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Show Garfield County's Budget At $2,229,339 This Year Budgeted general expenditures in Garfield County for 1987 totaled $2,297,339, or $599 per capita. This compares with budgeted expenditures ex-penditures of $2,854,492, or $705 per capital during 1986. These were some of the facts revealed in an analysis of county budgets prepared by Utah Foundation, the private, tax research organization. Among the major budgeted items for 1987 are $566,559 for general government, $162,881 for law enforcement, en-forcement, $44,700 for fire protection, protec-tion, $101,274 for corrections, $99,503 for protective inspection and services, ser-vices, $79,950 for public health and welfare, $1,030,122 for streets and public improvements, $70,325 for , parks, recreation, and public property, and $32,025 for conservation con-servation and economic development. develop-ment. The Foundation report shows mat the projected revenue to finance these expenditures in Garfield County this year will come mainly from the property tax $377,000, the local sales tax $80,000, other taxes $116,000, licenses and permits $8,800, federal funds $240,000, state funds $562,864, service charges $328,150, fines and forfeitures $118,500, contributions con-tributions and transfers $400,525, and other revenue $65,500. Last year, the property tax rate for county purposes in Garfield County was 0.2370-percent. Property tax rates in Utah for county operations last year ranged from a high of 0.4881-percent in Wasatch County to a low of 0.1212-percent 0.1212-percent in Box Elder County. The property tax has become the budget balancing item in many counties of the state. The county tax rate for the state as a whole averaged 0.3416-percent 0.3416-percent last year. Budget totals were down slightly in many of Utah counties this year. The major reason for this decline, according to the Foundation, is that the federal revenue sharing program was abolished last year and, therefore, not included in this year's budget totals. This program had been providing Utah counties with about $16.5 million in new revenue each year. Altogether, Utah's 29 counties will collect an estimated $295.6 million in taxes and other revenues and will spend about $292.1 million from their general fund budgets during 1987. In some cases, these amounts could be changed as budgets are reopened ' later in the year to deal with special problems and other unforeseen ; spending needs that develop. County operating budgets will j range from a high of $143.2 million in Salt Lake County to a low of $0.6 million in Piute County. Salt Lake County, the largest county in the state, accounts for about 49-percent ! of the total money budgeted by the 29 counties. Approximately 42-percent 42-percent of Utah's population reside j in Salt Lake County. Per capita budgeted expenditures range from $1,178 in Daggett County to $71 in Davis County and $73 in Utah County. Foundation analysts account for the wide variance in per capita spending to the fact that certain basic county services must be provided in all counties in the j state. Per capita costs of such i general services, therefore, will tend to higher in counties with small populations and lower in counties with large populations. |