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Show UINTAH BASIN STANDARD. October 8. 2002" Page 3 DRIVERS ED Continued from page 1 education programs. Options range from moving driven education to after school continuing education classes that arent subsidized by the state, implementing higher fees throughout the state so that students who take theclass are payingthe real cost Cor the service, or eliminating the program from schools entirely and placing it in the lap of private drivers training businesses. Opponents note that each plan has serious drawbacks. Moving the course to after school hours would eliminate students who work, play high school sports or have other after school obligations. In the Uintah Basin, where there are no driving schools, students would have to shuttle back and forth to the Wasatch Front to attend class. And then, fees charged by theres the cost private drivera examiners are estimated to raise to approximately $250 to $400. who by virIn addition, teens tue of their age and inexperience are the worst drivers on the road would actually receive less classroom instruction time because private driving schools oiler 18 hours of course work, while drivers education classes miniin the schools have a mum under current state law. In fact, with the new block schedule at Union High, students are actually receiving 80 hours of drivers educa- statistics in the APPLE Initiative. Another short end of the stick that the federal government hands out to states comes in its royalty sharing policies: less than half of the royalty revenues collected from federal lands is given back to the corresponding states. And the royalties that are passed along to the states come with strings attached because federal laws dictate how the payments may be spent. The estimated loss in royalty revenues is $53 million Tot the state of Utah, annually. Federal ownership of land also adversely affects the amount of revenues generated from school trust lands, which were given to states from the federal government when they were granted statehood as a trust for public education. Because much of the trust lands are surrounded by federal lands, it is difficult for states to administer and make their trust lands productive. The APPLE Initiative publication is an effort to educate the public on the impacts of federal land ownership on the public education system. It does not address the benefits of having federal lands within the state and county, such as having access to forests and wilderness experiences like hiking, camping, hunting, and fishing. For more information, con- Thinlung Out Loud UBMC EXPERIENCES POSITIVE GROWTH Registered Nurses Debbie Ybane. (left), and Jennie Brotherson (right), and clerk Kathy Davis man the nurses station at UBMC. Yhanez position remained unfilled for six months until she started working a week ago. The hospital added a total e of 40 employee positions last year. full-tim- Annual report is nothing but good news for UBMC tact the APPLE initiative at By Susan Collier www.le.Btate.ut.us. 30-ho- tion instruction, noted Cheryl Wingfield, drivers education course instructor at Union High. The bottom line is that drivers education is the most important life skill taught in high school and every student needs easy access to it, and the best way to do that is in public schools. Yet, at the same time the " program should be she stated. In addition to time spent in the classroom, students are required to log six hours of driving time and six hours of observation time with a certified instructor. They are also able to take their driver's license exam at school and if they pass, proceed to the Division of Motor Vehicles to get their picture taken for their license. At Union High students enrolled in the course pay a $60 fee, while students at Uintah High pay $ 160 for the class. Students who cannot pay the fee may have it waived, however. HR 110 Continued from page 1 fives in place, the state receives around 3 percent that the state re- ceives. Snow said the academic study doesnt appear to be very practical to some of the rest of us who have been around the oil industry for years. Thats why we are addressing it now, to hopefoUy get these people to realize that by industry testimony and maybe soften their viewpoint. Local government leaders and oil industry representatives met with task force members last month to urge them to keep HB 110 in force. Duchesne County Commissioner Larry Ross and representatives of the local oil industry appeared before the task force to offer testimony regarding the effectiveness of HB 1 10, and urged lawmakers to to continue to provide the incentives as they originally are and to stay the course. The Utah Royalty Owners AssoAccording to Duchesne County ciation also supports the present sevSchool District Business Clerk Dee Miles, statistics show the