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Show r 1 t TO05 0 0 P ASSOCIATION UTAH PRESS (2) Uintah Basin New trial for Pinder? Nearly five years after Tuesday the murder of John Finders two ranch hands, a new witness testifies that November 26, 2002 Roosevelt, Utah Pinder. who was convicted ofthe crime, may not have Vol. been responsible for the murders. 88, Number 48 www.ubstandard.com Seepage 10 WILL FLAT FEE VARY BY LOCATION? More than a job full-ti- UBTA calling plan me Put down that glass of milk and think about how it got to your table I For a Pleasant Valley family dairy farming is an around under scruntiny "requiring 26 hours a day, eight days a week. By Susan Collier the dock operation The Division of Public Utilities is Seepage 13 in the process of analyzing actual e costs of providing calling within the toll-fr- basin-wid- UBTA-UBE- Telecommunications call home Forthe last 30 years the phone company to allow Extended Area Service calling from one telephone prefix to another for a flat fee of $4.95 a month came under attack by at least 3,000 Vernal residents who signed petitions stating they offered has educational opportunities in Verna I from various places but never had brick and mortar to call its own. Well, that's change. about to wouldnt use the service and shouldn't be charged for it. At the same time, petitions in support of the plan were circulated in Duchesne County where the proposal was en- Seepage 14 dorsed. The data recently submitted to the Division of Public Utilities will Eagles flood Green River team Tai Marett leads determine whether Tieker Duncan, Spencer Wheeler and McKenzie Lewis carefully hold their Tom Turkeys as they get ready to sing about Thanksgiving. If you need a bit of advice on how to cook your Thanksgiving turkey, you can read on page 11. the recipes offered by the young students at C.11.0.1.C.E Duchesne with 17 points in season opener win over the Pirates. Eagles play Union on Dec. 4. 16. Seepage Pre-scho- ol DIVERSION AND PIPELINE BID AWARDED Beginning phase of Sandwash expansion to start early 2003 Lei lee E. Whiting Work is expected to start earhr next year on phase one of a $50 million project that will double the size of Sandwash Reservoir. The federally approved 203 project will expand the 12,000 foot reservoir to 24,000 feet, and develop new irrigation, culinary and industrial water supplies. Last week the Central Utah Water Conservancy District Board accepted a $5.6 million bid submitted THE SANTA CLAUS WARS? Charity groups clash over holiday giving Many organizations and individuals make efforts to bring a good Christmas to less fortunate children throughout the Basin. Some of the organizations include Toys for Tots, the Christinas Spirit Connection, Sub 4 Santa, Shop with a Cop, Chuck your Change, Operation Christmas Child, and NEUs Santa Commu- nity Christmas. In addition church congregations, schools and small communities sponsor families in need. Most organizations wish each other well, knowing it takes a lot of effort and dedication to make sure all the youngsters in I We are trying to JohansensMount SEE SANDWASH on page 3 SIGN-U- P call- consumer watchdog agency. The division expected the cost analysis information much sooner, UBTA-UBE- T spokesperson Glenda Stewart, it wasn't sent in until last week due to a recalculation effort and other unforeseen delays. "Now they will review the numbers and make a recommendation to thePublicServiceCommission. Then they will say yes or no, explained Stewart "We definitely want to get some resolution. Ingo Henningsen, manager of the telecommunications section of the Division of Public Utilities, said the data will first need to be evaluated to see if it is satisfactory. If it is acceptable, his department will work with UBTA-UBE- T on different proposals and cost plans. Whenever an EAS agreement is implemented it is imperative that it pay for itself. the flat rate is different than the original proposal that called for all customers to pay the Varying same monthly fee. pending on the costs. Varying the flat rate is different than the original UBTA-UBEproposal that called for all customers within the two counties to pay the same flat monthly fee, regardless of their telephone prefix. For example: if exchange AhaslOO subscribers and their total long distance costs to exchange B averages $100 per month, then in order for the company not to lose or gain revenue each subscriber would have to pay a one dollar a month flat rate for Extended Area Service. Ifthere are only 10 subscribers in exchange B and they also spend $100 a month calling exchange A, their flat rate would be ten dollars a month. The Public Utilities Commission will determine if there is a significant difference between costs in the different exchanges and make their proposal accordingly. Each exchange affected by the agreement could have a different flat rate.