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Show Federal welfare spending relatively less in Utah ! The relative impact of Federal Fed-eral spending for social welfare wel-fare in Utah is considerably less than it is for the nation as a whole. This conclusion was voiced in a recent research study prepared by Utah foundation, the private re search organization. According to the analysis, Federal expenditures made for public assistance and other income supplements in Utah last year averaged $45.58 per capita, an amount 47 below the U.S. average of $85.41 per person. In the case of the food stamp program, the per capita outlays in Utah were more than 60 below the national average. The study attributes Utah's lower than average reliance on the Federal social welfare programs to the following: fol-lowing: 1. While Utah's per capita income is somewhat below average, it has relatively few families in the poverty class. Most families in Utah are in the middle-income range, and Utah has fewer of the income extremes found in many of the other states. 2. Religious and social traditions tradi-tions in the state cause many individuals to shun public assistance. 3. Many individuals and families fam-ilies in need receive assistance from the welfare program operated by the L.D.S. Church rather than from gov-erment-sponsored public assistance as-sistance programs. A substantial number of social programs instituted by the Federal Government during dur-ing the past few years have been geared to increased spending in large metropolitan metropoli-tan cities. Thus, Utah and other rural states are receiving receiv-ing a smaller proportion of Federal participation under many of the new social programs. pro-grams. The Foundation study points out that Federal spending spend-ing in Utah is enlarged somewhat some-what by the extensive Federal Feder-al defense installations located loca-ted within the state. If defense de-fense spending is excluded from the totals, per capita Federal outlays in Utah for all other purposes would be 14 below the U.S. average. In addition' to defense, Federal Fed-eral spending in Utah is well above the national average in the general areas of transportation transpor-tation and natural resources. The study points out, however, how-ever, that more than 70 of the land area in the state is either owned or controlled by the Federal Government. Thus, the above-average Federal Fed-eral expenditures in Utah for those purposes are primarily a reflection of the large Federal Feder-al land holdings in the state. Foundation analysts observe ob-serve that a substantial part of Federal spending in Utah for natural resources and transportation is for capital facilities (highways, airports, water development projects, recreation and wildlife development, devel-opment, etc.). Some of these programs, such as water pro jects, may be wholly or largely large-ly self-liquidating. Other outlays out-lays for capital projects often represent long-term Federal investments which will benefit bene-fit citizens throughout the nation rather than residents of Utah exclusively. Finally, the study observes that the propriety of government govern-ment spending depends on what the spending is for, compared with what the private pri-vate spending it replaces would be for. If government uses its tax-raised money to develop facilities or provide services that could not otherwise other-wise be provided with private capital, benefits could accrue to the whole community. The study emphasizes, however. that government tures even on such D(Tli . items often can becnm U -e. All govern I ing, therefore, should, . jectedtothesamel flf fit analysis that ufr most Private concert termming the ecoDomic , ibility of a new expenditure. " , |