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This is the January 4 - January 11, 1997 update.


January 11, 1997
Contact Vicki Varela, 538-1503
or Paula Ernstrom, 538-1509

Listed below are the highlights of Governor Mike Leavitt's activities over the past two weeks. Please call if you have any questions.

  • Called on Utahns to follow the example of the early pioneers as we prepare for a new millennium. This came during inaugural ceremonies in the State Capitol Rotunda where the governor and other elected officials were given their oaths of office. In his speech, the governor discussed some of his deeply-held philosophies on the underpinning of society and the role and limitations of government. He used as a metaphor the early Utah settlers' hike to Ensign Peak for a "clearer view" of their challenges and opportunities. He made the following major points:

    • Our biggest challenge is to create a safe and prosperous environment for the children of the next century during this time of unparalleled growth.

    A successful society must recognize God as the force of greater good and the source of a constant moral standard. Without a belief in a supreme being, people will always redefine morality to their own convenience.

    The values and standards of citizens have a direct impact on government and its cost.

    Society has an undeniable stake in successful marriage because the state often ends up as the caretaker of children from marriages that break apart.

    Utah is engaged in the most sweeping reform of human services in our history. Already, we have helped thousands of people move from public welfare rolls to private pay rolls.

    A movement is growing nationally to move government closer to home.

    Keeping Utah a safe and prosperous state will take hard work. We must follow the example of the pioneers, who left the heights of Ensign Peak and went to work.

    Complete transcript of the governor's inaugural address

  • Announced plan to complete the Central Utah Project without a tax increase and without the use of general funds. Governor Leavitt joined with Don Christiansen, general manager of the Central Utah Water Conservancy District and CUP board members to make the announcement at the Jordanelle Reservoir. "The Central Utah Project is the backbone of the state's water plan to develop both drinking water and agricultural water for 12 Utah counties and its completion is essential," the governor said. Under this plan the district will prepay, at a highly discounted present value, its existing repayment obligation to the federal government. This reduces its debt load by approximately $200 million and brings the total cost of the project to $127 million. This will allow the district to pay the local cost required to finish CUP within its existing taxing authority and below its voter approved debt ceiling. Four years ago, the federal government told the state that if it wanted to finish the CUP, the state would need to pay for 35 percent of the cost. At the time, that cost was estimated to be more than $300 million and it was anticipated that a tax increase would be necessary. Governor Leavitt formed a task force to analyze how the state and the Central Utah Water Conservancy District could decrease the costs of completing the project and explore alternate financing options that would not require a tax increase.


  • Met with business and community leaders to plan for Utah's future. The Utah Quality Growth Partnership held its first meeting, bringing the public and private sector together to design a strategy for growth in the Salt Lake Valley in the next 50 years. During the meeting, the 80 members were shown what the valley would look like if nothing were done and outlined a process to avoid it. The group will take the next two and a half years to develop community models and present them to the public. The partnership is made up of mayors, county commissioners, legislators, business leaders, developers, housing experts and conservationists.


  • Encouraged citizens to give to the homeless on their state income tax returns. The governor visited a winter family shelter in Salt Lake City in an effort to make people aware of the needs of the homeless and let them know how they can help. Individuals can donate a portion of their state income tax refund by checking the designated box when filing their state tax returns.


  • Announced the creation of a new effort to link the state's self-sufficiency, affordable housing and home ownership efforts with housing authorities across the state. The new program is called "SUCCESS" which stands for State of Utah's Community Collaboration for Economic Self-Sufficiency and is the first of its kind in the nation. The program places families on a priority waiting list for public housing if they are participating in the state's Family Employment Program and are willing to enroll in a Housing Authority self-sufficiency program. "SUCCESS is one of many programs designed to help Utahns become self-sufficient," Governor Leavitt said. "It is our goal to help people gain meaningful employment so that they can receive paychecks, rather than welfare assistance." Members of the Public Housing Authority Task Force who put this plan together include: the Departments of Community and Economic Development, Human Services, and Workforce Services; the Utah Housing Finance Agency; Utah's Housing Authorities; and representatives of low-income housing.


