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Show Growing in Utah: The Quality Growth Act of 1999 JillM. Burton the bill was introduced, debated, and voted on therein. Thus, the author was an active participant in the process of helping this piece of legislation become a law. Additional research by the author involved studying various public documents and secondary literature on the topic. Overview of the Growth Issue A long-term trend in Utah has developed. According to the Utah Foundation (1998), and the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget, between 1940 and 1990, Utah's population grew at almost twice the national average. During the 1990's, the state has grown at an even faster rate. Eighty-four percent of Utah's population growth since the 1940's has been a result of natural increase, rather than net migration into the state. Utah also has the highest birth rate in the nation, nearly forty-four percent higher than the national average, and Utah's population will continue to grow at rates above the national average. Between 1940 and 1998, nearly eighty-two percent of the state's population growth occurred in four of our twenty-nine counties: Davis, Salt Lake, Utah, and Weber. This concentrated growth makes Utah one of the most urban states in the nation (Utah Foundation 1998). The developing trend is obvious, it is growth, and with growth come problems. It is expensive to provide the necessary infrastructure and services for a fast-growing population. More schools must be built, public services such as police and fire departments must be expanded, and the money used to support higher education, health and welfare services must be increased. There is also an increase in the demand for drinking water and transportation, and for effectively dealing with byproducts such as wastewater and air pollution in a rapidly growing area. In Utah in 1989, only 5,632 housing construction permits were issued. For 1996, 23,737 such permits were issued. Many of the homes being built were on the outer boundary of current development in the greater Wasatch area. This growth has caused significant increases in expenditures for local governments. The greater Wasatch area is facing a mod-erate-and low-income housing problem. One reason for the shortage of such housing is the nature of city ordinances and zoning laws. Responding to public pressure, local governments seem to have created zoning ordinances that prevent any further expansion of moderate-and-low-income housing within city boundaries. Land is not available to construct such units because the state and local governments have insulated themselves from certain housing types, by erecting barriers that prevent cities from complying with market demands. Because of this there is a shortage of land, which prevents a mix of housing types and pushes low-income housing out of city boundaries. The issue of open space is another problem for local governments. Preserving areas such as parks, natural lands, and watershed lands is difficult-many of these areas are not self supporting and become a major cost to local governments. Inadequate housing, infrastructure, services, and open-space are only a few examples of the problems that unmanaged or improperly managed growth creates. But they are significant and demonstrate the severity of the growth issue in Utah. The great majority of Utah's citizens are concerned with growth. Recent polls have shown this, and suggest that Utahans are not satisfied with the way in which growth has been handled thus far. Dan Jones and Associates and Insight Research conducted a poll about the growth issue, titled "Trust for Public Lands," on January 13-26, 1999. The poll suggests that Utahans believe Utah is growing too fast and they want to conserve land. Eighty-eight percent of those polled agreed that conserving open space plays a very important role in preserving Utah's quality of life. Seventy-eight percent agreed that we must act now to preserve open space for future generations. Sixty-one percent said they would be willing to pay eighteen dollars per year per person in taxes to protect Utah's open spaces. The information about Utah's growth strongly suggests that state and local governments need to take action on the issue. According to current development patterns, only very limited amounts of developable land are left in the greater Wasatch area, problems with air quality will continue to be a constraint, and unless we raise taxes, there will continue to be competition for funding between infrastructure costs and other state programs such as public education, higher education, and law enforcement (Davies 1999). Many areas of life are affected by unmanaged growth and Utah needs to find a way to help reduce costs to the state and its citizens. It is time for Utah to examine all growth-related concerns, and to take action to deal with growth. The time is right for growth legislation. Strengths of and Challenges to the Bill in the Legislative Process "The session's big issue was growth, and lawmakers rose to the occasion," read the headline in the Deseret News' "Legislature's Top 10" issues of the 1999 Session (Dillon 1999b). The Quality Growth Act of 1999, in its 26th and final draft, passed the legislature and was marked as the number one issue for the 1999 session. House Bill 119 was a bipartisan effort, bringing together Utah's Democratic legislators, Republican legislators, and the Governor's Office in finding a way to deal with Utah's growth issue. Governor Michael Leavitt (R-Utah) has discussed his concern with Utah's growth on many occasions. His support for responsible quality growth management became apparent when he helped launch Envision Utah, a growth-planning partnership, and endorsed the distribution of Envision Utah's 2020 questionnaire to Utah residents, enlisting them to help decide the future of the greater Wasatch area. In several speeches and an 6 |