majority of erance tax formula, said Ross, noting students throughout the district are that the proposed change in the severance tax structure would mean paying their drivers ed fee. higher deductions from their share This past year drivers education oil only cost the school district about of royalty income. The folks here in the Basin, both $2,500 extra. A few years ago the state increased the rate they paid per legislators and county commission student and we also increased the fee are encouraging the Tax Commiswe charge so its almost paying for sion to continue to stay where we are itself now, said Miles. Rural school and continue to offer tax incentives, districts, such as Duchesne, are also said Ross. There are only small oil able to run a less expensive drivers companies doing business here now. education program because' thy We need to help them tooraitinhew ' dont use simulators or driving extract and take all they can under the reservoirs and encourage them ranges. to take out all the oil and gas that's At Union High, drivers education which are classes, taught duringthe possible while they are there. If they day, average about 30 students. This shut in the wells, the possibility they will ever be is nil. year, there are 375 students enrolled According to Snow, the verdict is in drivers education classes at the district's four high schools. Last year still out on whether anything will be done to change the severance tax there were 428, said Miles. rate structure. The task force will meet again later this month to continue discussions. . FUNDING Continued from page tion. Less ftinding for public education in the West results in higher pupil per teacher ratioa. Of the 12 states with the largeetni. lpil ratios, ten are western stateu. Aud over the next ten years, even though enrollment is declining in rural Utah counties, enrollment is projected to be much higher in western statesthan inother states. According to Miles, Duchesne County schools student to teacher ratio is 18.9 to one in the elementary and middle schools and 18.7 to one in the junior and senior high schools. The average student to teacher ratio in the 37 eastern states is 14.8 to one. The larger classroom sizes in Duchesne County, and Utah in general, is directly related to larger family sizes consistent with dominant Mormon cultures. The average number of students per taxpayer is higher here, Miles said. But that only partially explains the differences in the funding inequities because not all of the public education dollars come from state tax bases. Federal dollars are the force that can make or break a state education budget And statistics collected by the APPLE Initiative and published by the Council of State Government- - WEST seem to show that the more land the federal government owns in a state, the bigger the financial blow that is dealt to that states educational programs. Federal land ownership has a mqjor negative impact on states' and counties ability to fond public education in four ways: revenue from enabling acta, property taxes, natural resources royalty, and school trust srelylir which eral land holdings within their t aries. Because states cannot assess property taxes on federal lands, the federal government partially reimburses states for their loss of revenues by paying PILT (payment in lieu of taxes) each year. But the amount of the 2001 PILT payments to western states was mly about four percent of the annual property tax revenues lost by those same states. Utah loses $214 million annually because of untaxed federal lands, according to foil-tim- foil-tim- MARKET REPORT Continued from page 1 story in this issue.) People who are professionals are able to buy higher-en-d properties and most are not first- - time buyers so they come prepared to rent or build what they want to build, so they are a big factor in the building trades right now. If you are looking to rent, the odds arent in your favor, said Ostler, because right now the areas rental availability is about zero. We have very few homes that are put on the market to be rented. Our rents are so low that it wont allow an investor to buy a house and justify it as a rental, he aaid. Subscribe Now! 435-722-51- 31 1 II "PG-13- 7:30-9:2- 722-51- 3! er ing with a parent, he said. Right now students at Union High pay $60 for driver's education. If it were eliminated from schools, the price could climb to as high as $400 for private instruction. (See related story on front page.) HOUSING CONSTRUCTION Recently released reports show home area are looking up. If you're buying property or sales in the looking fora home, the Uintah Basin still offers the best prices in the state. ty NIEUSENlSITANNIVERSARYaSAL'E ...Continues Sleep Center MIELSEN'S Featuring Our New Mattress Line TEST REST A AND Simmons mm A Nordale 3EZ $500 Queen Size Pillowtop Mattress Set A ammone fjnautyrcAt Twiworw " Andrian Ultra pusf Pillowtop twin, reg. $1299 full, reg. $1379 queen, reg. $1399 king, reg. $1699 5 IJIATAHJH miFATBKM Red Dragon v Qimmons Swimfan Sweet Home Alabama Uintah Basin Standard WHAT'S IT WORTH?