Senate President Al Mansell, R-Sandy, echoed concerns about Initiative 1 raised by Gov. Olene Walker. Specifically, he said House and Senate leaders were opposed to the fact that $30 million of the bond can be used for city buildings and that the bond may have an impact on the state's bonding capacity.

"We want people to understand another $150 million in debt limits our ability to do other things that are needed," Mansell said.

Mansell added that using state money to pay for local open space would divert funding for education and transportation.

The legislative criticism of Initiative 1 comes on the heels of concerns expressed by the Utah Tax Review Commission, Walker and the Utah Taxpayers Association. The state's five largest farm and ranch groups will also be announcing their opposition to the initiative Friday.

But the initiative has also been gaining supporters in the last few weeks including former U.S. Sen. Jake Garn, the Nature Conservancy and Utah Open Lands.

"We feel very confident that Initiative 1 was well-thought-out and well-crafted," Smith said. "We want voters to be educated about this."

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