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COUNTY
VOICE SUMMER2012
Utah Association of Counties
This Issue Private Land Use Development..3 Wildfires: How Bad are They?...4 Smith Recognized at NACo.......6 Work-Life Balance........................8
And much, much more!
Coming Soon
August 1-3 Clerk/Auditors Conference Kanab September 12 UAC Board Meeting Midway September 12-14 Fall USACCC Conference Midway
UAC Contacts 5397 S. Vine Street Murray, UT 84107 Ph. (801) 265-1331 Fax (801) 265-9485 www.UACnet.org
Brent Gardner, Executive Dir. Jill Brown, Accountant Chelsie Dalton UBHC Admin. Debbie Goodwin, Office Manager Alice Hancock, Admin. Asst. Doug Perry, Communications Dir. Adam Trupp, UBHC Director Arie Van De Graaff, Leg. Analyst Mark Ward, Senior Planning Coordinator & Policy Analyst
Utah Looking a Bit Parched Where’s the water? Hopefully it’s finally showing up now in July.
counties are down too, but not as much as they have benefitted from closer-to-average temperatures as well.
But why worry about it? We’ve had some good years recently and haven’t had to worry The importance of water is also measured about the “D” word (drought) in some time. in the depth of soil moisture. Statewide, Utah’s depth is about two inches, which is According to State water expert Randy categorized as phenomenally dry. Julander of the Natural Resources Conservation Service, our Spring Indeed, each area of the State is measuring precipitation wasn’t great, but not a serious well below 2011 figures. concern, coming Obviously this all impacts in at between 60 streams and reservoirs, and 80 percent which are also reporting statewide. lower levels. That’s sorta good news, but until July it wasn’t looking too good. Up to the end of June Southern Utah had only a little over .1 inches of rain. That’s simply not enough to do much good in the extra furnace-like temperatures we’ve also seen, according to Julander, who spoke to county commissioners at their Summer conference on June 29.
Along with the recent moisture, the silver lining is where we began. The last several years were good or great in terms of precipitation and that filled up Utah’s reservoirs really well. Early July rains notwithstanding, the forecast is for more higher-than-normal temperatures and dry (desert-like) conditions for Utah. Counties are urged to continue their water conservation efforts as 2012 has been a great reminder that we live in an arid climate and water doesn’t exactly grow on trees.
For example, he explained, Alfalfa needs .3 to .5 inches per day for maximum growth. So two months with very little or no rain can’t For more information about the Utah’s water do much to help local crops. situation, you can visit the Natural Resources Conservation Service, which offers many great The early-Summer-2012-where’s-the-water tools and reports to help keep county officials story has mostly been a been a problem for in the know at http://www.ut.nrcs.usda.gov just the lower half of the state. The northern
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County VOICE 2012-13 CALENDAR
Please mark your calendars for the following key UAC events in 2012-13. Should there be a change, we will notify you as soon as possible. August 1-3 Clerk/Auditors Summer Conference Kanab September 12 UAC Board Meeting Midway September 12-14 Fall USACCC Conference Midway September 22-26 Utah Sheriffs Association Annual Meeting St. George November 6 Election Day Nationwide November 14-16 UAC Annual Convention St. George January 28, 2013 Utah State Legislative Session Begins State Capitol February 8, 2013 County Legislature Day State Capitol March 3-7, 2013 NACo Legislative Conference Washington DC April 10-12, 2013 UAC Management Conference Provo
Summer 2012 Page 2
UAC’s Video Streaming Service is Available to County Affiliate Groups You’ve probably participated in a streaming web presentation in the recent past. Advances in technology make it easier to participate in meetings even when you’re not physically able to be there. The Utah Association of Counties has been using video broadcasts for years to ensure that county officials throughout the state can participate in various UAC meetings. UAC has the equipment at our office available to host video broadcasts and streaming web broadcasts, and has used that technology with increased frequency over the years. As a county official, you are welcome to reserve UAC’s training room for your video broadcasting needs. Simply contact UAC staff to begin the process at 801-265-1331.
MCAT Extends CAMA Contract to Jorgensen Multi County Appraisal Trust has extended a contract to Erik Jorgensen to assist and direct the State Wide CAMA System implementation for all Utah Counties. Erik is working out of Cedar City, but also offers on-site service for every county with implementation. The major roles involved in his service include: communication, groups, project and financial analysis, technical and solution consulting, implementing of software, vendor contracts, and county relations. MCAT is pleased with the results Erik has provided over the last several months. The CAMA system is a long-term project and we expect to have Erik’s services for a long period of time.
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Private Land Use and Development Issues Over the years, an increasing number of legislative bills dealing with private land use and development have been brought before the Utah State Legislature. UAC has supported some and worked to defeat a number of others.
legislation in the area of private land use and development. The meeting also provided an opportunity to begin to discuss a set of principles relating to development and services delivery in unincorporated areas of Utah counties.
However, this increase in the number of bills lead UAC staff to believe that it was necessary to convene experts on the issues involved to provide support and recommendations to the UAC legislative committee.
