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Show SE Utah Fores Well in Fight for State Appropriations By C. Sharp Southeastern V t a h did reasonably well in obtaining favorable recommendations for appropriations from subcommittees sub-committees of the Joint Legislative Leg-islative Appropriations Committee Com-mittee this week. Sen. Omar Bunnell. D- Price, reported that the Social So-cial Services Subcommittee of which ho is a member, recommended $t30,l'lU for establishing es-tablishing a mental health program in Carbon, Grand, l'.'mery and San Juan Counties. Coun-ties. The appropriation, when coupled with federal and local lo-cal funds, will result in the establishment of a mental health care unit in Moab in space to be leased in Allen .Memorial Hospital's OH section sec-tion from Grand County. Son. Ralph A. Preevo, K-Vernal, K-Vernal, reported that the Ulii'jier Education Subcommittee Subcom-mittee recommended the $;t thousand as proposed by Gov. Calvin L. Kampton for the Continuing Education ('enter at Moab and the full $l-i:!.(K'l recommended by thi' governor for the Roosevelt Roose-velt Continuing Education Center. Hampton's recommendation of $3lj,lKH) for operating the College of Eastern Utah a' I 'rice also was approved by the .s-ubcoinuuttoo. "Because of the stringency of funds at this session, I feel tli; 1 1 we did very well (totting these recommendations," recommenda-tions," I'reece said. Bunnell said that because the mental health center iroosal for the four counties coun-ties Is brand new that it was not easy to prevent trimming trim-ming Hampton's recommendation recommen-dation of $U1,(M)0 for this center to a lower figure. The proposi d program will begin next July 1 provided subcommittee recommendations recom-mendations win approval of the 30 -member Appropriations Appropria-tions Scoring C'omnutti'o and the full Legislature. A regional mental health d rector would be appointed to utilie existing hospital, personnel and other facilities facilit-ies in tho four counties. Inpatient In-patient treatment centers would be established in the Price, Moab and Monticello hospitals. Rep. Kenneth Silliman, R-Green R-Green River, and P recce reported re-ported the recommendations of the Development Services Subcommittee of which they are members: Travel Council, $087,2X), for an increase above Gov. Ramp'.on's recommendation of $k59.1C0. Industrial Promotion, $121,-000 $121,-000 for a sizeable increase above Hampton's propose! $397,000. Both these items are planning plan-ning to bring in more tourist tour-ist and industrial dollars to bolster payrolls and pocket-books pocket-books of Utahns. Silliman met Jan. 26 with Hampton to try to work out some means of insuring continued con-tinued medical services for Emery County. Only one physician, Dr. H. T. Barton, Green River, now serves the county, Silliman Silli-man said. He said the load of non-paying patients is creating cre-ating real financial problems prob-lems there. The city already is paying $100 a month towards to-wards upkeep of the combined com-bined hospital and doctor's office provided by the community, com-munity, Silliman said. Hampton promised to confer con-fer with Ward C. Holbrook, executive director. Social Services Department, to try to find a solution. Preece participated Jan. 26 in Senate debate concerning concern-ing bonding law proposals which Rampton has labeled a must for the session. "I am strongly opposed in theory to a proposed constitutional con-stitutional amendment to provide that non property owners could vote in bond elections for bonds which would have to be repaid re-paid from tax revenues." Preece said. He pointed out that the V. S. Supreme Court ruling that non-property owners be allowed to vote on bond issues is-sues to be repaid from revenue rev-enue only has led bond attorneys at-torneys and bond companies compan-ies to anticipate that the U. S. court will next rule that non-property owners can vote on general obligation obli-gation bonds. "This situation puts real pressure on our state and it looks like I will have to vote in favor of the amendment because we must be able to sell our bonds," Preecs said. The Vernal senator said he will be voting this week against some measures, not because he opposes them, but because he thinks the Legislature should give the items more time for study. ' lie said that when tho budget session proposal was presented to the people .all publicity emphasized that it would be only a budget session. ses-sion. Regular annual ses-sons ses-sons were defeated by the people, he pointed out. "If we open the budget session to a regular session and consider all the non-budget non-budget hills submitted, we have broken with tho voters of this state," he declared. "Regardless of any committee com-mittee reports, it is still the responsbility of the Legislature Legisla-ture to write the law," he continued. "Unless we take time to hold hearings, listen lis-ten to all sides and debate the issues sufficiently we are not lving up to that responsibility. respon-sibility. A 20-day calendar simply does not provide the necessary time for non-budget items." |