancer-fighting operations.
But Dayton said House Republicans didn't pick the Huntsman building because of its connection with the governor, who is also a Republican.
"The Utah Restaurant Association is one of our main sponsors" — at $2,500 — she said. Staff in the organization looked around at several locales, including a local brew pub, in helping set up the event. But in the end, The Point worked out as the best alternative, said Dayton, who started overseeing the House GOP PAC fund-raiser when she was Utah House Speaker Greg Curtis' administrative assistant.
Dayton, wife of former Salt Lake County Mayor Alan Dayton, said she doesn't know if The Point gave House Republicans any kind of a break on rental fees, adding that when the restaurant association came back with rental/food bids it seemed a good fit with the PAC's budget.
E-mail: bbjr@desnews.com
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