Convention attracts top Utah leaders

None by KCPW

(KCPW News) Utah lawmakers are going back to school.

Public officials from 243 cities and towns in the state will get their education in zoning, housing, water rights and other issues this week at the Utah League of Cities and Towns' 100th annual convention. JoAnn Cowan, a member of the Vernal City Council and a ULCT board member, says the organization provides important training.

"We all get to play from the same field where we're using appropriate legislation, appropriate rules and municipal strategies," she says. "So it doesn't leave you out there being a knot-head making rules that are inappropriate for your community."

 Cowan says the organization gives smaller cities along the Wasatch Front more clout and lobbying power to influence state legislators.

But it's not just the little guys who benefit from following the letter of the law. League president and Provo Mayor Lewis Billings says the conference provides a chance for disparate, and often dissenting, voices to appreciate the finer points of running an effective government.

The 243 incorporated cities in League pay dues based on property tax, sales tax and the city's population ranging from $10 to 100,000 dollars annually. The 100th ULCT convention starts Wednesday.   

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