Carbon County Economic Development Director Tami Ursenbach approached the Carbon County Commissioners on Wednesday evening during their scheduled meeting to speak with them about the approval of a letter to the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.
This letter is geared toward a temporary adjustment to Rural Fast Track Grants. The grants are set for up to a $50,000 match. This means that anything costing up to $100,000 would be reimbursed in half by the state for any building or machinery that a company might need, if parameters are followed.
Currently, the county has to hire people at 110% of the average wages. However, with the energy down, any county that has the different criteria where the economy has changed and are lower have the opportunity to apply for this temporary assistance and change that.
With this letter, and the approval, the 110% criteria would be lifted. There are currently only five counties that qualify for this: Carbon, Emery, Duchesne, Uintah and Piute. According to Carbon County Commissioners, many years have been put toward the effort in trying to allow for more employers to apply for this grant in the area.
The sending of the letter to the Governors Office of Economic Development was approved by the commissioners.
Carbon County Sheriff Jeff Wood then spoke to the commissioners regarding the approval of an agreement between the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office and Four Corners Community Behavioral Health. This agreement is to provide Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) for substance use disorders.
Four Corners recently received a sum of $6,532 and made the decision that they would like to contract with the Sheriff’s office to do the MAT treatments. Currently, tablets are given to citizens in the jail upon bail that enables them from feeling the affects of opiate drugs for up to three days. At the end of the three days, if they don’t continue treatment or follow up, they are then able to use again.
However, some of this money will go toward an injection treatment. This injection, when administered, will last up to three months. During that time the opiates will not have an affect whatsoever.
“It sounds like this is a fantastic thing that Four Corners has done,” commissioner Jake Mellor stated.
This contract was then approved by the commissioners.