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Show THE SENTINEL Thursday, February 12, 1981 Page ' 2 Opinions Schoolers, and any 0fO Walter Lippmann Board member Utah State Board of Education Dear Rod: I had a nice chat with a representative of the state school office last week. We discussed the program the state office has proposed to the legislature. Even though I agree with most of the proposal, I take exception to the thinking behind several budget items. The motives of thtse who prepared the budget request are sincere, but unrealistic. When government agencies prepare budgets, they should look at what must be done first and then go after those things that would be a nice supplement. It appears that the "nice to haves" are ahead of the "need to haves" in the money requests. To ask for a 27 percent increase in the education budget at a time when money is tight and the legislature is thinking very con- - Dr. Daryl J. McCarty r WiiLJ 10 IWm ON Mr Rodney L.Dahl borders on the servatively, ridiculous. Someone up there should get out into the real world and find out what real people are thinking. Some of the most important areas may suffer because of out of line requests in other areas. The need for improvement in the weighted pupil unit could suffer because of the emphasis placed on programs that could easily belong to the state's social service departments. tells Often the legislature education that they must handle certain programs and then never gives enough money to them. Or, the programs are simply a burden. But does anyone ever say, "Hey, take it back?" I do hope the legislature treatte your department fairly, but remember Santa Claus went into hiding in December. Sincerely, Jim Landers Editor Executive Secretary Utah Education Association by Barry McWilliar PR0CSSfi fOOft HIGMV toAs titum&iez seem sfw your o Yours life of Editor: The newspapers in the area have been reporting in the last few weeks that Riverton is considering turning the fire department over to the county. The county would the volunteer fire supervise and our taxes would be fighters raised by 4.5 to 6 mils. I would like to propose that our money could be much better spent if Riverton City would keep control of the Fire Department and hire 6 (six) each" professional fire fighters - medical technicians (this would give 2 man coverage at the fire house 24 hours a day, 7 days a week). The volunteers would still be used, but when an emergency call came in, the response would be instantaneous, instead of a delay of 3 to 15 minutes waiting for the volunteers to reach the fire the truck. The house to pick-uprofessional fire fighters would be at the emergency scene while the volunteers were arriving. How much are we willing to pay for the to $50,000 damage to our homes? Three (3) minutes can and will make the difference even in the City of Riverton. Only those who have had a fire or a life and death emergency will understand what .the extra three (3) minutes means. You may ask, where would we get these professional men. There are at least 6 (six) professional fire fighters living within the Riverton City limits who have over 10 years of professional fire fighting and also fire fighting supervision experience. Riverton City citizens could sleep better if we were protected by professionals, backed by volunteers. Why pay the county to supervise our volunteers when for the same cost we could have our own professionals? Additional levels of supervision can only add unnecessary costs and higher taxes. s Paul R. Petersen Riverton a loved one or to prevent $10,000 Correlation exists between police budgets and crime States with highest spending for police protection, judicial and correctional systems and other criminal justice purposes are usually those with highest incidence of major crime, according to Utah Foundation, a research agenprivate, cy. "This does not suggest that expenditure for criminal justice purposes is not a deterrent to crime, but rather that people are reluctant to increase spending for this purpose until forced to do so," the foundation points out in a research brief released this week. Of the 15 states highest in criminal justice spending, 13 are among the 15 states with highest rates of total major crime, of violent crime, or of both. At the other end of the scale of criminal a similar spending, justice relationship with the incidence of major crime appears to exist: states with low crime rates spend relatively less for criminal justice purposes. Some significant variation occurs in the area of violent crime, where a number of southern and states have southwestern of incidence violent relatively high crime compared to their rank in spending for criminal justice purposes. Utah's per capita spending for criminal justice in 1978 was 11 percent below the national average, while Utah's incidence of major crime was 3 percent below the average for the nation. The rate of violent crime in Utah was 45 percent below the national average, but the state's rate of crimes against property was 2 percent per-capi- WrTHOtir MOVING INSWOftf1r U tl .ft non-prof- it above the national figure. The foundation's comparisons were based on published reports of the U.S. Department of Justice and Bureau of the Census for 1977-197- 8. Total outlays for criminal justice in Utah in 1978 were $109.2 million, averaging $86.13 per Criminal