LeBaronLogic

Quotes from the 100th Utah League of Cities and Towns Convention

"...Thank you for the inspiration President Gordon B. Hinckley is to all of us as President of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and for his leadership, not only of the church but throughout Utah and beyond. Fill him with deep peace, continued good health and the satisfaction that comes from being your servant and indeed, your holy prophet."  ---The Most Rev. John Wester, Bishop, Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City, during the  invocation of the Wednesday Opening Luncheon, in which President Hinckley was honored as the organization's "Municipal Citizen of the Century."

"Those of you who govern communities are figuratively speaking the keepers of the hearth.Yours is not just a position of privilege, but one of great responsibility. You are responsible for the necessary infrastructure. We look to you for services. We are grateful for what you do. What would our communities be without streets and roads, without good water and sewer service? It is out of a sense of gratitude for these blessings that I am deeply thankful for the "Municipal Citizen of the Century" honor which you have conferred today." ---President Gordon B. Hinckley

"The most important lesson of history is how to be a decent human being, learning how to behave in the roles life will cast you in."                --- David McCullough, Author and Historian

"Change one bad habit a day." ---Pat Sapio, Presenter

"One of your responsibilities as elected officials is to create a sense of place within your communities." ---Dr. R. Ross Peterson, Utah State University

2007 State Legislative Update

The first 4 weeks of this year's Utah Legislative session has been active, (even absent the Real SL soccer stadium bruhaha). The best way to get an up-to-date municipal report is to click here for todays Utah League of Cities and Towns (ULCT) Legislative Policy Committee Meeting Agenda. On the agenda are links to the bills with city implications. The current status of the bills are included in the bill links themselves. The bills highlighted include among others;  Taxes, Land Use inc. Sensitive Lands, Food Tax, Eminent Domain, Telecommunications, Transportation and others. Also Lincoln Shurtz' February 9, report is also very helpful. If you have specific concerns or questions, please email me and I will attempt to get you the answers.  Until next time......

State Legislation and Municipal Issues

The 2007 session of the Utah State Legislature started ths week. The last 2 years I represented American Fork on the Utah League of Cities and Towns (ULCT) Legislative Policy Committee. We should be attentive to bills related to telecommunications, eminent domain, transportation, municipal land use regulation, taxation and other local issues being debated on the hill, particularly with the large budget surplus the state has. ULCT has published a preview of important issues facing cities like American Fork. Click here to access.

Lincoln Shurtz, Director of Legislative Affairs at ULCT is blogging. I have known Lincoln for 3 years. He is informed, intelligent and is keenly aware of key issues that impact cities. I would recommend you bookmark his site and refer to it frequently during this legislative session. His Key Legislative Issues for Municipalities for 2007 is a good read.

Rep. Steve Urquhart also has an excellent blog detailing the lawmaking.

HAPPY LEGISLATING

"Hey Rocky, Don't let the door hit you....."

Ross C. "Rocky" Anderson, Mayor of Salt Lake City recently announced he will not seek a third term. Whew, and I thought we would have to endure the embarassment of yet another 4 years. Instead of organizing a protest of President Bush's upcoming visit to Salt Lake City like he did last year, the good mayor indicated "he would be willing to participate at a protest rally, if asked" and that "leadership requires his speaking out", huh? MEMO TO ROCKY:  The President of the United States will soon be visiting your city to speak at the American Legion Convention, attended by war veterans. Despite your liberal politics, the president deserves a respectful, warm and hospitable welcome by the city's Chief Executive Officer. We are not questioning your constitutional right to speak, but there are times to briefly check such at the door when social courtesies suggest otherwise. Write an op-ed piece after Air Force One leaves the tarmac if compelled to "speak out".

Sheriff (State Rep) back in Town

After a 6 month hiatus, Utah State Representative John Dougall, R - Highland, Dist 27, is back in the OK Blog Corral, which is good. For his initial return post and other recent posts click here. (Incidently, John is my legislator and a fellow Rotarian. I also served as Vice - Chair of Legislative District 27 for 2 two year terms with John which was a delight. I am now pleased to be the Republican Chair of American Fork Precinct 7).

Upcoming Legislation Affecting our City

A favorites or bookmark for your computer is the Utah League of Cities and Towns (ULCT) home page. Click on this link for important legislative dates and explore the interior links for some valuable information. The League monitors about 60 pieces of legislation. I serve on the Legislative Policies Committee which meets monthly out of session and weekly while the legislature is in session.  The Committee helps the league's lobbyists in looking out after our interests and updating progress on negotiations and the like.

State Tax Cut?

For an excellent discourse on a proposed state tax cut (subject to legislative debate) see Rep. Steve Urquhart's blog and related links.

Utah League of Cities and Towns Convention

I attended the annual Utah League of Cities and Towns (ULCT) Convention last Wednesday through Friday in SLC. The convention had several sessions to assist me in being a better public servant to the citizens of American Fork. It also allows for some networking with other elected officials on best practices. We first heard a fascinating presentation from Kevin Eubank on Utah weather phenomena and how to plan for severe weather in our communities. I also attended sessions on Current issues in Public Finances, Land Use Update, Municipal Bonds, Budget Questions, Citizens Input in local Decision Making, and Relationships with our Political Neighbors. We also heard the harrowing experience of Chief Richard Picciotto the highest ranking firefighter in NYC who survived the collapse of the World Trade Center on 9/11. He wrote the book Last Man Down as a tribute to the 343 firefighters and some 2,400 civilians that lost their lives on that fateful day. It was truly inspiring. Also for the past 18 months the ULCT Tax Team has been identifying the problems that municipal officials encounter under the current tax structure. I serve on the Legislative Policy Committee that serves that same purpose on other important municipal issues for our legislature. This assignment gives voice to our community on issues on a statewide level that affect us in our community. The ULCT website is listed on the lower right of this page. Overall it was an outstanding conference.