(PANGUITCH) – A Panguitch man was sentenced today in 6th District Court in Panguitch for sodomy and sexual abuse of a young girl. Court reports say that 54-year old Brent Worthen pled guilty to first degree sodomy of a child and was sentenced to a maximum of six years to life in the Utah State Prison. Worthen was on lifetime parole in Arizona for child sex abuse when he moved to Panguitch. His prison sentence in Arizona came from his conviction of child molestation of a young girl there. Arizona officials say they’re “patient” and want Worthen to serve the maximum time possible in Utah before they transport him to Arizona to serve a five to 15-year sentence for violating parole. In handing down the sentence, Judge Marvin Bagley said he didn’t need to preach to Worthen, the sentence speaks for itself.

(GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.)-KJCT-TV, Channel 8 in Grand Junction, Colo. reports Interstate 70 just east of Grand Junction has been reopened after a rockslide struck near Cameo, Colo. Wednesday.

Near Cameo, located about 21 miles east of Grand Junction, the interstate was closed for nearly four hours with traffic backed up for miles.

The rocks, which fell on the freeway around 5:30 a.m., were cleaned up while the Colorado Department of Transportation said they don’t know what triggered the slide.

C-DOT personnel said traditionally rockslides don’t occur in the Grand Junction area but drivers should be careful anyway.

(FILLMORE)-A Millard County Sheriff’s Lieutenant has retired and a detective has been terminated after allegations they covered up for a registered sex offender who had a gun in his home.

Millard County Sheriff Robert Dekker confirmed Wednesday that Lieutenant Roger Young has taken retirement and Detective Bill Jackson has been terminated.

Jackson has appealed to a county board and remains suspended with pay until he receives a hearing, Dekker said.

Dekker expects the hearing to take place within a few weeks.

Dekker said the moves came after a report from Sevier County Attorney Dale Eyre found Young and Jackson hindered the investigation into whether Jackson’s father, a registered sex offender, had a gun in his home.

In July 2008, Merlin Jackson had a medical emergency outside of his Fillmore home and Millard County deputies responded.

As medical personnel wheeled Merlin Jackson outside of his home, a deputy saw a rifle in a gun cabinet.

Merlin, who is now 76, was convicted in 1997 of felony forcible sexual abuse and remains on the state’s sex-offender registry.

Utah law makes it a criminal offense for felons to possess weapons.

When the deputy told Young what he saw, Young told him to handwrite a report, seal it in an envelope and slide it under Young’s office door or place it in his inbox, according to a report by Iron County detectives.

Normally, police reports are entered into Millard County’s electronic database while the Iron County report indicated Bill Jackson later retrieved the gun, but did not enter it into evidence.

Eyre says Young and Jackson violated procedure and recommended administrative discipline.

However, Eyre did not believe they committed a criminal offense and said he could not prove Merlin Jackson was in possession of his gun and therefore could not prove a criminal coverup by Young and Bill Jackson.

Merlin Jackson entered a guilty plea in abeyance to the gun possession earlier this year. However, his attorney, Jim Slavens, also argued prosecutors couldn’t prove Merlin was in possession of the gun.

The abeyance plea means Merlin Jackson is free and the case will be dismissed after a year if he commits no more crimes.

Dekker said Young had planned to retire as recently as this year, but Dekker stated he’s sure the specific timing is related to Eyre’s findings.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah-based Western Governors University has garnered two more prestigious honors, further bolstering the credentials of the online institution’s efforts to revitalize how higher education is delivered.

The McGraw-Hill Companies has named WGU President Robert Mendenhall, who helped establish the nonprofit school a decade ago and has led it ever since, a 2010 winner of the McGraw Prize in Education.

The prize is awarded annually to three education visionaries in honor of the late Harold W. McGraw Jr., the one-time CEO of the publishing house McGraw-Hill and grandson of the company’s founder.

The prize includes a $25,000 check and a bronze sculpture.

WGU was also recently honored with the Ralph E. Gomory Award for Quality Online Education by the Sloan Consortium, an association of organizations engaged in online learning.

The award is annually given to schools demonstrating commitment to assessing and improving the quality of online education programs.

In addition to Mendenhall, this year’s McGraw winners include Christopher Cerf, the creator of the popular childrens’ show “Between The Lions,” which airs on PBS, for elementary education and Larry Rosenstock, the founding principal of High Tech High, a network of charter high schools serving minority and disadvantaged students that has successfully placed nearly all of its graduates in college, for secondary education.

