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Show OPINION SUMMIT COUNTY NEWS PAGE A2 MARCH 6, 2015 LOCAL NEWS NOTES The water is in the snow! When we have a lot of snow, we don't think of it as our "storage for the year, we take it for granted! This year has been quite a different year for the Northern part of Utah. Skiers and homeowners, farmers and ranchers, all are worried about the same thing...where is our water going to come from come July! It is hot then, and the "snow melt" we usually have is high in the mountains, but not so this year! Thankfully a little snow dropped this week! Keeping our thoughts and prayers to help us get more snow is on the "tips of everyone's" con- versations lately! Yes, we need it. The reservoirs in Summit County alone are telling the story! Coming this late it may not have time to give us the "usual" amount of mountain snow, but we are grateful for what we did receive this week! BOOK FAIR FAMILY FUN NIGHT Every one is invited to the Book Fair Family Fun Night Tonight! Are You smarter than your 5th Grader? or 6th, or 7th, or 8th grader? Come to the Elementary sponsored Book Fair Family Night. Come see Clifford, fish in the fish pond, enter the coloring contest or Gummy Fish Buffet, and enter the "Are you Smarter than a 5th Grader" Contest. Great Family Fun, Thursday, Feb. 26, at the Elementary School Gym from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. See you there! CAFE CONVERSATIONS AT SUMMIT COUNTY LIBRARY Wednesday, March 18, 4 p.m., Sheri Lewis will present a discussion on "Gardening in High Altitude Techniques". Call the Summit County Library to sign up at (435) 783-3190. HISTORY PRESENTATION March 10,2015 at 6:00 PM at the Summit County Courthouse a history presentation will be given by John Eldredge. The presentation will be on the Chinese in the 19th century American West. During the 1840s, the Chinese economy had been ruined by drought, famine, and the British opium trade. In 1852, risking death, 20,000 of them came to American searching for gold in California. Please come and learn the contributions that the Chinese made to America. SUMMIT COUNTY LIBRARY KAMAS BRANCH EVENTS IN MARCH The Summit County Library in Kamas is sponsoring a variety of informational and book and craft events for all ages birth through adults. For information please visit their website at kmapp@summitcounty.org >. HAVE YOUR TAXES DONE FOR FREE VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) is coming to Summit County at the USU Extension Office in Coalville. If your household income is below 53,000 per year, you may qualify for an Earned Income Tax Credit of up to $6,143 even if you don't owe any taxes. Taxes prepared by IRS certified volunteers. Appointments are available Tuesdays, starting Feb. 17, through March 31. Space is limited! For appointments call the USU Extension Office in Coalville at (435) 336-3217. Rep. Mel Brown introduces a handful of new bills BY EMILY LARSON Capital West News Recycling Tip For The Week... Recent events at the Center Costa Rica students spent a day exploring the Recycling Center. They learned about all we do, how and why and what they might implement in their country. The students first mission? What happens to old medicine and how to dispose of it safely. Fun and windy day at the center. SALT LAKE CITY — Three bills from Summit County Rep. Mel Brown, R-Coalville, reached the House floor this week, including one to shift the responsibility of city incorporation, another to alter budget requirements for the School and Institutional Trust Lands Association (SITLA), and a third to allow legislative staff to purchase lunch for legislators. Under HB245 the incorporation of a city would no longer be a county issue. Instead, lieutenant governor's office would be charged with the responsibility. Brown explained that when the state was established, cities and counties were both defined as political subdivisions, completely separate from each other. "Why should one have control over the other one if they're both equal political subdivisions of the state," Brown said in a House committee meeting on Feb. 20. The bill would also shift the financial responsibility of Treasure Mountain Middle School Leadership students present Recycle Utah with a check to supplement our educational programs. Thanks to them for collecting more than $1,000. Photo: Danielle, Shannon and Sam Summit County News Contact Info Mail: Summit County News, 165 South 100 West, Heber City, UT 84032. You can reach Cheryl Ovard, Summit County News Editor, at (801) 898-0900. Cheryl's email is cheryl.ovard@gmail.com or (435) 783-1471, for Kamas and Coalville residents, incorporations from the