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Show ONE THOUSAND DAYS OF PROGRESS: THE 2002 STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS Governor Michael O. Leavitt Unlike the scenario involving the Grand Staircase National Monument in September 1996, this is no stealth proposal. While both regions contain spectacular land deserving of protection, the Grand Staircase was created by a different president who developed his executive order in complete secrecy, with no notice and no collaboration. By contrast, the San Rafael proposal is the product of seven years of intense negotiations involving many stakeholders. We will ask President Bush to allow sufficient notice and additional discussion before acting. And you want my guess? The president is going to like this. We are protectors of the land, but respecters of process. Members of the Emery County Commission and Public Land Council are with us tonight to formalize this request. Please stand. I salute your boldness. One other thing. I can pretty safely guarantee that if President Bush decides to make the Monument declaration in person, he'll do it in Utah, not Arizona. A second announcement I want to make involves this administration's support for Envision Utah and the 21st Century Communities program. As an Olympic legacy, I propose the creation of the Utah Olympic Trails and Streams System. The objective is 715 miles of premier trails, open to hiking, off-roading, horseback riding and hiking and within a 15-minute drive of every Utah citizen. In conjunction with the new trails system, the name of our blue ribbon fly-fishing initiative will be changed and those waterways added to the Olympic legacy piece. These initiatives are worthwhile in their own right, but as always, there is the economic tie-in. It's about quality of life. It's about jobs being drawn to a beautiful, exceptional state. HEALTH CARE Our economy must also offer quality health care. Over the past six years, we have done well on that front, especially with Utah's children. Thanks to the efforts of the first lady and many others, our immunication rates have dramatically improved, and 220,000 more Utahns have health insurance. But we can do more. Because there's one group that's been left out. Over the next 1,000 days, I propose we make health insurance available to 25,000 people who have full-time jobs but can't afford the coverage. This can be done with no additional state cost by changing our strategy to provide basic health care to many rather than unlimited care to a few and by asking these workers to pay their fair share. I have requested federal waivers to implement this piece of common sense. It's the kind of common sense that will bring health care to tens of thousands of Utahns who need it and currently do not have it. There are a few other points of interest on the thousand-day trek that I want to mention: First, those who are unemployed and hurting will not be left behind. We put money aside in the unemployment compensation fund to take care of people when booms went bust. That fund will pay off. We also are making state government increasingly accessible. Through the Utah.gov website, government services are now available 24 hours a day, seven days a week online, not in line. I have to note also that another year has passed and not a single spent nuclear fuel rod has been moved to Utah. Not now, not later, not ever. Earlier this evening I spoke of the moment in Olympia, Greece, when the flame was lighted. I close tonight with a final reflection. On that day there were no banners, no sponsors, no crowds; just the quiet tap of a drum and a Greek priestess. From the trees emerged a runner dressed in the white and blue uniform of the 2002 Winter Games. The runner's torch met the Olympic Flame. It lit. At that moment, I understood the connection between 776 B.C. and 2002 A.D. and the importance of preserving peace, kindness, and dignity. The Greek priestess lifted the torch and an olive branch to the sky and cried, "Good man, go to the world and tell them our message." Slowly the runner disappeared into the woods, winding his way toward Utah. The priestess released a pure white dove. There was a flutter of wings as the bird took flight. When it passed over our heads, a feather fell from its tail and held our gaze as it drifted to the ground, landing at Utah's feet as if to say, "Faster, higher, stronger." I keep the feather as a reminder of the moment that fate fell upon Utah at a historic time. As a remembrance of the days when a nation under attack stood indivisible. When Utah took the international stage as the worst attributes of humanity were trumped by the finest. Every generation of Utahns must feel this moment. I propose we create a monument on the Capitol grounds commemorating the turning point in state history that was the Olympics. Arrangement has been made for one of the cauldrons that held the Olympic flame to be the centerpiece, a distinctly Utah beacon of fire and ice. I can envision special occasions when we will light the flame again. It could be in times of grief or times of triumph. We can light it to proclaim an event of great significance or to simply remind that Utah had a dream, that we reached for it and made it ours. Because when the applause fades and the stands are silent, we will remember what mattered most: the ability to inspire a child; the unity of purpose for a greater good; and the opportunity to excel, not just for 17 days, but for a lifetime. The Olympic Games are about athletes and competition. The flame is about people and the promise of future dreams in a place where hope burns eternal. May God bless us in this task and our every endeavor. The fire is lit. Bring on the world. It's game time. 72 |