justice expencapita. diture of state and local governments in Utah represented 9.4 percent of all general expenditures for the same year. Across the nation, average state expenditure for criminal justice purposes was 9.5 percent of general expenditures, or $97.12 per capita. Rates of major crime per 100,000 population in Utah (national figures in parentheses) were: total major crime, 4,979 (U.S. average, 5,109); violent crime, 272 (U.S., 487); property crime, 4,707 (U.S., 4,622). By geographical the Pacific region was highest in the rate of major crime, and the Mountain States stood second among the nine geographical regions listed in the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports. Very high crime rates in Nevada, Arizona, and Colorado appear to account for the relatively high incidence in the Mountain region. Within the region, Utah stood fourth among the eight Mountain states in incidence of crimes against property, but fifth in the rate of total crime, and sixth in the rate of violent crime. Montana and Idaho had the lowest crime rates among the Mountain states in all three categories. y spAcepouf II iZL MA V W I V 1H SlteSf J i rrm:r"x a-- i i mw srutr e"iv ctiikryi ; 5 is? flora v y i&j M i ivmmct- - Does a future Beethoven or Einstein live in your home? , Writing in Today's Education, Harold C. Lyon, Jr., tells us about five percent of our school-ag- e population are "gifted" students. These, he writes, are children with "an unusual endowment of talent analytical or creative in intellectual, artistic or social way or even in some ways that neither schools nor society yet understands. Gifted though they are, things do not always go well for these kids. Lyon says that it's a myth that these gifted and talented young people will do fine on their own that they don't need special help. "Just as children of mental ability have trouble keeping up with their classmates, so children of ability have trouble behind with their staying classmates," said Lyons. He adds that these students, if prevented from moving ahead by the rigidity of normal school procedures and assigned to classes with others by the same age but not necessarily of the same ability, gifted children take one of these directions. They drift into a state of lethargy and apathy; they conceal their ability because they're anxious not to embarrass others or to draw their ridicule; or they become discipline problems. Things are happneing for the gifted five percent, though. Back in 1969, American schools were adequately serving fewer than four percent of the nation's gifted and talented youngsters. A fairly recent survey of school districts indicates that schools are serving about 35 percent of the gifted population. Lyon writes that pairing students with individuals who are willing to share their expertise in a particular field can be highly impor-- . tant. He said many of the nation's most brilliant people said such mentors made the biggest difference in their development. Parents often help their children find such mentors. above-avera- Legislators Corner Answers building Sen. Arnold Christensen The Highway Patrol provides us with an interesting dilemna where i question (Each week, the West Jordan Building Department will answer some of their most frequently asked questions in this column. The information provided here comes directly from the city and applies only to West Jordan residents. Questions should go to the building department, and not the Sentinel offices. ) Q.: I want to close in my attached carport and make it into a garage. Any problems? A.: A one story carport entirely open on two or more sides need not have a fire separation between the carport and a dwelling. (UBC 1214) Non openable windows are permitted between a carport and dwelling. A door between a carport and dwelling shall be The Uniform Building Code does not prohibit a door from a carport opening into a room used for sleeping. 2. UBC Sec requires materials be approved for one hour fire resistence. Construction on the garage side of the wall. A self closing tight fitting wood door 1 38 inches thick. No other openings permitted. 3. UBC Sec 1104. Under no circumstances shall a private garage have any opening into a room used for sleeping purposes. 566-053- self-closin- budget cuts are concerned. Back in November of 1980, the Highway Patrol put in an order for 100 new patrol cars. The department knew at the time that budget cuts were inevitable. They had been ordered in September of 1980. The company that they ordered the cars from later told the Highway Patrol that due to certain emmission standards, the cars would not be ready for delivery until February or March of r, 1981. Around this same time the governor ordered a 7.2 percent budget cut in all departments. The Highway Patrol, realizing that they could not pay for the cars unless they layed off men, went to a Senate Interim Appropriations Committee on Transportation and asked if they should cut cars or men. The committee decided to cut cars. Meanwhile the company that was selling the cars contacted the Highway Patrol and said they needed to know by Jan. 30 if the Patrol would honor the contract. Again the Highway Patrol went to a legislative committee. This time is was the Public Transportation Appropriation Committee of which I am a member. The Highway Patrol presented their case and said they needed