Utah County reconsiders Mountainland Association of Governments

PROVO — Utah County is considering rejoining the Mountainland Association of Governments now that two years of estrangement from the regional political organization have passed.

Commissioners expressed an interest in the possibility of reuniting with the association at a County Commission meeting Tuesday. Although no formal decisions have been made, the commission is scheduled to adopt a resolution next week to begin participating with the organization as soon as July 1.

"I'm hopeful," Commissioner Steve White said. "I told MAG and the press and everyone else that the day they solve this problem (with Community Development Block Grant and Social Services Block Grant) I'm willing to come back. I've been willing to come back for 1 1/2 years. I'm just waiting for them to allow us to have a fair share of the money for social service programs and for capital improvement programs for low- and moderate-income people."

The county withdrew its involvement with MAG in February 2005, when concerns about equal funding and a tug-of-war over providing services to the elderly put Utah County on opposite sides of the fence with the intergovernmental agency.

MAG, which works with elected representatives from Utah, Wasatch and Summit counties — and the cities within those counties — is the regional transportation planning organization for the area. The agency also oversees services for the elderly in the areas within its boundaries and allocates funds for community development grants and social services grants.

Although Utah County has not participated in the social services executive council side of MAG since 2005, the county has continued to work with the metropolitan planning organization arm of MAG without a break.

In 2005, Utah County appealed MAG's control over elderly services in an effort to consolidate the programs and place the county in control of its services, but the county was not successful.

Since then, White — who originally voted with former commissioner Jerry Grover in favor of withdrawing from MAG — says he is willing to return to the agency if the county is eligible to receive a proportionate amount of money to the county's size. Of the three counties involved, Utah County is the largest.

That's good news to Commissioner Larry Ellertson, who voted against separating from MAG and has worked to reunite the two organizations.