Former Utah Governor Michael Leavitt recruited Mendenhall from Brigham Young University in the late 1990s to help launch his idea for a new kind of university.

The school, run out of a Salt Lake City office building, now has 20,000 students with representatives from each of the 50 states in professional degree programs targeting education, business, health and information technology.

(MINNEAPOLIS)-Delta Air Lines Inc., the only major U.S. airline that is primarily nonunion may have instigated changes when 50,000 employees began voting on whether it remains that way Wednesday.

The votes are the last act of Delta’s absorption of Northwest Airlines, which it bought in 2008.

Flight attendants began voting on a potential union Wednesday while three groups of ground workers are expected to vote in the next few months.

This could be the impetus of major change for Delta as only pilots are unionized among the bigger workgroups.

The Atlanta-based company has had few labor problems compared with most major airlines, while the last strike was a mechanic’s walkout in 1947.

However, at heavily unionized Northwest, labor relations were often combative with only two strikes since 1998.

Delta is on the verge of becoming the second largest worldwide airline as this week, United and Continental combine this week to form the new No. 1.

Unions have sought to gain traction at Delta before but have been unsuccessful.

Union supporters gathered at Delta headquarters to encourage co-workers to vote for the AFA after they decried what they called harassment by Delta management about the vote.

Other Delta workers opposed to the union gathered in a Delta parking lot at Atlanta’s Hatfield-Jackson International airport.

The flight attendant balloting will run through November 3 and more union votes are coming.

About 14,000 fleet service workers, such as baggage handlers, vote between October 14 and November 18 while a vote is also expected for 16,500 passenger service workers such as gate agents.

Additionally, 700 stock clerks working in a Delta maintenance facility vote from October 25 to November 22.

The union on the ballot for the workers is the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

(BLUFFDALE)-The Utah Department of Corrections wants to send more male prisoners to county jails as a short-term solution to potential overcrowding.

As of Thursday morning, the Utah State Prison at Point of the Mountain says there’s only room for two more inmates.

The department says it expected to run into the overcrowding issue by the end of the year while the prison population is growing faster than predicted at a rate of 10 to 15 inmates per month.

The short-term solution the department has entertained involves a jail contract program while the prison’s contact with 21 counties allows a certain number of inmates to those jails while paying for each inmate.

Currently, the prison is capped at 1,265 inmates it can outsource while it has asked the Legislature to go up to 1,400.

Steve Gehrke of the Corrections Department met with lawmakers Wednesday while the department needs approval from the Legislature to use part of the corrections budget for the jail contract program.

The department also plans to ask the legislature for money when it is back in session.

Long-term fixes including the possibility of constructing new buildings at the Gunnison prison.

The department says current funds will last until the Legislature reconvenes in January.

Meanwhile, as bed space fills up at the State Prison, the department says the jails have room to take up more inmates.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Police say a lockdown at the University of Utah Hospital was enforced because of a rogue hunter on campus.

Wednesday afternoon, authorities locked down the hospital and the Jewish Community Center after someone reported seeing a man wear camouflage and carrying binoculars and a gun behind the hospital.

Officers never found the man but believe he was simply going into the adjacent foothills to hunt.

University of Utah Police Department Lieutenant, Lynn Rohland, says numerous hunts are going on right now in Utah and it’s permissible to hunt behind the hospital in Dry Canyon and other nearby areas.

The lockdown was repealed around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah Governor Gary Herbert has called for an audit of the Utah Department of Transportation in the wake of a series of stunning revelations about the controversial bid process for the huge I-15 reconstruction project in Utah County this year.

In a letter written to UDOT Executive Director John Njord Wednesday, Herbert said uncertainty has arisen concerning certain UDOT practices.

Additionally, the governor said public confidence in UDOT, as well as his personal trust, must be restored in the organization.

In hopes of restoring the trust, Herbert proposed for an independent audit of UDOT by the state auditor, while also asking the auditor to share the results with him and the state Legislator when results have been found.

Furthermore, Herbert instructed that until the audit is complete, UDOT must not bring any bid protest settlement over $100,000 to him for review and approval.

UDOT said they anticipate the results of the audit although Herbert’s rival, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, said he disapproves of the governor’s tactics in making the organization a “scapegoat.”