The discussion produced a number of ideas for legislation and UAC staff provided background on some legislation that is being considered during the Summer interim meetings and some legislation that is expected to be introduced during the next session. The meeting participants generally agreed that there are benefits to periodic meetings and that they wanted them to continue. They also agreed that there would be benefits to developing processes and tools for staying informed about problems, successes, and forthcoming legislation. They asked UAC staff to develop a plan to carry this out.
In April, UAC hosted a meeting of county planners and commissioners. The meeting brought together planners and policy makers from all 29 counties and was the first such gathering in years. The immediate purpose of the meeting was to begin to prepare for the 2013 Legislative Session by developing a structure for considering, proposing and responding to
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Over the next few months, UAC staff will be sharing information with the county planners and will ask that those individuals ensure that county legislative bodies are kept informed about what is being shared across the state. In the past, county planners have met together with municipal planners and shared information and developed policy recommendations. There was a recognition among the participants in the April meeting that there are good reasons to have a separate meeting process and that there are times when county positions must and should differ from those of municipalities. In recognition of this fact, the committee will continue to meet and will work to produce recommendations for the county policy makers. If you would like more information on this committee or if you have issues you would like the members to address, please contact Adam Trupp at UAC at 801-265-1331.
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How Bad are the Wildfires in 2012... So Far? Without question, 2012 will go down as one of the worst (if not the worst) years for collective wildfires in Utah’s history. Low snow-pack, very little spring precipitation, dry winds, and abnormally high temperatures have ignited the State. All totaled, more than 360,000 acres have burned in Utah so far this year, the largest being the Clay Creek Fire, which right now stands at just over 108,000 acres (and all but contained). But, in recent years, Utah has not been burdened with any of the country’s largest fires. Utah’s worst single fire was the Milford Flat Fire of 2007, burning 363,052 acres. But even it pales in comparison to many that have occured in Alaska and other Western states.
A List of the Worst Fires Since 1997 (according to the National Interagency Fire Center): Location Acres Burned 1. Taylor Complex (Alaska) 2004 1,305,592 2. E. Amarillo Complex (Texas) 2006 907,245 3. Murphy Complex (Idaho) 2007 652,016 4. Railbelt Complex (Alaska) 2009 631,194 5. Eagle Complex (Alaska) 2004 614,974 6. Inowak Fire (Alaska) 1997 610,000 7. Solstice Complex (Alaska) 2004 547,505 8. Wallow (Arizona) 2011 538,049 9. Boundary (Alaska) 2004 537,098 10. Minto Flats South (Alaska) 2009 517,078 11. Southern Nevada Complex 2005 508,751 12. Biscuit Fire (Oregon) 2002 499,570 13. Rodeo/Chediski (Arizona) 2002 468,638 14. Central Complex (Alaska) 2004 451,162 15. Crazy Mountain Complex (Alaska) 2009 447,150 16. Big Turnaround Complex (Georgia) 2007 388,017 17. Simels Fire (Alaska) 1997 366,000 18. Milford Flat Fire (Utah) 2007 363,052 19. Little Black One (Alaska) 2009 349,450 20. Rock House (Texas) 2011 314,444
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Millard’s Smith Receives High Honors from NACo officials in Washington, D.C., to create a much-needed utility corridor which protects the rights and interests of private agriculture property owners in the county.
The National Association of Counties (NACo) has recognized Daron Smith, Commissioner, Millard County, Utah with the association’s prestigious 2012 County Courthouse Award for Innovative Governance. Smith was selected as the Rural Category winner by an independent panel of judges. He was recognized for Daron Smith his dedication to improving the lives of county residents, including his leadership addressing the Snake Valley water issue, the West Wide Energy corridor, and governance over a county-owned long term health care facility.
Health care facility – The county-built long term health care facility, after several years of financial difficulties, now operates at a near breakeven level and has proper community and county board oversight of the health care company that manages it. “On behalf of the nation’s counties, I commend Commissioner Smith for his outstanding leadership in addressing these difficult challenges effectively on behalf of Millard County residents,” said NACo President Lenny Eliason, Commissioner, Athens County, Ohio.
Snake Valley Water – Successful efforts in protecting the rights of his constituents while working diligently to open the door to better the financial, environmental, and economic opportunities for county residents.
Smith is a farmer who was first elected to county board in 2002. He and his wife, Stephanie, have six children. He has Bachelor of Science degree from Utah State University in business management.
West Wide Energy Corridor – County took a proactive position, including meetings with federal public lands
This year’s winners were honored at NACo’s 77th Annual Conference and Exposition, July 13-17, in Pittsburgh.
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Will Feds’ Internet Filter Hurt or Help? As many know, getting Internet in China, Iran, and several other nations is not a direct route. These countries have built enormous intranet systems their citizens connect to that in turn connect to the global Internet. This is so they can watch the traffic, censor information, and gather intelligence. In doing so they also find and eliminate dissension—a concept that doesn’t sit well with the United States as freedom and liberty are pretty important. So how does a free country protect itself without creating even the potential for censorship and closed access? It’s still a good question, but the Feds have been working on some solutions that at least protect federal agencies more so than in the past. Proposed by the National Security Agency, Einstein 2 and Einstein 3 are designed to do just that. The plan, which has been in roll-out stage for nearly ten years now, is to funnel information from major federal communications systems which handle Internet, facsimile, and voice traffic and allow a computer to read through what is passing through that chokepoint. Since it’s mandate in 2007, Einstein has been deployed in 15 of the nearly 600 federal agencies—still a long way to go.
