Commission on Aging to ask for more time

Members of the Utah Commission on Aging voted Tuesday to ask lawmakers to give them another eight months to complete their work.

The commission, which was formed to address issues stemming from Utah's rapidly growing senior population, is set to expire in June 2007. The group has already made strong forward progress since its first meeting in September, presenting a draft report on Tuesday with recommendations for legislation during the 2007 session.

While the majority voted Tuesday to recommend a renewal of the commission, two voted against the request, expressing concerns about going back on assurances that the body would not continue into perpetuity.

"I made very specific promises and very specific comments to questions to legislators," said Lisa-Michele Church, executive director of the Utah Department of Human Services. "Our intention is to get in, we'll do a very good job, and then we'll get out and turn it into an implementation phase."

The commission was created by the 2005 Legislature after considerable debate about its cost — $165,000 — and whether or not lawmakers will be asked to finance it past its original two-year authorization.

At least two legislators, both commission members, support the idea of extending the life of the commission. Sen. Allen Christensen, R-North Ogden, and Rep. Pat Jones, D-Salt Lake, voted in favor of renewing the commission.

"I think it makes sense to extend it . . . with the intent to wean ourselves from the commission," said Jones, whose bill is responsible for the commission's creation.

Church said the state Division of Aging and Adult Services, part of the human services department, will continue the work of the commission after its official work comes to a close. Director Alan Ormsby said Tuesday his division does not have the resources to do the kind of work the 20-member commission is doing but stands ready to implement its recommendations.

"We are so busy solving today's problems that we don't have the opportunity to look 10 years out," he said. "Nor do we have the political capital to address this issue so far into the future."

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. opened Tuesday's meeting with a show of support for the commission. "We've got some issues here that are tough to resolve, but they're absolutely critical to get right for our seniors."

Between the years 2000 and 2030, Utah's population of residents 65 years or older will grow by 118 percent.

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