Doug Owens is an American politician from Utah that represents District 33 in the
Utah House of Representatives
The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The House is composed of 75 representatives elected from single member constituent districts. Each district cont ...
.
He ran for Congress twice for
Utah's 4th District. He was the Democratic nominee for Congress in this district in 2014 and 2016, and he was defeated by
Mia Love
Mia, MIA, or M.I.A. may refer to:
Music Artists
* M.I.A. (rapper) (born 1975), English rapper and singer
* M.I.A. (band), 1980s punk rock band from Orange County, California
* MIA., a German rock/pop band formed in 1997
* Mia (singer) (born 1983 ...
both times.
Early life and career
Doug Owens is the second-oldest
child of
Wayne Owens
Douglas Wayne Owens (May 2, 1937 – December 18, 2002) was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for Utah's 2nd congressional district from 1973 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1993.
Career
Born and ra ...
, a former Utah Congressman.
Owens is a member of the
LDS Church
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
,
and graduated from the
University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
,
and
Yale Law School
Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...
.
Owens spent twenty years as a practicing attorney
in business and environmental law.
When his father,
Wayne Owens
Douglas Wayne Owens (May 2, 1937 – December 18, 2002) was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for Utah's 2nd congressional district from 1973 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1993.
Career
Born and ra ...
, ran for governor in 1984 (a race he lost to Republican
Norm Bangerter
Norman Howard Bangerter (January 4, 1933 – April 14, 2015) was an American politician and businessman who served as the 13th governor of Utah from 1985 to 1993. He was the first Republican elected to the position since 1960, and the first to h ...
), Owens managed the campaign.
Political campaigns
2014 and 2016 congressional elections
Owens announced his candidacy for
Utah's 4th Congressional District
Utah's 4th congressional district is a congressional district created by the state legislature as a result of reapportionment by Congress after the 2010 Census showed population increases in the state relative to other states. Prior to 2010 rea ...
seat in the
2014 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2014.
* 2014 United Nations Security Council election 16 October 2014
Africa
* 2014 Algerian presidential election 17 April 2014
* 2014 Botswana general election 24 October 2014
* 2014 Comorian presi ...
on March 17, 2014.
He lost the election in November to
Mia Love
Mia, MIA, or M.I.A. may refer to:
Music Artists
* M.I.A. (rapper) (born 1975), English rapper and singer
* M.I.A. (band), 1980s punk rock band from Orange County, California
* MIA., a German rock/pop band formed in 1997
* Mia (singer) (born 1983 ...
, losing 50% to 47%.
In July 2015, Owens announced that he would be challenging Love again. Love won re-election with 53% of the vote.
2020 Utah House of Representatives election
Owens was nominated by the Democratic Party in state House District 36 in the
Millcreek /
Holladay
Holladay is a city in central Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Salt Lake City, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area and abuts the Wasatch National Forest. The population was 31,965 at the 2020 census, a significant increas ...
area to replace outgoing veteran
Patrice Arent
Patrice M. Arent (born February 3, 1956) is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the Utah House of Representatives, representing the state's 36th house district through 2020.
Early life and career
Arent was born February ...
, who had announced she would retire.
[ After winning the Democratic primary against three candidates, he defeated Republican Lisa Bagley in the November election, with 60% of the vote.
]
Political positions and significant legislation
Rep. Owens supports the Great Salt Lake preservation efforts. He said that "I hope people understand the urgency of the situation. It is nothing short of an emergency that we make sure we conserve that incredible place, not only for air quality, industry, and ecology, but it is part of our identity as a state." Rep. Owens called for all legislators to observe the conditions of the Great Salt Lake first hand from the air by helicopter, of which the Legislative leadership agreed.
In 2021, Owens voiced his support for restoring the size of Bears Ears National Monument to the original size. He also sponsored a bill with Rep. Phil Lyman
Phil Lyman is a resident of Blanding, Utah who currently represents district 73 in the Utah House of Representatives
The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state o ...
"that would create a task force to explore the creation of a visitor center in the Bears Ears area." The passed the Legislature and was signed by the Governor into law.
Committee assignments
He served on the Public Utilities and Technology committee, the Economic Development & Workforce Services committee, and the Natural Resources, Agriculture & Environmental Quality committee in the 2021 legislature. During the 2022 Legislative Session, Rep. Owens served on the House Economic Development and Workforce Services Committee, the House Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology Committee, the Legislative Water Development Commission, and the Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environmental Quality Appropriations Subcommittee.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Owens, Doug
Living people
University of Utah alumni
Yale Law School alumni
Latter Day Saints from Utah
Politicians from Salt Lake City
21st-century American politicians
Candidates in the 2014 United States elections
Candidates in the 2016 United States elections
Democratic Party members of the Utah House of Representatives
Year of birth missing (living people)