Salt Lake County runs three ice-skating centers, 12 recreation centers, 17 aquatic centers and six golf courses. Corroon admits that a few of the golf courses are probably not needed, because the private sector is fulfilling the needs of the communities where those courses are located. But generally, "the courses we have serve people who otherwise couldn't afford to join a country club," Corroon said.

As for the recreation centers, most of which have gyms, "the people in there, they are not people you're going to see in private gyms," Corroon said.

Salt Lake County residents like their recreation centers, said Erin Litvack, the county's community services director. County voters overwhelmingly approved a $65 million bond in 2006 to build new recreation centers, baseball parks and trails, as well as finance face-lifts for aging recreation facilities.

Royce Van Tassell, vice president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, said government-owned golf courses and recreation centers do not make money and are "net consumers of dollars as opposed to producers.

"The various golf courses or the various gyms the cities or states have run, they operate in the red and are subsidized by taxpayer dollars, where their (private) competitors manage to turn a profit," Van Tassell said. "So taxpayers have to pay a fee to get in, and then they have to pay in tax dollars whether they use that facility or not."

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com