-Hamakjust turned 16 and recently passed his drivers license test. Now he nedds to complete 30 hours of driv- One Show Sunday 7:30 (BUD (Bn. IE Advertise Now in the TV! a inmicibty ht It must have been quieter in those days. One ran only imagine the dothe mestics sounds of grunt ingandgroaningof women leaning over wash boards or hoeing the garden and perhaps a bit of feminine cussingift hey touched their forearms to the searing walla of wood stoves. It wasn't until my husband witnessed the pusli the button and look stupid act I repeat each momingthat he knpw what a silly creature of habit he married. There was nothing to do butreplaeethchrokrn thingas quickly as possible. So far, so guod. No wires down, no wires crossed and eveiything in working order - life restored to the proper orderoflhings. As for me ... well. I'm sitting right down with the Mechain checkbook right now and muking a payment to the electricul company this very minute - to keep that electricity surging through the lines, because electricity to me is just about as important as blixMi pumping through these old veins! ri-c- al The BASIN'S 1 try, the western states allocate 32.6 percent of their budget to education while the eastern states allocate 32.7 percent of their budgets to educa- The Uintah Basin Medical Center continues to stand out among rural hospitals, particularly those that are county-owneThe hospitals 2001-200- 2 annual report and financial statement show increased use and positive balance sheets. UBMC Administrator Brad LeBaron recently presented the good news to Duchesne County Commissioners. The report showed positive growth e in all areas. Seven new physicians brought the total number of doctors on staff to 24. The hospital e also added 40 employee positions. Vicki Holzman waa hired to oversee marketing, advertising, and community awareness. There wasa 16 percent growth rate in days. Growth in days of care waa 19 percent, and occupancy rates grew from 44 percent to 53 percent. There was a 26 percent growth in surgeries performed and 10 percent growth in outpatient visits. Records showed a net gain of $1,865,000 with a 6 percent operating margin. Approximately 50 percent of the fonds were generated by Medicare and Medicaid. After reviewing all the facts and figures Commissioner Guy Thayne asked LeBaron if he felt that Basin residents would be able to sustain the hospital. LeBaron said the population in the area was adequate to support the facility. The hospital has a 60 day cash reserve on hand, said LeBaron. The hospital's board of trustees recommends a 120 to 180 day cash reserve which would be $12 million, . A $4 million office building and front entrance were added to the facility last year. Human resources and physical therapy were relocated, and the nursery was renovated. Capital improvements included a sleep lab, a dual head nuclear medicine camera, a new anesthesia machine, a fiber optic scope, and a cardiac ultrasound. The annual audit report is prepared by Certified Public Accountants Hansen, Barnett & Maxwell, and Seeley, Aycock and Associates. I pushed it again! the little voice in my mind exclaimed. It waa true my finger remained poised over the garage door button attached to the wall. Shaking my head I reached for the handle and pulled the heavy white door up. How pathetic is that?" I said out loud and sat behind the car's steering wheel. I had pushed it systematically for over a month now, with the same result - a bewildered shake of tlie head, lilt the door, back out the car, dose the door, drive oifto work. Then, at the end of tlie day reach up for my visor, tip it down, push the button on tlie opener and wait for the door to open. Pathetic! Completely pathetic. It's the same thing that goes on when the lights go olfinside the house. Hummm ... the power's off. Well, I cant vacuum. Oh ... look at those clothes stacked up there, butter throw a load in the wnslier. And believe itor not I am surprised when I pull the knob and nothing happens. So, the day goes on. I try to make a grilled cheese sandwich, iron a dress, and finally ... I uni so write an tired from frustration, and the house seems so dark - Ill flip on tlie TV to sec whats on ... I know - unbclievuhle isn't it? And it goes on and on. Like Pavlov's dogs my fingers are conditioned, conditioned to fii p switches to make my life easier. What did people do before electricity? I heard that in the early 1950's folks around the Basin had an elect line strung to their houses and generally one single naked bulb hanging from a room in their house. Unbelievable! 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