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Show Friday. October 25. Davis County Clipper Area property taxes are low Melinda Williams Staff Writer nation, with an average tax bill for homeowners of $1,072 and in Richfield, property owners paid an average of $512, making it 41st in the taxes, with a ranking of 36th in the nation in the urban area. 42nd in suburban area (as measured in Bountiful) n and 33rd in areas. And industrial property was ranked 36th in nation. the nation. And Utah's property taxes are lower than the average of the 46th in the nation, because they Bountiful was ranked 43rd in the Few taxes cause as much ire as the good old property lax. But according to a leading research organization, Utah has relatively low property taxes, by almost any comparative measurement, including here in Davis County. Michael Christensen, executive director of the Utah Foundation, said in releasing the tax comparison report, "Whether it is homes or apartments, commercial or industrial property in n urban, suburban or areas, Utah property taxes are low when compared to other slates across the country. The foundations report is based on a major study of property taxes conducted by the Minnesota Taxpayers Association using 1995 data. It looked at four classes of property homesteads (primary residential), apartments, commercial and industrial in three regions of the state. In making the study. Salt Lake City was used to gauge property taxes for urban areas. Bountiful was used to gauge suburban areas and Richfield was used to gauge areas. Salt Lake City was ranked 42nd in the nation, with a tax rate of 0.879, or an average of $615 annually. non-urba- n ty non-urba- Apartment property taxes ranked receive the primary residential exemp- Mountain Stales. By contrast, Christensen said, sales Utahs two other major taxes and income taxes are relatively high. Utahs sales tax ranks 22nd. with five states imposing no sales tax at all. And most stales with a higher sales tax rale exempt food from the tax. Christensen said Utah's personal income tax ranks higher than the states sales tax. Utahs top income tax rate is the I4lh highest in the nation. Seven states do not impose the tion. While the Utah Foundation released the figures, they warned comparisons to other states should not be made without a good understanding of each state's economic and demoSome stales with graphic make-uhigher property taxes have no sales or income tax. Other slates have low or no personal taxes because of unique revenue sources, such as Nevada's gambling taxes or Wyoming's severance tax. Equally important, according to the foundation is the demand side of the equation. Utah, for example, has the highest percent of its population of school-ag- e residents in the nation, demands on governheavier placing tax. While property tax on homesteads are lower than elsewhere, the same cannot be said for recreational property. Seasonal recreational property in Utah had the highest property taxes of all properties studied, ranking 26th in the nation, with taxes at 88 percent of the national average. The reason for this relatively high ranking is that recreational property docs not receive the 45 percent primary residential exemption, Christensen said. According to the foundation, Utah ranks favorably in commercial proper ment. The Utah Foundation is a private, non-prof- it public service agency established to study and encourage the study of state and local government in Utah, and the relation of taxes and public expenditures to the state's economy. Graduate bemoans agenda C'herie Huber Conirihunin ; Writer FARMINGTON Candy Smith (not her real name) spent ten months in Life-Lin- e beginning in the summer ol 1994. She was admitted to the program a week before her 15th birthday. Candy who is now 17 yeais old says that at this point in her lite she feels she can never forgive her patents for what she calls (he loss of almost a year of her life. On the oilier hand she does e did help her. no feel that matter how much she hated being Lite-Lin- there. was involved with a gang and I had a really bad boyfriend who is now in prison. My mom wanted to get me away fiom him and to stop my diug use. I ran away which was when my mother finally went in and talked to them," she said. 1 By this time Candy had already been ihiough a dextox program and had spent time in the McKay Dee Behavioial Center. Neither of these programs seemed to her to make much difference in her life in the long run. e did make an impression Life-Lin- BUND continued from front 1 he loo, she said. During cerium sessions everyone tells their stoiy. It's surpiisnig how many girls get into alcohol or drugs because they were sexually abused. It's like a reaction they have to being so hurt. A lot of the kids are there because lliey have been hurt emotionally." Candy said that she did like the fact that the kids were at