Show UTAH legislative ROUNDUP late hours weighty matters mark sessions weeks by sam taylor taking advant advantage ag of a gen eral monday holiday the utah house of Re represents presenta lives started this week by working until 7 rpm p rn two im issues were brought to a vote and both approved general income tax with holding for utah residents and increased school aid from 4 per classroom unit to 5 thus began a week which has seen major ampro items discussed with notion action taken on some of them school financing pushed by the democratic majority in the house the increase in state guarantee to school districts from to passed easily the only opposition came from rep republican ab members of the house who argued that ways and means of financing the increase would be found before a figure set on thursday the bill was reported out of the senate sifting bitting committee with no recommendation action was expected as the week came to a close the governors original budget message called for only a slight increase in the state guarantee school officials had asked for a jump of 1000 per classroom unit advanced to third reading in the lie senate thursday was a bill to provide some for emergency pennan permanent aid to school districts the bill has a dual purpose to meet some 0 0 million tills this biennium blenn lum in emergency old aid and then make a contina cont inu ing fund for construction construct io p to needy districts over the next two years to quality qualify for the emer 1 gency aid under the bill a district would have to bo be bonded to the limit have to have levied a 10 enill tax for five years have full plans for building needs drawn up and levy six alx mills to determine whether or not hot they would qualify for aid under the continuing program the six mills Is to determine how much could be bd raised by this method of a per classroom unit building figure it if the levy did riot not raise the per unit the alie state stale would mako make up the difference school districts claiming greatest need for emer emergency genty help were granite davis at al pine murray and kane as also under consideration this week were tlona for utah state support ed colleges appropriations committee commit ces were due to pass recommendation along to the legislative bodies late lp in the week Tax taxation allon bar an overwhelming majority the house this week pawed passed land and sent on to the senate a bill to require the withholding of tte state income tax from all utah workers the bill evne one of governor claydea recommendations it Is estimated to 9 bring the state some each two years over and above the he regular gregula tax payments the proposed increase in mine occupation tax on oil and gas properties from I 1 to 2 per cent passed the senate monday the successful vote came after an amendment to raise the tax to 4 per cent was defeated by voice vote the senate thursday hurs day vp ap proved the extension of the state sales tax to hotels mo aels and other types of tour lodgings and to laundry and dry cleaning services this new tax is estimated to bring the state 2 7 million in new revenue the off highway gas tax refund for farmers originally passed by the senate was approved by the house and sent to the governor governor changes mind after hearing figures re commended by the joint appropriations committee governor clyde monday sent a revised budget message to the legislature the new re commendation showed an in crease from 10 million to 12 million for state building the governor again voiced his opposition to bonding for state buildings and called for holding the line on spending the governor also posed a plan whereby the state aid to school figure could be raised to per classroom unit through an increased school property tax levy |