- 's Using Henningsen generic example it is possible that some customers, maybe those in VemaL would T SEE CALLING PLAN on page 3 DEADLINE APPROACHING Feds kick in to aid farmers & ranchers who are drying up By Phil Pleasant-base- d company has built water-relate- d projects throughout the state and was awarded the bid on culinary water project now nearing completion in the Hanna area. The diversion structure which is similar to a small dam will divert from theLake rivers flowsyear-roun- d Fork into an adjoining pipeline. "The diversion structure is designed for a little more complicated winter-tim- e operation to deal with e change. In fact, according to Henningsen, in most cases around the state the flat rate does vary de-- Johnson Farmers and ranchers in . Duchesne County have suffered serious economic losses due to three consecutive years of drought. Financial help has been authorized by Congress in the 2002 Farm Bill Assistance is available through the Farm Service Agency (FSA) of the Department of Agriculture. Sterling Rees, county executive director for FSA, says there is no minimum on the number of cattle or crop acreage people own to qualify for help. "But, folks must come into our office and sign up to receive assistance. For example, the Crop Diaas-r i s "Me have paid about $ 875,000 to more than 570 livestock owners so far this year. ter Assistance Program for 2003 requires sign-u- p by Dec. 2 of this year. Earlier this year. Gov. Michael Levitt and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman declared Utah a drought disaster area. This designation set the wheels in motion for the programs administered by FSA. According to Rees, there are three programs that focus on drought relief. Final payments are currently be- SEE FARMERS AID on page 3 as dub president a is one of the many Riders service projects the sponsor and they work hand-in-hawith the Uintah Basin Association of Governments, the Tri County Food Pantry, and Davis Jubilee in VeraaL Since they are a motorcycle dub many of their charitable works revolve around biking. In order to kick drive they hold a ofTthe Toys-4-Topoker run in late summer while the weather is still nice. The members put money into a pot and then draw cards as they drive their bikes on a designated route. The member who has the winning s. poker hand splits the pot with Each participant also contributes a toy to the organization which pays far his or her dinner that evening. According to Fagnan, members start soliciting donations shortly after the run. Many of the members work long hours, some in oil fields in Colorado, and don't have a lot of extra time so it is essential to start early instead of waiting until the last minute. The group divides the community into sections and usually assigns two members per section. The members typically go together except in Roosevelt where there are not as Toys-4-Tot- create a clearing J house so people don't apply to : different organizations the area have a great Christmas. But that isn't always the case. In August Lesley Harmston, director of the Christmas Spirit Connection, wrote a letter to the editor of the Uintah Basin Standard with conRiders who cerns about the collect Toys for Tots. My concerns about the Riders and about their program were only about accountability and fairness, she replied in rebuttal to many other letters the Standard published Riders and supporting the describing the many charitable contributions the Inkers make to the community. Later, Harmston said that she doesnt have a specific problem with the Riders, but would like to make sure that efforts are not duplicated so more families in need could be helped. We are trying to createa clearing house ao people dont apply to different organizations," she explained. gh COPY applications ask the applicants if they have requested assis- tance from any other organizations. Harmstons initial letter that set off the barrage of responses comRiders made plained that the their solicitations in September, well before the Christinas Spirit Connections volunteers hit the pavement Our desire to show courtesy and consideration to the businesses and organizations we depend on for donations appears to have been upstaged by the aggressive solicitations of th Riders, die wrote. The Riders is a motorcycle dub whose stated purpose is to promote a better image of bikers to the general public, according to Vernal resident Mike Fagnan who serves Toys-4-To-ts ice conditions and flow," zier. The diversion indudes a 400 foot sIum channel to bypass rocks and sand during high flow. It also includes ladders to accommodate fish by George W. Johansen for construction ofa diversion structure and pipeline that will funnel water from the Lake Fork River into Sandwash Reservoir. Engineers' estimates on the project came in at $6.1 million. A total of nine companies vied for the chance to build the concrete diversion structure and piping that will travel down the river into the reservoir. The highest bid came in at $10. 1 million. The bid contract must still be approved by the Department at Interior, the process is expected to take about 60 days. Once the green light is given construction can begin, said Randy Crazier, general manager for the Duchesne County Water Conser-vunc-y District. Basin-wid- ing will be accepted or rejected by the but according to By By Susan Collier service terri- tory in Duchesne and Uintah counties. The division received the information they need to begin their cost study last week. Last spring, a proposal by the tele- A place to UBATC ee T The company shouldnt make money, but the EAS should pay for itself." explained Henningsen. He noted that this rate could vary depending on a customer's telephone exchange (like 722, 789, 646, etc.) and costs associated with that ex- ts Toys-4-Tot- MANY HANDS MAKE LIGHT LABOR The playground at Duchesne Elementary has been pretty empty since outdated and potentially unsafe equipment had to be removed due to government regulations. Last Saturday community members and repre sentatives from local businesses assembled at the school to install nc.w playground equipment (See story on page 11) k |