Sen. Curt Bramble, R-Provo, said he wished Billings had been present at the meeting to explain some questionable numbers he spotted in one of the consultant reports commissioned by the mayor's office to explore the alternative ways to make iProvo profitable.

Bramble, a certified public accountant, said he noticed the report, prepared by Franklin Court Partners, stated the average number of iProvo subscribers is 184 per month. But, according to figures for June 2007 to March 2008, Bramble said the average is much lower: around 81 per month.

Bramble said he wouldn't go before the Legislature with a report that ignored recent trends.

"That would be pretty difficult to defend under cross-examination," he said.

Stewart said they discussed issues such as low subscriber rates, poor financial performance and the consultant reports to bring the committee up to speed on iProvo. He said his only intent in organizing the board is to generate ideas to fill the budget gap for the upcoming fiscal year.

"I do have an agenda," he said. "And that's finding the money to pay for this year's budget."

Jan Carlile, chairwoman for the Intermountain Healthcare Urban South Regional Board, said she appreciated Stewart's "forceful personality," but said she wants to look for the "best unpolluted decision" without feeling like she's driven in any particular direction.

Bramble said he didn't know enough about iProvo's finances and wanted to review telecom reports to make an informed decision.

"We're all entitled to our own opinion," he said. "But none of us are entitled to our own facts."

The committee requested budget reports and projections about when iProvo is expected to reach profitability, as well reports about retail providers' marketing strategies and iProvo's annual performance compared with projected performance for the past five years. They will reconvene a week after the city budget is presented to the council on May 6.

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