Huntsman to list agenda

BOUNTIFUL — Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. will deliver his second State of the State address tonight at a Bountiful elementary school, a move welcomed by the education community even though he'll likely focus his remarks on taxes.

Huntsman, whose less than 30-minute address will be carried live on KSL-TV beginning at 6:30 p.m., will be greeted at Washington Elementary School by student-drawn portraits and letters to him hanging along the spotless, cleaned corridors.

Educators, however, see the event as more than a celebrity visit.

"I think him coming to our school says that he is serious about public education," said Washington principal Carolyn Ingles.

"I am pleased that he is coming right down to the foundation of what builds our state — and that's an individual school," said Davis Superintendent Brian Bowles. "We're pleased to host him here. We would have cheered for any school, but we're pleased to have him in Davis."

Traditionally the address is delivered in the Utah Capitol House Chambers. But while the Capitol is being renovated, the governor has opted to give his annual address off the Hill.

For his first State of the State speech, he chose Utah's historic Territorial Statehouse in Fillmore. This year's venue, the governor said, "lends itself very nicely to what we're talking about."

But with $1 billion in extra money available for lawmakers to spend and a yearlong effort to study tax reform just completed, Huntsman will also talk taxes, possibly outlining a way to take the sales tax off food.

Getting rid of the hated tax was a campaign pledge, as was economic development, and the governor has said he intends "to make the argument that we can be a state that is both competitive and compassionate."

Bowles said that Huntsman's coming to Washington Elementary shows he understands that "the foundation of our economic growth — the quality of life in our state — is in the heart of public schools and the quality of education all children receive."

Utah Education Association President Pat Rusk said that with public education one of the governor's priorities, "it makes sense that that was where he wanted to be." Rusk said that Huntsman has "indicated that this is the year we really needed to invest in public schools, the public is saying it, the polls are showing it, and I am very hopeful this is the year we are finally going to invest in schools."