KSL Truth Test: Fact-checking debate claims from candidates for Utah’s 4th Congressional District
Oct 24, 2024, 10:54 PM | Updated: 11:06 pm
SALT LAKE CITY – Republican Rep. Burgess Owens and Democratic challenger Katrina Fallick-Wang took the debate stage at the University of Utah Thursday, sharing their views on issues ranging from abortion to immigration and education. But did claims of fact from the candidates for U.S. House District 4 hold up to the KSL Truth Test?
The KSL Investigators fact-checked three claims from the candidates:
Claims about drugs and the border
In response to a question about combatting illegal drugs, Owens said, “We have over 100,000 Americans that have died over the last couple years because of what’s happening to the border.”
He went on to say, “We have to, first of all, seal the border.” The KSL Investigators have reported extensively on how drugs are trafficked into Utah. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the vast majority of drugs coming across the border roll right through legal ports of entry, packed into vehicles.
After the debate, KSL asked Owens if by “seal the border,” he was suggesting closing legal ports of entry. He clarified that he was not.
This truth test found Owens’ claim about drugs and the border to be misleading.
Claim about migrants’ criminal convictions
Later in the debate, Owens also made this statement about migrants who have been convicted of crimes:
“I have probably less confidence in our ability to fight off an attack than I ever have before, because the last four years,” he said. “We have a totally open border. 13,000 murderers, 15,000 rapists that have been allowed to come through.” Owens was referencing data from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shared in September. Those numbers check out. 13,099 non-citizens on the agency’s docket have homicide convictions, and 15,811 are convicted of sexual assault.
But after former President Donald Trump made similar claims in shared in September, the Department of Homeland Security released a statement to NBC News saying that data is being “misinterpreted:”
“The data goes back decades; it includes people who entered the country over the past 40 years or more, the vast majority of whose custody determination was made long before this administration. It also includes many who are under the jurisdiction or currently incarcerated by federal, state or local law enforcement partners.”
The KSL Truth Test found Owens’ claim about migrants’ criminal convictions within a four-year time frame is false.
Claim about the rising cost of housing
Fallick-Wang made this claim about rising home costs in Utah: “Rep. Owens has been in office for four years and during that time here in Utah we’ve seen housing prices continue to rise.”
According to Zillow’s home value index, prices for single family homes and condos have risen significantly since 2021, hovering above $400,000 in January of that year, peaking at about $547,000 in June 2022, then dipping down to around $517,000 as of September.
Experts say there are several factors driving those costs, including a housing shortage and a pandemic homebuying rush. Rents have risen, too.
And while those costs can’t be tied directly to Owens, the KSL Investigators found this claim on the rising cost of housing in recent years to be true.
Thursday’s debate was the last in statewide races before the election Nov. 5, but the KSL Investigators’ fact-checking continues.
Contributing: Avi Robledo, KSL TV
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