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Federal authorities are suing a Utah construction company, alleging racial discrimination at the workplace.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission accused builder Holmes & Holmes Industrial Inc. of Magna of firing two black workers complaining about racial taunts and epithets on a job site from managers and other employers.

When the workers in question complained to supervisors, both verbally and in writing, they were fired, the suit attests.

The lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City, seeks back pay with interest for the workers, brothers Antonio and Joby Bratcher as well as an injunction against the company from further workplace harassment and employment practices training.

Antonio and Joby, each of which were reliable workers at North Salt Lake’s Chevron refinery, endured two years of taunts and epithets while making $17 an hour.

Other workers at the company, which included whites and Navajos, confirmed the Bratchers’ statements while their boss said the brothers could either deal with his terse statements or be fired.

EEOC regional attorney, Mary Jo O’Neill, says it’s deplorable that the brothers were forced to put up with this abuse and that their employer’s behavior was unacceptable.

(SALT LAKE CITY) – Dozens of U.S. soldiers from Utah returned home from serving in Iraq this week. Thirty-nine soldiers are back home after a diverse mission in Iraq during the past year, finishing their tour during a larger drawdown of U.S. combat troops. Specialist Derek Peterson and his wife, Lynnie, were separated by deployment when their daughter, Ava, was only two weeks old. The National Guard troops touched down in Utah at about 4pm Tuesday, while their families waited to welcome them home. Military reports said this was not the first time members of the 285th Aviation Unit were deployed. Chief Warrant Officer Andrew Lovejoy, a maintenance test pilot, spent 18 months in Iraq five years ago. Sgt. Jason Townsend said the mission was worth the sacrifices. A total of 50,000 U.S. troops still remain in Iraq with a deadline for full withdrawl by the end of 2011.

(ELSINORE) – Firefighters battling the Twitchell Canyon Fire have completed fireline operations at the northwest corner of the fire. Mop-up operations continue in that area but interior fires will still be seen from I-15 and I-70. Fire officials say that hotshot crews are moving into the southwest corner of the fire to begin line construction. The incident commander expects light winds today should push the fire towards the north, which should aid the firefighter’s efforts. Reports say the fire has now grown to nearly 42,500 acres and is 28% contained with 433 firefighters working the fire and 29 minor injuries reported. Ten forest roads still remain closed and all forest around the proximity of the fire also remain closed for public and firefighter safety.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Kalani Norris posted 18 kills and Taelyr Tebbs added nine more as the Panguitch Lady Bobcats swept the Milford Lady Tigers, 3-0 Wednesday in Region 20 volleyball action.

(RICHFIELD) – Water rights and water quality were the two top items of discussion in a work session today between Sevier County Commissioners and the Sevier Power Company over the building of a power plant near Sigurd. Sigurd Town officials also attended the meeting and Mayor Chad Houchin expressed concern over the use of water at the proposed plant. Utah Division of Water Rights representative, Terry Monroe said Sigurd Town should have no concerns with the water useage. Commissioners also entertained comments from Woody Campbell of the Utah Division of Water Quality concerning the installation of double-liners at evaporative ponds at the proposed site with a water detection system in place to keep contaminants from leaking into groundwater. At the end of the two-hour meeting, Commissioners resolved to review public comments at Tuesday night’s hearing and discuss legal matters associated with the plant construction and the Conditional Use Permit.

(BEAVER) – The Forest Service is getting ready to accept oral bids for commercial Christmas tree harvesting on the Fishlake and Dixie National Forests. Forest officials say that initial and oral bids will be accepted at the Beaver Ranger District Office on Oct. 13 at 10am. Complete information concerning the Christmas trees, the conditions of sale and submission bids is available at the Fishlake National Forest Office in Richfield or the District Office in Beaver. The Forest Service reserves the right to reject any and all bids.

(FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.)-Wednesday, Navajo lawmakers will consider a bill to settle the tribe’s water rights in the lower Colorado River basin.

The proposed settlement would give the Navajo Nation 31,000 acre feet of water a year from the Colorado River, the unappropriated surface flows from the Little Colorado River and nearly unlimited access to water beneath the reservation.

Stanley Pollack, who has worked on the settlement for years, said the tribe’s total claims in the lower and upper basins of the Colorado River in three states could approach 2 million acre feet per year.

An acre foot is enough to supply two typical households for a year.

Critics say the tribe deserves more as an indigenous nation and are urging lawmakers to vote down the bill as they say the settlement forfeits Navajo water rights for the benefits of other users.

