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Show i TAX FACTS TOLD BY UTAH TAX STUDY GROUP ! Travel by officials of Utah , State government cost approximately approxi-mately $800,000 during the 1948 fiscal year ended June 30th, it was reiorterj by Utah Foundation, the I non-profit research agency, in the 1 latest of its studies of Utah State government made public this week. This amount includes $667,-142 $667,-142 charged to travel accounts in State reports plus an estimated $133,000 in travel costs for state-owned state-owned cars for which only part of ; the expense appears as travel on 1 state records. ' Travel costs have mounted sub- 1 .stantially in recent years. Finance Commission totals quoted by the Foundation report show $378,557 for 1944, $412,207 for 1946, and $667,142 for 1948, in addition to car operation costs charged to accounts ac-counts other than travel. Utah owned 54 passenger cars in 1942. The number increased to 82 in 1946, and 146 in 1948. These figures do not include Highway Patrol cars. Since 1942, it is noted, there has been a marked trend toward furnishing fur-nishing state-own-ed cars for the individual use of most commissioners commis-sioners and department heads. Regulations, Re-gulations, records, and reports pertaining to travel by state-own- 1 ed cars are lax and incomplete, but are better for in-state travel by private car, according to the Utah Foundation analysis. The Utah Board of Examiners, which must approve all out-of-state travel, authorized 448 trips to 94 different cities in 35 states and Canada in the fiscal year 1948. Most of the trips were to attend conventions, the number and variety var-iety of which have multinliWl ra- pidly in recent years. Legislative attempts to apply travel restrict ions .by limitations included in the Appropriations Act were ruled invalid in-valid because of prior general statutes, which in the Attorney General's opinion must be expressly express-ly repealed or modified if the change is to be effective. The Utah Foundation travel study suggests that the most effective ef-fective Legislative device for limiting lim-iting travel would be limiting the amount of departmental appropriations approp-riations which can be used for this purpose. Present law permitting transfers from other budget items removes effective Legislative control. con-trol. The Finance Commission, although al-though empowered to issue travel regulations, cannot under the present pre-sent law effectively limit the extent ex-tent of official state travel which iias the approval of the respective respect-ive departmental administrators. The Finance Commission can and does check travel claims for excessive ex-cessive or improper charges, but encounters vigorous departmental resistance if the attempt is made to over-rule departmental discretion discre-tion as to what trips are necessary if appropriations have not ibeen exceeded. |