| Show w Spending for Liquor for Liquor and Education THE FilE other day during senate debate on an ans s i- i educational tax measure Senator Arthur O. O Ellett of Utah county declared spend x m re for booze than they do for tor education That's a challenging statement statement- If IL true it certainly would indicate that we are not placing placing ing enough emphasis on education in this state Fortunately it isn't true and we think Senator Elletts Ellett's statement calls for an answer According to figures of the Utah Taxpayers' Taxpayers association Utah for all public education last year spent That does not include expenditures for tor private schools which in all aU fairness should be Included Inasmuch as It represents represents rep rep- represents resents expenditures for educational purposes by Utah people But well we'll Just stick to the figure for lor public schools colleges and universities For liquor last year according to the state liquor control commission spent a total of That's quite a way from 1 1 I being as much as the they spent for tor education education- less than a third But maybe Senator Ellett meant to Include Utah spending for tor beer It would require a pretty powerful imagination to class Utah 32 beer as booze but hut well we'll even Include it to give the senator all the benefit of the doubt Last year the tax commission says purchased purchased purchased pur pur- chased gallons of beer They say they figure th the retail value at 10 cents per 14 ounces which comes to a little over 90 cents a gallon That sounds about bout right but even figuring the th value at a dollar a jallon allon again giving the senator the benefit of the doubt the total ex cx- expenditure I for tor beer last year was only Added to the liquor expenditure it makes a grand total of about or Just a little littlemore littlemore littlemore more than halt half the expenditure for education Maybe were we're ere not spending enough for jor education education edu edu- cation in Utah We wont won't argue about that But at least we are not such a swilling booze state that we spend more for lor intoxicating beverages beverages beverages bev bev- than we do for tor education as Senator Senator- Ellett would have and the rest of oZ the world believe For the sake of our reputation as a decent reasonably sober and education- education promoting state we think that accusation should be branded the untruth that it Is i. |
