February 01, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - Alarmingly, “A new study says 82 percent of Utah cities and 95 percent of counties report their transportation funding is insufficient, causing half of their roads to deteriorate into their current poor or fair condition. The Utah Foundation also said that fixing such poor roads is three to five times more expensive than regular maintenance of good roads, akin to how regular brushing of teeth can prevent a high cost root canal.” Now, delete the … Continued
February 01, 2015(The Spectrum) - City and county-owned roads make up more than three-quarters of Utah’s transportation network, but a new survey of transportation managers in local government indicates there isn’t enough money to keep up with the demand. Ongoing maintenance and demand for new infrastructure are outpacing available funding, according to 82 percent of city and 95 percent of county respondents in the survey, conducted by the Utah Foundation.
January 29, 2015(KNRS TalkRadio) - Well it’s kind of undeniably true that Utah has some pretty terrible roads. Maybe not the worst in existence, but when you can tell that you’ve crossed the border to another state simply because the roads are suddenly smoother, then you know you’ve got a bit of an issue. But the question remains, we’ve been paying a whopping 24.5 cents per gallon for over a decade on state gas taxes, and yet our roads are … Continued
January 28, 2015(UtahPolicy.com) - Most Utah cities and counties say they aren’t getting enough funding to properly maintain their roads. A new study from the Utah Foundation finds 82% of Utah cities and 92% of Utah counties say their transportation funding isn’t sufficient to meet their current needs. Despite the recent focus on expanding and maintaining the freeways, that’s just a quarter of the roadways in the state. The other 3/4ths are under local jurisdictions. The foundation study revealed … Continued
January 29, 2015(Deseret News) - City and county officials convened Wednesday to discuss the findings of a new study that shows a drastic need for more local road funding across Utah. The Utah Foundation study released Wednesday, authored by research analyst Mallory Bateman, found that 82 percent of city respondents and 95 percent of county respondents consider their current transportation funding is lacking.
January 28, 2015(Standard Examiner) - Funding for city and county road maintenance and upgrades falls woefully short of needs, according to a new study released Wednesday by the Utah Foundation. The independent Salt Lake City-based research organization surveyed engineers, managers and elected officials, and 82 percent of city and 95 percent of county respondents indicated they believe that current transportation funding is insufficient, according to the 20-page “The Roads Less Traveled: Survey Analysis and Research Regarding Utah’s Local Roads.”
January 28, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - A new study says that 82 percent of Utah cities and 95 percent of counties report their transportation funding is insufficient, causing half of their roads to deteriorate into their current poor or fair condition. The Utah Foundation study released Wednesday also said that fixing such poor roads is three to five times more expensive than regular maintenance of good roads, akin to how regular brushing of teeth can prevent a high-cost root canal.
January 26, 2015(Deseret News) - A 2013 Utah Foundation study found that had there been a 9-cents-per-gallon increase in the gas tax in 2010 that was indexed to inflation, an additional $6.8 billion would be collected over 30 years. Adding a 4.7 percent sales tax to gas purchases over the same time period would raise at least $10 billion. Utah Foundation President Steve Kroes said changing the per-gallon tax to a sales tax is risky because of the unpredictability of … Continued
January 25, 2015(Daily Utah Chronicle) - After a 12-and-a-half-year career as a radio journalist with KUER, a charter radio station for NPR, Dan Bammes, who has also taught as an associate instructor in the U’s Department of Communication, has decided to join the Utah Foundation. The Utah Foundation is a public policy-researching group. Bammes is not a stranger to the Utah Foundation, which he said led to his excitement to get involved.
January 23, 2015(Deseret News) - The numbers reveal a sobering trend. Last year, 86 percent of high school graduates said they intended to graduate from college, but only 40 percent of them who didn’t leave for a church mission or military service enrolled, according to a recent Utah Foundation report. And currently, only 47 percent of college students end up graduating within 6 years.
January 23, 2015(Deseret News) - It’s important to remember that Utah’s tax burden is the lowest it has been in 20 years, according to a study by the respected Utah Foundation. If we have the most students, percentagewise, in the nation, and we’re spending the least amount per student in the nation, a falling tax burden is not a sign of good health. It probably means we’re failing our young people.
January 16, 2015(Salt Lake Tribune) - But it is not time to simply raise taxes on everybody. Instead, Utah leaders must continue to be inventive. They have to balance the state’s success in being a low-tax state for business against the inevitable demand those same businesses have for effective services and well educated workers. The just-released report from the Utah Foundation makes that clear in its conclusion: “With the lowest tax burden in the past 20 years, state and local governments … Continued
January 16, 2015(UtahPolicy.com) - A new Utah Foundation study of tax burdens in Utah released Thursday shows that the current 22.5-cent per gallon tax equates to $3.75 on every $1,000 of personal income earned. That ranks Utah’s gasoline tax burden 15th in the nation. While some may say that is too high, it’s about the same as fuels tax burdens among the geographically large states in the West.
January 15, 2015(Utah Business) - Utah’s tax burden is the lowest in 20 years, according to a report released Wednesday by the Utah Foundation. According to the study, Utah’s tax burden is at $111.60 per $1,000 of personal income, the lowest level since the early 1990s. The low level is more significant when compared with the last such study, done in 2007, which showed Utah’s tax burden being at its highest level in 20 years, with $125 per $1,000.
January 15, 2015(KNRS TalkRadio) - A new report says Utah’s tax burden is the lowest in 20 years, due to pre-recession tax cuts. The Utah Foundation says our burden — for taxes and fees, by state and local governments — was 111 dollars per thousand dollars of personal income in 2012.
January 14, 2015(Standard-Examiner) - Utah Foundation has released “Easing the Burden: Utah Taxes Taking Lowest Share of Income in 20 Years.” The report by Utah Foundation Research Analyst Christopher Collard examines two decades of Utah’s state and local taxes, as well as the impact of recent events such as the 2007 tax cuts and the 2008 recession.
January 15, 2015(Daily Herald (AP)) - A new report says Utah’s tax burden is the lowest in 20 years due to pre-recession tax cuts. The Utah Foundation says Utah’s burden for taxes and fees by state and local governments was $111.60 per $1,000 of personal income in 2012.
January 14, 2015(UtahPulse.com) - The burdens of taxes and fees levied by state and local governments on Utah families and individuals are dropping, a new Utah Foundation study shows.
January 15, 2015(Deseret News) - At a time when state lawmakers are considering several initiatives to raise taxes, Utah’s tax burden is at a 20-year low due to pre-recession tax cuts, according to a Utah Foundation report released Wednesday.
January 14, 2015(The Salt Lake Tribune) - Utah’s tax burden is at its lowest point in 20 years. But poor and middle-class Utahns pay nearly twice as much of their earnings for tax as do the wealthiest 1 percent.
January 10, 2015(The Deseret News) - The Utah Air Quality Board has proposed the toughest regulation in the United States on wood burning, banning it altogether for nearly half the year in the state’s most polluted areas for fine particulates. Hearings on the rule start next week.
January 09, 2015(The Deseret News) - By just about any measure, 2014 was a good year for Utah’s economy, according to the Utah Economic Council’s 2015 report. And 2015 portends to be even better, barring any major disruption to global and national economies.
January 03, 2015(The Deseret News) - A group of impoverished single mothers at a People Helping People gathering three years ago sat in a circle, introducing themselves and sharing their loose plans for the future.
December 23, 2014(The Herald Journal) - Less than half of students who enroll in Utah’s colleges and universities finish bachelor’s degrees within six years, but that’s not simply because a significant portion of the state’s young people go on Mormon missions.