  • Encouraged the Environmental Protection Agency to allow states the maximum flexibility in implementing revised air standards. This came at hearings before the EPA in Salt Lake City on air quality standards. "Past experience has shown that states will indeed develop their own effective control strategies to maintain air quality," the governor said. He sited how effective states have been with the enhanced vehicle inspection and maintenance program, which allowed states to establish unique programs and determine their effectiveness. The governor also stressed the importance of basing any revisions to air quality standards on sound science, rather then setting a standard and than studying whether or not that standard works.


  • Met with the School and Institutional Trust Land Administration's Board of Trustees regarding lands that are within the new Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Leavitt complimented the board on recent improvements to the administration of school trust lands. He said he supports their efforts to determine the value of the school trust lands within the new monument. "I understand and share your concerns regarding the establishment of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and the effects of the monument upon the school trust lands," the governor said in a letter to the board following the meeting. He encouraged the board to fully explore differences concerning the value and uses of the school trust lands within the monument and to cooperate with the federal agencies in the planning process. "The state will protect its interests in the monument, but will follow a policy of cooperation with the federal agencies," the governor said. He also thanked the board and the employees of the administration for the work they do for the school children of Utah.


  • Received positive news about Utah's economy. Governor Leavitt was presented with the "1997 Economic Report to the Governor" during the Wasatch Front Economic Forum's Annual Economic Review. The report is prepared annually by a panel of experts on the economic condition of the state over the past year and predicts the economic outlook for the next year. The report predicts job growth of 4.2 percent and personal income growth of 7.8 percent in 1997. While these figures are slightly lower than in 1996, they still show solid and above average growth in Utah's economy. The report also shows that job growth was above 5 percent for the fourth consecutive year in 1996 and personal incomes grew faster than the national average. "In many ways, the Utah economy is stronger than it has ever been. I praise Utah's residents for their collective contributions to this economic success," the governor said. "As we prepare enter the 21st century, our economy continues to change from the industrial age to the information age. We must continue to guide Utah's economy into this new age."


  • Kicked off the Sesquicentennial celebration of the settlement of Utah. Governor Leavitt joined with members of the Utah Pioneer Sesquicentennial Celebration Coordinating Council to sign a proclamation in the Capitol Rotunda. Although the celebration marks the entrance of the Mormon Pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley, the year-long celebration focuses not only on those pioneers but also on the people who came to Utah before and after 1847. Also participating in the event was the International Children's Choir and the Shoshoni Nation Singers.


  • Congratulated Parowan on its 146th anniversary. Governor Leavitt travel to Parowan for the city's annual celebration of the first settlement of the city in 1851. This year's events also commemorated the sesquicentennial of the Mormon pioneers' arrival in Utah. Leavitt spoke to 1,300 residents during the annual town meeting held at the new high school gymnasium about the spirit of pioneering, the theme for the statewide sesquicentennial. "Pioneering is a curiosity of what lies beyond here," the governor said. He encouraged the citizens of Parowan to keep that spirit alive.


  • Joined with the Utah Non-Profit Housing Corporation to announce two new low-income housing projects for the elderly. Forty-one units will be built in Logan and 30 units in Magna through funds allocated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Affairs.


  • Congratulated Washington County School District and the citizens of Utah regarding a bond issue that will save taxpayers money. Governor Leavitt issued the following statement: "When citizens voted to pass Proposition 4 on the November ballot, they voted to save millions of dollars by putting the full faith and credit of the state behind every school district that issues bonds. Washington County School District's bond sale is the first of many which will benefit taxpayers statewide through lower interest rates. It's part of the common sense approach to finances that makes Utah the best managed states in America."


  • Held a teleconference with the governor of Utah's South Korean sister state. Governor Leavitt and Governor Rhee InJe exchanged greetings and committed continue working together. Utah and the Kyonggi Province have worked since 1983 to promote economic, tourism, educational and cultural exchanges between the two states. During the meeting, Governors Leavitt and Rhee agreed to form a Kyonggi-Utah Joint Cooperation Council to focus on economic relations between the two states. The council will include government, cultural, education and business leaders. Leavitt also agreed send the state flower and tree to Kyonggi for their World Flower Exhibition and International Friendship Garden. "These exchanges will be a grand step for us in efforts to bring our people closer together," Leavitt told Rhee through an interpreter.


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