least seated into staying sober. If you do something wrong it sets you hack a phase. You stay sober so you don't have to stay in there any longer than necessary ." Hie program starts the kids oil at ground zero where girls can't even wear makeup ot do their hair. Makeup. Candy says, is a privilege that doesn't come back until phase three. By phase five, the kids are back in school. They have earned more days oil and can go on dates. Theie is a final 30 day tnal and then they graduate. By the end of the piogram the students can have fiiends again hut the friends have to he too and they have to answer a lot ol questions. "The whole thing was scaiy A lot of eontiol wais go on. The stall can get you in big trouble if you don't do things just right." Candy said as soon as she was free ot the program she went right back to doing drugs and using alcohol, for a drug-teste- d Nobody hates the blind, confirmed Norman, but blind people are discriminated against every day of the week. Flow then is discrimination occurring? It is not from bad feelings toward the blind, but because the sighted act on the basis of what they think truth is. Most discrimination comes from those who think they are doing good. Sighted people have the belief that if one is blind there is little they can do. Norman explained that this belief is sometimes fostered by a small experiment that most people have tried. People close their eyes or cover them with a scarf and try to simulate blindness. As they walk thorough the house they bump their shin on a coffee table, they spill mashed potatoes in their lap or run smack into something, They I were blind I would be think, and able to do nothing. helpless Then, when they actually see a Oh my blind person, they think, gosh, I know what it would be like for a blind person. It is a frightening experience. There is a national poll conducted each year that asks people what they fear most. One year, six or eight years ago the response was AIDS. Every other year, over cancer and AIDS, the response has been blindness. That shows that most sighted people view blindness as such a tragedy that some people say they would rather be dead than blind. Blindness is not the tragedy that most people think it is, explained Norman. The truth is, blindness can be reduced to the level of a nui- - if HAZING continued from front other criminal activity; causing indecent exposure or gross or lewd behavior involving nudity, subjecting an individual to cruel or unusual psychological conditions, or compelling an individual to participate in any illegal, perverse, or publicly indecent activity or those contrary to an individuals moral or religious beliefs or contrary to the rules of the school district. I I e SAFETY DAY SIGNING: Governer Leavitt signed an official White Cane Safety Day document last week. Shown here behind the governer are key players to the document. From left to right are: Luwana Martin, Maggie Gardner, Gibson. Photo by Cathy Linford Norm Gardner, Ray Martin, Robert Olsen, Kristin Jocums, Ron Gardner, and sance. Blind people are regular people. They want only to do normal things, like have an education, get married, and get a job and be tax paying citizens. They have been trying for decades and decades to be able to do these things. Although blind people think it would be nifty to drive a car, see a sunset, or look around the room and identify a friend, these things are nuisances, not tragedies. The biggest problem we face is not blindness itself but the publics and our own attitudes about blindness and what it means in our lives." said Norman. Unfortunately, if an employer is interviewing a sighted person and a blind person who have equal qualifications, he may close his eyes and think, I could never do this job without being able to see, and the job opportunity is lost to a qualified person based on a misconception. Patti Jacobsen, who at the time was one of the Federations student leaders, responded to a job want ad placed in a Colorado paper. The position was for telephone ticket sales. As soon as she met the employer and he realized she was Board members praised the policy. Board Member Cheryl Phipps said she attended meetings with PTA members from the Jordan and Granite school districts who requested copies be sent to their district offices. Copies of the policy will be distributed through the PTSA and may be put on the district's INTERACT computer service. s blind hg said job. As Patti that she could have materials she could not do the attempted to explain use her ow n reader or brailled, he became defensive. The interview ended with his statement, Believe me. I've been down and out too." Patti was not "down and out" she is blind.. .and capable of doing the job. If given the opportunity and training, the average blind citizen can do the job of the average sighted citizen. All sighted people do not aspire to be attorneys or