WASHINGTON — With discussions on everything from methamphetamine abuse to population growth to immigration laws, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon and other county officials from Utah hope talking with counterparts from other states here at a conference will help him learn new approaches to familiar issues.

Corroon, along with other Salt Lake County officials as well as representatives from across the state, is attending the National Association of Counties legislative conference in Washington, D.C.

Wearing a "Save CDBG — Again" button, Corroon, like other county officials, are trying to figure out how to beat cuts to Community Development Block Grants. He wore a similar button last year when President Bush opted to cut the program, although Congress did not let all the cuts go through. The president has proposed cuts again, which Corroon hopes will be stopped.

The mayor said there are 20 times the requests for money the grants provide and does not want to see cuts to "a program which has been a great asset to our community."

He also attended sessions on Economic Development and Immigration Reform. Corroon said the officials feel the local communities will need to take control because the federal government is not responding.

The same goes for the methamphetamine problem.

Carol Page, a Davis County commissioner, said she attended criminal justice session where participants discussed everything from prisons and prisoners reentering society to methamphetamine use and its toll on local communities.

"There isn't any state that's exempt," Page said. She said the consensus is that local governments are going to have to work on the problems without many resources from the federal government.

L. Brent Gardner, executive director of the Utah Association of Counties, said this is also a time for rural counties to discuss public land issues, including payment in lieu of taxes from the federal government as well as changes to the Endangered Species Act.

Corroon said there is a common theme of problems, and coming to the conference is a good way to talk to others and get ideas on what to do next.

"It gets people together that are fighting similar issues," he said.

The Utah officials will meet with the congressional delegation at a breakfast early Wednesday morning to discuss even more issues affecting the state.

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E-mail: suzanne@desnews.com