Citizens of Emery County met at the Little Theater inside the Spartan Center for a Meet the Candidates night on Wednesday evening. The Farm Bureau hosted the event, so it only made sense that many of the questions and topics of conversation revolved around local agriculture, water preservation and the like.
First up were District 67 Representative candidates Christine Watkins and Tom Hansen. The two took turns answering questions about sales tax on food as well as the increasing population in the state and its affect on agriculture water.
Watkins spoke on how the topic of removing sales tax on food has been discussed many times, but there is no viable answer of where to replace that income. Hansen believes that the revenue the food sales tax brings in is extremely small in comparison to the overall budget and the benefit to the people would outweigh any potential shortages to the state.
When it comes to water, Hansen was adamant that agriculture individuals need to be represented on water councils and share best practices between districts. He would like to see less government officials on these councils, giving more responsibility to the locals that use the water. Watkins agreed that she would like to see more local control, but admitted that her perspective changes when she thinks of the state as a whole.
Next to address the audience was Emery County Sheriff candidate Shaun Bell. He spoke on the importance of keeping local law enforcement in the area and how the county will always need more of those individuals than are available. “We have to do what we can to keep our youth here,” stated Bell.
While the law enforcement in the county may be few in numbers, Bell believes it does a great job being responsive and serving the community. Lastly, he spoke on the importance of advocating for more opportunities to train future EMTs that can serve the county.
Finally, the five Emery County Commission candidates headed to the front, including Kent Wilson, Jordan Leonard, Gil Conover, Doug Stilson and Keven Jensen. They discussed the difference between fenced in and fenced out laws and the pros and cons to both.
They then moved on to the balance of increasing tourism to gain revenue for the county without becoming “the next Moab.” All five agreed on the importance of keeping the values Emery County has been founded on. Increasing job opportunities for the youth to stay in the area was also discussed.
A full video of event can be streamed here.
