OCR Text |
Show Emerv County l AiI I 1 1?:: HW ooOIfrSES--- rn lH-fJ- yo A Report shows local taxable sales are down Taxable sales in Emery County declined 7.5 percent, compared to Utahs statewide growth of 7.2 percent during the first quarter of 1991, according to a State Tax Commission report. The report, First Quarter of 1991 Gross Taxable Retail Sales and Purchases in the State of Utah, shows that although Utahs 7.2 percent growth is still lower than the expansion of spending in the state during the same quarter last year, the 1991 growth rate reverses the downward growth trend in the last half of 1990. first-quart- er Utahs statewide sales Tis now the very, witching time of night, when churchyards yawn..." Shakespeare wasnt referring to Halloween when he wrote his famous lines, but his words certainly strike at the heart of the spooky night which comes each Oct. 31. Halloween is now second only to Christmas in retail sales, but that information .doesnt mean a Jojt to, kids who iu?t like to get dressed up and have fun. Above, under a full October moon, two witches, a black widow spider and a Ninja await the ghostly night. The four spooks are really Girl Scouts who joined their friends at a costume party in Orangeville last week. Photo and special effects by Larry Davis . growth greatly outpaced U.S. final sales growth, which rose only 2.1 percent, but the report cautions Utahs apparent escape from the national recession may not continue indefinitely. Sales declines were widespread in Emery County, declining 59.6, 30.2 and 29.1 percent, respectively, in the categories of mining, construction and finance, insurance and real estate. However, Emery County experienced a 98.2 percent increase in the manufacturing category. The report, prepared quarterly by the Tax Commissions Economic and Statistical Unit, outlines results in three major sectors: retail trade, business equipment investment and taxable services. Statewide business equipment investment: Although Utah grew at least 4 percentage points bet- ter than the United States in each of the three major sectors (mentioned above), the difference in investment is especially remarkable," the report says. A large part of the national decline was due to the sharp drop-of- f in residential investment, which fell by more than 19 percent nationinvestally. ment itself still fell by 3.7 percent, however." Non-resident- ial In Utah, business investment grew by more than 12 percent, compared with the national 8.5 percent decline. Sales in the electric and gas category grew a robust 32 percent, induced in part by a cold winter. Excluding electric and gas, overall investment growth was less than 5 percent." Statewide taxable services: (Continued on Page 9) I ?v s Concerns aired over minerall lease funds By LARRY W. DAVIS Progress editor PRICE Wes Curtis, Orangeville, told the Economic Development Interim Committee in a meeting in Price Oct. 24, that more flexibility Mr. Curtis remarks were made as part of a series of hearings held by the legislative committee throughout rural Utah. The meetings have been held to solicit input regarding rural economic needs to be built into the use of mineral lease funds and that the Community Impact Board should include a member from one of the counties which generates federal mineral lease funds. development issues. Mr. Curtis offered input as a board member of the Emery County Farmers Union Telephone Association and as chairman of the Utah Small Cities Infrastructure Subcommittee. Mr. Speaker tells ECH students to consider future By LARRY W. DAVIS Progress editor A 1968 of graduate Emery County High School returned to the school last Friday during Red Ribbon Week to talk to the students about the importance of making the right decisions so that the world will be a better place to live in the future. Clyde Nelson, who works in the Department of Substance Abuse in the Ogden area, told the students to enjoy the sweet time you have in high school but be conscientious." He compared the school life during his years at Emery High with school life facing students in the 1990s. In the 60s, he said, teachers worried about long hair, talking in class, chewing gum and running in the halls. Now, drugs are an everyday concern as are such things as crime and teen pregnancy, he said. The times have changes," he said. Twenty-fou- r years ago we didnt have a Red Ribbon Week. Drugs were pretty much taboo. Today, of the people in high school are trying alcohol and drugs. In 1968 there were no CASTLE DALE ds He pointed to southeastern Utahs high unemployment rate over the past eight years and noted that it is part of the boombust cycle of energy-impacted areas. To offset such high unemployment, he said such areas need mineral lease funds. He said that such funds seem to be available during boom periods, but not in bust periods. He suggested that such funds could be used in rural economic development and to enhance rural Utahs economic success stories come about with little help from the (Continued on Page 5AJ Mr. Curtis also told the committee that his experience has shown that most rural Phone service is discussed by group self-estee- m By LARRY W. DAVIS Progress editor As Huntington PRICE residents prepare to give input on their US West telephone service before the Publ- ic Service Commission in a Nov. 8 meeting in Huntington, officials in other rural areas are beginning to express their frustrations about US West telephone service as well. Scott Bigler, executive director of the Duchesne teenagers to understand consequences of their actions, he Clyde Nelson, formerly of Emery County and now working in an Ogden-are- a drug program, speaks to students at Emery High School about drugs during Red Ribbon Week. said. plex through scare tactics and prevention measures. Mr. Nelson suggested that neither method has worked. Today, saying no isnt enough. If we babies being born drug dont turn the drug problem addicts. In 1991, one in every around, your children may 16 babies born is a drug have an even more serious addict. problem. two-thir- state. infrastructure. While he added that rural areas need to plan better for best use of grant and loan funds, the state needs to be al jobs. He asked the students to consider what the drug problem will be like 25 years from now. Today we teach little kids to say no to drugs. Saying no is something they already know. He suggested that in addition to that, kids need to establish and learn how to deal with peer pressure. Peer pressure comes from inside you," he said. Not from peers. He suggested that what kids think others expect them to do is the most dangerous kind of peer pressure. Mr. Nelson, who has a masters degree in human resource management, told the students that drug problems can happen to anyone but that teens suffer from an immortality complex which creates in them a different sense of the passage of time. Its hard for In the past, adults have dealt with the drug problem and the immortality com- Curtis is also president of the Emery County School Board. He said that in his many years of involvement in rural economic development, he has learned that it takes a great deal of time and patience to find some economic development success. However, he said that Emery County is seeing some of its efforts come to fruition as a communications company, Satellite Image Systems, prepares to locate in Emery County. The company could offer as many as 200 loc- He asked the students to think about what they want the world to be like for their children and to make a per- sonal commitment to do more than just say no to drugs and to wear red ribbons. He noted that todays youth needs to be entertained. However, he told the students to finds ways to get high naturally and to get high in ways that last forever through academics, reading, the arts and school activities. You are the people responsible for where were going, he said in conclusion. County Chamber of Commerce, told members of the Economic Development Interim Committee in an Oct. 24, meeting in Price, that a lack of fiberoptic technology in parts of the county are hurting economic growth. In testimony before the committee, Bigler said that economic development in Duchesne industries I County has involved a great deal of recruitment and that the area has a labor surplus to fit the needs of most companies and interested in Howevexpansion'or start-up- . he said that the countys er, weakness right now is a lack of fiberoptics in the Roosevelt and Duchesne areas. He cited one company which recently expressed an interest in moving into the Duchesne County area but needed fiberoptics as part of its development plans. Bigler said that economic development officials have not gone to the Public Service Commission to request that US West add the technology. One member of the legislative committee suggested that the Legislature look into the US West capital expenditure budget to see if the rural improvement projects can be given higher priorities for improvements. In addition to the problems with a lack of fiberoptics, Bigler told the committee that the county needs a Small Business Development Center to serve the Uintah Basin. (Continued on Page SA) |