teachers, and neither do all blind people. n of jobs There is a throughout the community being done by the sighted that could also cross-sectio- be done by the blind. Norman Gardner, a professor, Ronald Gardner, an Attorney at Law, and another brother who is blind and an attorney at law, can affirm that it is not blindness that should keep individuals from attaining their goals, neither in employment nor in their private lives. When the White Cane Law was first enacted, the law referred to a short white cane, used mostly to identify that a person was blind. Today the cane has grown to become a symbol of freedom and a useful instrument for mobility. There is knack to using the white cane, stated Ron, When the white cane strikes the ground in front of the left foot, the individual is taking a step with the right foot. With this action, the blind individ- - ual knows that it is c!e;tr to take the next step because the cane has already checked out the space. Through the Federation and White Cane Laws, blind people have come a long way, but much needs lo be done. Even in this enlightened age. discrimination of the blind still exists. Blind people today are fighting issues like whether or not blind parents should be able to keep and raise their own children. Courts have actually sustained the removal of children from their blind patents for no other reason than the blindness. Seventy percent of blind people are unemployed in this country. Sighted people get worried if the unemployment rate in the country reaches seven percent. The majority not because they lack ability unwillingness to do the job but because people are afraid to hire them. The Utah Federation of the Blind exists to promote the economic and social welfare of the blind. White Cane Salety laws are passed to give ol blind people are unemployed legal protection to the blind. Governor Mike Leavitt signed a proclamation naming October 15 as White Cane Safety Day. Now it is time for the sighted and the blind to work together to remove all barriers. both. physical and psychological. to create a community of capable Individuals living will) freedom, hope and boundless possibilities. ij MUQ off SWEATS IN STOCK WITH YOUR PRINTER FOR: I 298-540- 0 AVEDA THt AIT AND SCtfNCi Of HUE FLOWEW AND PIAMT ESSENCES Life-Lin- the wrong kids and became a behavioral problem, then began slipping out of the house at night and later even look the family car and headed out of state with some other teens. After that episode Johnson and his wife checked the child into a short term, program at a hospital which the insurance paid lor. Alter 20 days the doctois sent the teen home, saying there was no longer a need for the teen to he there. That night their child once again took the family car. The family put the teen back in the hospital but the teen soon had sev eral of the staff conv inced that it was the parents who were the problem. "Children in this condition are extremely manipulative." Johnson said. W hen the doctors agreed the short-terprogram wasn't working and there was a need tor long term treatment. Johnson started looking around for a place that would take his child, lie found that although there are a few state supported places, no beds were available. One place had only two beds allocated and there were already 45 people on the w ailing list for each hed. 30-da- y e hen Johnson talked to he was impressed with the program because the central core is honesty and peer involvement. W L.ile-Lin- The child refused to go to a long term program so the family had e come to the hospital to Life-Lin- get the teen who willingly has been in the Lite-Lin- e center for four months now. There are five phases in the program. Johnson's child is still in the first phase of the program. "That is longer than usual. The first phase is usually only 60-7- 0 days. Our teen is not totally honest and not totally committed to the program." Johnson says. However, he feels very hopeful that his child will recover. He said he sees that some of the kids who entered the program about the same time his child did are already in the fourth phase because they accept the fact that they don't have control of their lives and want to change. "1 think there are still some issues they need lo face up to and some of those issue take time," Johnson said. He likes the program very much because patents have good involvement with the program. Parents get together Monday and Thursday evening every week where they are taught to deal with their child, how to help them work through the issues, rebuild their selfesteem and how to reestablish a positive relationship. Parents also take a weekend to get together and do what the child does in the program so they can get a feel of what the child is going through and to also look at their own issues and ask themselves if see LIFELINE pg. A4 2:30-- 6 p.m. 880 GALORE! it it We Beatifully Beat our