the new cars and since they had signed the contract they should honor it. The vote was taken in committee and all were in favor except myself. In response , Sheriff's Office CRIME CLOCK XL. i5 30.11 EVERY DAYS on Jl f EVERY 9,1,f s H0URS every'37wvs ROBBERY 1,15 EVERY DAYS or every 18.75 hours CRIME INDEX OFFENSE EVERY 19 My own problem with the matter did not concern cars or the need of cars. My point was that every agency should be treated fairly and equally. This means that when cuts are needed, all agencies should take their fair share of them. I would have preferred the Patrol to use older cars and to keep the strength of the force up. As of now, though, the matter is still undecided. Another problem facing the legislature this year is the current state law on No fault, or Liability Insurance. f MINUTES K. would that strengthen concerning requirements Liability Insurance. The problem is this. All people who own, drive, or operate a motor vehicle in the State of Utah are required to have No Fault or Liability Insurance. What some people do is obtain this insurance only as long as it takes them to get a license and registration on their cars and then they cancel their ag the the in- surance. The result is that many people in the state are driving around without Liability Insurance, and when they are the cause of PROPERTY CRIME an accident, they have no insuranEVERY W MIN' EVERY 50 MIN. ce to pay for the damage, and usually no money to sue them for either. This is a major problem. A MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT president of a major insurance EVERY 8.98 HOURS company flew to my home from Tennessee to discuss the problem with me this summer. I feel the bill The crime clock should be viewed with care. Being the most Sen. Cornaby has introduced will aggregate representation of Uniform Crime Report data, it is improve the situation a great deal. designed to convey the annual reported crime experience by People who have no insurance will not be driving and causing acshowing the relative frequency of occurence of the Index Offenses. This mode of display should not be taken to imply a cidents, and thus saving you regularity in the commission of the offenses, rather, it represents money. the annual ratio of crime to fixed time intervals. BURGLARY EVERY LARCENY-THEF- 1.85 HOURS T k Dial 255-355- 5 Is something banging you? Do you hove o comment to moke on o current Issue? The Sentinel wonts fo hear from you. Coll and tell us what you think about anything. Dial weekdays between the hours of 8 a.m. and 12 noon or I and 5 255-355- p.m. No need to give your name. homeowner's complaint on property tax is that he pays twice the tax without representation, without his consent, without any law that specifies that he is obligated to do so. He said that a home is a shelter which does not produce an income. Homeowners are already taxed on his income and yet he is taxed again on his home. "I am aware of the supreme court's decision, years ago, that any tangible property must pay taxes, but there was an assumption that home was an income producing property," he said. "One hundred and fifty years ago, more or less, that was true because this country was a farming country, but when we became an industrial country," he said, "the law is still the same." Therefore home property has gone from an asset and has become a liability, according to the caller. "Concluding, I notice that I've been taxed, without my consent, and that, I think, is a crime of extortion." A Jordan Valley Sentinel k Cenfcnutni the established m Nmoapen it MiM Sentinel, Inc. MiMt Sentiml. t ekl 1925. published Thundq 125 W. Ctnter StfMt. Midnli. tmj 84047. Postmastn: Sentinel. ' K Dm Send 121. addien changes to Utah 14047. newpapet Sentmtl b Utah 14047. The Jordan Walter Midnle. Subwription Rate yar in Stat of Utah Sonior Citlion Rot 3" yoar in Sjott Of Utah David C. Godfrey Jomet M. Lander Adv. Mgr. Di.vi t ;, Godfrey Editor Jamoi M. landert - I ge Sound The Legislature has appropriated no funds to cover their costs. This gives the Highway Patrol a problem; namely how to pay for the cars. They may have to lay off officers to be able to meet the bill. S. Cornaby has inbill in the legislature troduced a MURDER ) As the problem now stands, the cars are on their way to Utah. 100 Sen. 1980 (rt to the question Why?, I told them that if the Patrol would indeed receive the cars they would in fact have no cut at all in their budget. I didn't feel that I could justify to my cuts in their constituents, children's education, especially in the area of kindergarten, while the Highway Patrol were getting new cars. After I explained my position, the committee decided to think about the decision overnight. The next morning the Governor, upon hearing about the dilemna, ordered the Highway Patrol to go ahead, and, order, the 100 patrol 'car The Gofcertior said that there is enough surplus funds from last year to pay for the cars. Later on in the afternoon the Transporand . tation Committee reversed its decision with all in favor but one. . AGGRAVATED ASSAULT area, fJCXi)IKMCX1)UW COMBlNAfiON 503-d-- 4 ta r pmHfs.i'oetfeefOReM West Jordan City... p e7 Home "The theory of a free press is ffiaf fhe froth will emerge from free reporting and free discussion, not that it will be presented perfectly and instantly in one account. " MEMBER OF THE . |