Lately, it has also been considered that once a system like this was up and running, it can also look for malicious computer code, viruses, or even worms which could infiltrate our software, banking system, stock market, military contractors, or infrastructure. It would also help anyone who had a computer, or was connected to the Internet via a smart phone, tablet, laptop, computer, or perhaps an entire IT system from catching a cold or virus as well. Obviously, along with concerns over whether it is actually doing it’s job, folks are concerned over privacy issues, and turning our system into one like China’s. This will no doubt be an on-going conversation in the years ahead. But we will also have the opportunity to see if it’s working so that all factors can be considered about it’s future. The main point is that, while technology offers many solutions, we have to be guarded about it’s uses and whether it is the answer or bigger problem.
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Work-Life Balance: Healthy Breaks
PRINT & MAIL SPECIALISTS
It was one of those crazy weeks where you wonder how on earth you are going to get everything done. I had just returned from my grandson's graduation in Saskatoon, which was lovely, but this also meant that I had been out of the office for several days. I knew that the mail would be piled up at the door and my inbox would have several hundred new emails demanding attention.
Linda Handcock Columnist
My youngest son, who has been accepted in the Social Work program at the College, had agreed to begin working as parttime administrator in my office for the fall. He knew that I was feeling a little overwhelmed and offered to travel back with me and spend a week learning and helping with the catch up in between looking for accommodations for his family. We knew that our time together was precious and that we had to take advantage of every snippet between clients as well as waking hours after they were all gone. It was late night after late night. When my daughter-in-law arrived, she pitched right in by buying groceries and preparing meals while Mark and I worked steadily on the "to do" list. By the end of the week there had been both good progress at work which was satisfying but I was absolutely exhausted! Even though it was early afternoon when Mark and family left for Saskatoon to begin packing for the move, I crawled right into bed and slept for hours. When I woke up, I did feel more like myself but decided to commit the rest of the weekend to self-care. My home was instantly converted in my mind into a day spa. The "to do" lists" were not allowed to have any priority. Normally hasty morning showers were replaced by long, leisurely soaks in the tub with bath salts that had been received as a Christmas gift. Simple but nutritious meals were prepared quickly and enjoyed slowly. New but previously neglected magazines became a pleasant alternative to reading books and journals on heavier topics. And talk about rest - I didn't use or need an alarm but instead allowed my body to determine when it was time to wake up. We all talk about the importance of balance in our lives and yet we seldom practice what we preach. Imagine what would happen if you always drove your vehicle at full throttle without doing any maintenance? It wouldn't take long until it would break down. It's time to re-evaluate your choices again. Are you working too hard without healthy breaks? Or perhaps you are taking too many breaks without doing any work? Good health comes from a combination of hard work and self-care.
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UTAH COUNTIES INDEMNITY POOL
WORKERS COMPENSATION DIVIDENDS PAID TO MEMBER COUNTIES The Workers Compensation Fund (WCF) recently declared a dividend for all policy holders for the 2011 policy year. This includes counties participating in the UCIP Joint Purchase program with WCF. The dividend equals 2.5% of the premium paid for 2011. UCIP restructured its Workers Compensation program in 2010, utilizing its statutory authority to purchase insurance jointly for members. By purchasing workers compensation coverage from WCF on a group basis, each member benefits from a significant discount based on the total premium size of the joint policy. While the policy is provided on a joint basis, each member county is still treated much like an individual policy holder, with each county having its own experience modification factor and eligible for its own dividend. The UCIP Board of Trustees has been very pleased with the resulting savings this program has created for the members of UCIP and extends a thank you to each participating member for their efforts to control losses, which allows the group to qualify for additional credits.
SUCCESSFUL RISK MANAGEMENT TRAINING Counties exist to provide services for their communities. As service providers, public entities are exposed to potential losses from various sources. If these risks are not properly managed, the entity may lose its ability to effectively meet its service obligations. Utah Counties Indemnity Pool Members have the opportunity to attend several training sessions each year, throughout the year and throughout the state at no cost or for a low cost that are specifically designed to help Members prevent accidents, promote safety and reduce the overall exposure to loss. As of June 2012, the Pool has conducted five of the seven annual sessions: Facilities Management Conference, Fair Workshop, Planning and Zoning Conference, Risk Coordinator’s Workshop and the Personnel Workshop. Each were heavily attended and packed full of beneficial information and great networking opportunities. Read about each of these sessions by clicking TRAINING on the Pool website: ucip.utah.gov. Access the conference manuals and presentations by clicking LIBRARY. Upcoming training is the Risk Management Conference (October) and the Membership Meeting (December). PO Box 95730, South Jordan, UT 84095-0730
801-565-8500
ucip.utah.gov
5397 S. Vine Street Murray, UT 84107