counties to the pending municipality.During that same committee meeting, Rep. Kraig Powell, R — Heber City, explained that there is an inherent conflict of interest when counties are deciding whether a city should be incorporated. Sending these requests to the lieutenant governor's office removes that conflict. According to Brown, the lieutenant governor's office and the counties support this bill. The bill passed the House and has been sent to the Senate. HB349 makes changes to budget requirements for the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration. The administration, created 21 years ago, must have its budget approved by appropriations committees every year. Current law requires those budgets to be specifically arranged into line items. Brown explained to the House on Monday that promising financial opportunities are presented to the administration and they cannot be acted on because they weren't included in the approved budget. This bill would allow the administration to make budget changes after making requests to the board of the administration and then the Legislature Appropriations Committee. "We're not opening the door completely, we're cracking it open a little," Brown said in a Feb. 27 committee meeting. The bill passed the House and will now be considered by the Senate. The final bill, SJR11, would allow legislative staff to purchase lunches for legislators as they work through lunch hours during interim sessions. The staff would be reimbursed by funds already in place to cover the legislator's costs. In a committee meeting, Sen. Lyle Hillyard, R — Logan, said that during interim sessions the legislators have meetings that go through lunch, and rather than adjourning and leaving the capitol, this law would save time by allowing staff to purchase lunches for the legislators. This bill is now on its way to the governor's office. Letters To The Editor Policy The Summit County News welcomes Letters To The Editor on any subject. They must adhere to the following guidelines: They must be received to the Summit Co. News corporate office, 165 South 100 West, Heber City, UT 84032 no later than Tuesday noon to be considered for that week's issue of the paper coming out on Friday. The letters must be hand signed with full address and telephone number of the person writing the letter. No letter will be published under an assumed name. Name may be withheld on request at the discretion of the managing editor or publisher of The Summit County News. They must not contain libelous material. Writers are limited to one letter in two weeks. Please try to hold the length of Letters to the Editor to approximately 300 words. The editor's of the Summit County News reserve the right to edit and/or condense Letters to the Editor. Preference will be given to short, typewritten (double spaced, upper and lower cased) letters permitting the use of the writer's name. No political party or candidate endorsement letters will be published as Letters To The Editor. The views expressed in guest editorials or Letters to the Editor do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editors or publisher or express the viewpoint of this newspaper. (435) 336-5501 and (435) 783-1471 The Summit County News Staff DROP OFF LOCATIONS The drop-off locations for photos and weekly articles to be published in the Summit County News are as follows: In Coalville All State Insurance, 9 S. Main Deaolh'ne rs 7uesolay for aff arlicles Laurie & Joe Wynn Kari & Paul McFee Publishers Emeritus Dick & Sue Buys Paul McFee General Manager Managing Editor Laurie Wynn Editor Cheryl Ovard Pagination/Layout June Muir Joe Wynn Business Manager Karen Davis Heber Office Circulation June Muir Advertising Manager Kari McFee Advertising Sales Graphic Design Kenny Bristow Elizabeth Fowers Classified Advertising Annette Motley Jay Provost Production & Press Dan Carlile Randi Carlile Ken Hastings Justin Lucking Co-Publishers: Stuffing Crew Connor McFee Shelby Mair Wyatt Oyler Dillon Wall Jaycie Clyde Sera Hone Camille Bethers The Summit County News (UPSP 525640) is published weekly for $20 per year in Summit County, Senior Citizen Discount, $15 in county; $30 out-ofcounty by Wave Publishing Inc., 165 South 100 West, Heber City, UT 84032. Periodicals Postage Paid at Coalville, UT 84017. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Wasatch Wave, 165 South 100 West, Heber City, UT 84032. cheryl.ovard@gmail.com Fax: (435) 654-5085 The entire contents of this newspaper is Copyright© 2015 Summit County News and/or Wave Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the written consent of the Managing Editor or Publisher. The Summit County News call: 435-654-1471 |