competitor's prices on ALL major professional product lines and supplies! FREE size shampoo with any cut & style. "we guarantee all our full services" S. 500 West cat and dog vaccinations just $8 each. t and packages available at additional savings. Make appointments for your pets to be spayed or neutered at reduced costs. SpayNeuter! It stops the killing. Problem Pets? Behaviorists will be on hand with training tips and advice on how to prevent common pet mistakes. Fun handoutsactivities for children friends! Refreshments for you and your animals. Maybe adopt one (or two!) for your Visit our it it Well-Do- Well-Ca- four-foote- d ready-to-lov- at THEATER SUPPLIES! And Much, Much, More! e family! No appointment necessary for shots. First come, first served. FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO MAKE SPAYNEUTER APPOINTMENTS, CALL 299 - 8508 wasatch Locations throughout humane Utah and Idaho 295-300- 4 e in the program for four months now. He says he feels very impressed with the program and the ptogtess he sees in so many of the kids who are committed to recovery in the program. Johnson says his teen's problems started like so many others do. The child started to run around with teen-ag- All Jenny Peni Licensed skin care professional specials-in- g in total body wellness, facials, massage therapy, waxing and makeovers. - Matt Johnson BOI NIIFUL (not his real name) has had his Life-Fin- Service Salon! JACKETS, CAPS, MUGS, is proud to introduce Cherie Huber Contributing W riter at the Bountiful Small Animal Hospital MAGNETIC BUSINESS CARDS, PENS, PENCILS, WATER BOTTLES.DECALS, MOUSE PADS, GOLF BALLS, ETC. program Saturday, Oct. 26, HALLOWEEN SHIRTS & Parent praises Ift BEAUTY PRODUCTS 30 I A3 page it Full C.oti 1 played got out within a week, l ater when went back as an it was much better for me because there you could tell the truth and you knew they couldn't make you stay." she said. "Life-Lindid have a big influence. But they take you out of the world and then they drop you right hack in. Its like school. They can tell you a lot of tilings but you are the one who really has to decide if you want to use the information. Basically it is all up to you, even if they do take the credit. But they did teach me to think for myself." While Candy still smokes, she no longer uses alcohol or any ol the other illegal drugs. "It was my choice to change. All ol a sudden it gist got old and decided I didn't want lo live like that." Why does such an attractive child get into such trouble so early in lite ? Candy blames it on circumstances. 'T in the middle child in my family. My sister is pertect and my brother is the baby. I'm not anyone. My parents always thought I was such an independent child, hut what I really wanted was some attention. Finally I loinid some Iriends who gave me the attention always wanted. Then, when my family finally decided to pay some attention to me because I was messing up my life, it was too late and I rebelled twice as hard." Does Candy have any advice lor other patents in similar circumstances? Honestly there isn't much parents can do. The child has to want to change." Did she feel had about the cost? e is an expensive treatment. Candy just shrugged at the money. "It's not my money down the dtain. That's how the other kids there felt loo. Mv patents used money they had saved tor mv college to keep me there." How does Candy view her future? "I feel very stable now and I don't feel that I will ever have to go back. hated it there. I never met anyone who liked it there hut you couldn't say anything had about the place when you were there or you'd get into trouble." The woist thing afterwards is when patents threaten to throw you hack in. when you don't do things their way. Candy said. "It's like threatening to throw you in a garbage can. It's hard to change your life when your parents aren't willing to change the way they act too." their games and them. ds. when was there. There is a lot of anger in vou. You feel it you're stuck in there, then those other kids should while at least. "I went hack a year ago. Norman Gardner) explained that with this momentous law, blind people were able to join society. Unfortunately, the law gave legal protection to the blind, but had little impact on unfounded prejudices toward the blind. The work of the Federation was not finished. It was time to educate, both the blind on how to reach their potential, and the sighted on how not to deter cSafon on her. The kids that ate in Lite-Lin- e get to talk to the parents who are lookI ing for a place for then kids. talked to a lot ot parents, may he ten oi twelve, 996 teens Lifeline for troubled Comparatively speaking, 7 proceeds will go to Wasatch Humanes Second Chance Animal Rescue Fund and Spay Neuter Assistance Fund for qualified, low tncome and senior pet guardians S29I4&425 .j. i .y. . it it it V- - it it it it it it t t V-- |