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Show THE GREEN SHEET 3 Thursday, Sept. 1, 1988 COMMUNITY NEWS Effort To Scale Down Size Of State Government Pays Off SALT LAKE. After steady the over growth tour past Tax Initiatives Continued From Page 1 to educate with the fewest number of people paying the bill for that education by a considerable margin." But what do all these statistics have to do with the tax initiatives? "People with common Bense realize that you dont get for something nothing has to pay for somebody educating our children. The simple truth is that the quality of education would be public severely impacted by these radical in changes public funding," he said. "Claims that the cuts could be made in administrative costs and other areas outside the classroom - which represent at best only tiny amounts - are unsupport-able,- " - -- -- Memmot pointed out. "If Utah were to have the same demographic balance as MassaMemmot chusetts," explained, "we could have a $400 million tax cut and still maintain the same service levels the demographics make that much difference. In addition to a vast number of children in school, Utah also has the fewest number of teachers in relation to the number of children being taught of any state in the nation and spends the least amount of money per child in that education, he providing explained. But even though the state has ratios and the high teacher-pupminimum amount spent per pupil of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, test scores remain relatively high when compared to students in other states. "Education is already one of this states greatest bargains," Memmot said, noting that demographic figures alone prove Utah public education is "the most efficiently operated system in the nation." Utah, he pointed out, "has always had more children as a percentage of its population than most other states." The problem with financing il education here had nothing to do with wasteful spending or tax increases, but with the economic climate of the minerals and energy industry. "The tax increases which the legislature passed last year only replaced dollars lost when the bottom fell out of energy and minerals," he noted. "It did not create new money." The pressures on Utahs school system, however, are apparently easing, if population figures prove correct, he noted. The "bubble" of children in the school system will peak in 1991 and is expected to ease off until the year 2004, when the cycle is anticipated to start up again. "The pressures on Utahs school system are not long term - five or ten years at best," he said. decades, an effort to scale down the size of state and local government has met some degree of success during the past year. This was reported by Utah Foundation, the private research organization, in an analysis of state and local employment in Utah. According to the foundation, the number of state jobs was reduced by about 600 while the number of local nonschool government positions was pared back by approximately 300 between May 1987 and May 1988. This is in contrast to the period, which saw nonschool employment grow by 31 percent (or an average of 2.7 percent each year) at the state and local level in Utah. equivalent state and local employment in Utah climbed from 62,916 in 1976 to 80,007 in 1986, an increase of 17,091 over the decade. During this same 1976-198- 6 Full-tim- e a bright and prosperous future, but this will happen only if we as citizens are willing to invest in our future. Our greatest resource for the work future is a force. In addition to a sound infrastructure and government, ' this is critical to economic and development jobs," he said. It will take "sacrifice and vision for the future" to maintain the quality of Utahs public education system, Memmot said, but "a vote for the tax initiatives is a vote to tear down our progress and seriously jeopardize the future of Utah. Its time to say No to the initiatives and No to the people who want to go their own way and tear Utah apart." period, state and local the employment throughout nation rose by 16.1 percent. Foundation analysts point out, however, that the major factor in the somewhat faster growth of state and local employment in Utah is that Utahs population has been growing so much more rapidly than that of the nation as a whole. Between 1976 and 1986, there was a rise of 30.5 percent in Utahs population, compared with an increase of only6 1 0.8 percent for the nation as a whole. school Furthermore, public enrollment in Utah climbed by 32.3 percent between 1976 and 1986, while it actually declined by 10.4 percent throughout the nation in this same period. When state local and employment growth is related to population changes, it actually declined in Utah but rose in the U.S. over the past 10 years. The number of state and local employees (full-tim- e equivalent) per 10,000 population in Utah dropped from 512 in 1976 to 481 in 1986. For the entire nation, state and local employment increased from 475 per 10,000 population in 1976 to 492 in 1986. Utah ranked 34th among the 50 NEXT local ten-ye- -- "The question people have to answer in November is whether they are willing to invest in Utahs future. It wont be long before our states large number of school-ag- e children start entering the work force. Properly educated and trained, they will be an asset far above the present cost of Memmot them," educating explained. "Utah has well-educat- WEEK: Long Politics ar ' Shot - states in the number of state and employees per 10,000 population in 1986. A substantial of state and local part employment in Utah, however, is the result of the large education load. If only noneducational employees' are considered, Utah ranked last among the 50 states in the number of state and local employees per 10,000 population. privatization within the state, 3) the amount of contracting for services within the state, 4) the nf- pffiHencvy in nerfnrmimr dporee w O i essential governmental services within the state. of an Enactment early retirement program last year was designed to reduce the state work force in Utah without having to resort to layoffs. According to an audit by the Legislative Auditor took advantage of this early retirement option. This included 1,799 public school employees, 638 state employees and 74 higher education employees. Under the governors mandated policy, only 50 percent of the 638 retired state employees could be replaced with new employees. Of the 1,799 vacated public school positions, however, only 52 were not replaced with new employees. New employees, however, are generally paid a much lower rate in the school system. The audit indicated that the - program early-retireme- THANK YOU We would like to thank you for participating In our voluntary pay program. Much ot our carrier' wage come from your payment, and If they do a good lob we hope you reward them. We greatly appreciate your each year as replacement salaries and related benefit costs continue to rise., At some point in the future, the retirement costs of the early retirees could exceed the payroll savings, and the program would result in an added state expense rather than in a net savings, the foundation concluded. support. ' THE GREEN SHEET 155 E. 4905 South Murray, Utah 04107 Hour: Office Mon. Frl., 0 a.m. 5 p.m. Peter Bernhard, Publisher Robert Prince, V.P. Operation Bill Olsen, V.P. Marketing Michele Bartmess, Editor Ethel Bradford, Editor Karen Egll, Circulation Jan Brown, Business . Lines From LaRee Heat not a furnace for your foe so hot that it do singe thyself. -William Shakespeare. will The study indicates that differences in the proportion of state and local employees are not by themselves an accurate guide to States and need in the widely vary demand for particular kinds of governmental services. Utahs heavy school load, for example, necessitates a much larger than average proportion of persons employed in education than in other states. Other factors that level of effect the may government employment include 1) the degree of urbanization and population density within the amount of the 2) state, result in net savings of $8.2 and $13.7 million during 1987-8These million during 1988-89- . savings, however, will decline gM2HjDQjBti)0 MIEBCP FRI &TSAT OMjBQSk 8 ooqd ooccflEniav rx. ct 2 o anani Li. 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