The enactment of the settlement ultimately hinges on approval from Congress and millions of dollars in federal funding for pipelines that would deliver water to western Navajo communities.

Additionally, the state of Arizona would have to pass legislation to restrict groundwater and surface water development in areas of the river basin to protect Navajo rights, Pollack said.

The proposal would also settle Hopi water rights.

Tribal water rights are recognized in the Colorado River compact but aren’t quantified.

Tribes became active in negotiating those rights in the 1980s over concerns that if courts were to decide, tribes would come out on the losing end, according to University of Utah political science professor Dan McCool who has written on the issue.

Critics of the proposed settlement point to what’s known as the Winters Doctrine to support their claim that Navajos have a right to as much water as is needed to establish a homeland.

McCool says he understands the Navajos’ frustration but he said the Winters Doctrine is based on a U.S. Supreme Court case that could be overturned and that makes any claims based on it “iffy.”

David Getches, dean of the law school at the University of Colorado-Boulder said tribes will often settle for less than the full extent of their potential claim to avoid litigation and receive federal funding for water infrastructure.

Congress has approved and funded about 20 water settlements with tribes and more than a dozen are currently in negotiation, Getches said.

Pollack said the tribe has been negotiating the settlement for more than 15 years and many water users throughout Arizona could not prove any claim to the Colorado River in court.

He said going to court also increases the chance the tribe’s access to groundwater would be limited.

(ELSINORE) – Fire officials working the Twitchell Canyon Fire now say the fire has grown to more than 40,500 acres. Forest personnel say all forest roads surrounding the burn area are temporarily closed due to proximity of the fire. Ten other forest roads, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek roads, remain closed to travel. Fire crews are working in the area of the mountain slope on the west side of the fire, about five miles east of Sulphurdale. Firefighters are also suppressing the fire on the south flank at Baldwin Ridge. Officials say that 527 firefighters continue to battle the blaze with 27 sustaining minor injuries since the lightening-caused fire ignited July 20. No containment date has yet been set for the fire.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Brandon Laws, a defendant caught up in the Four Corners artifact trafficking bust in June 2009 wants a federal judge to toss out theft and trafficking charges against him.

Laws’ attorney, Mark J. Gregersen, says prosecutors have offered no evidence that the artifacts came from tribal lands.

A hearing that was supposed to occur Tuesday was indefinitely postponed by U.S. District Court Judge Ted Stewart, who was tied up in a trial over a patent dispute.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-With less than a week before Monday’s deadline for mail-in voter registration, Utah Lieutenant Governor Greg Bell is touting a new Web site, vote.utah.gov, for serving as both a clearinghouse for information as well as a one-stop hub for special features making voting more convenient and manageable.

The new Web site provides access to such features as links to download voter registration forms to vote by mail (which must be postmarked by Monday October 4 or delivered in-person by Monday October 18) and information on candidates and issues.

For more information, please visit www.vote.utah.gov.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah Governor Gary Herbert said a huge campaign donation did not help a construction company land the giant Interstate 15 reconstruction project in Utah County.

Nevertheless, KSL/Deseret News show Herbert’s campaign took steps toward ensuring the governor knew the contractor in question was an important contributor.

Herbert has vehemently disagreed the e-mails show anything other than a routine, polite contact with contributors and says the release of the e-mails themselves show the transparency of his administration.

Last fall, contractor Guy Wadsworth had a pair of meetings with Herbert at the State Capitol Building while around this same time, Wadsworth gave Herbert campaign $50,000.

Soon thereafter, Wadsworth’s company won the I-15 CORE rebuilding project.

There were three e-mails chronicling Wadsworth and Herbert’s dealings, while Herbert campaign fundraiser, Mike Deaver, e-mailed Ginger Fairbanks, the governor’s communications coordinator on arranging a second meeting between Herbert and Wadsworth.

Meanwhile, Herbert adamantly insists Wadsworth’s visits were no different than anyone coming to see him for any reason and that there is no link between Wadsworth and his campaign.

(LAKE POWELL) – A hungry mule deer on the cliffs of Lake Powell was rescued by officers from the Utah Division of Wildlife on Saturday. DWR officers said the deer was trapped in Moqui Canyon, about three miles north “up lake” of Bullfrog Marina and found its way down a 200-foot rock wall of the canyon and jumped into the water. Officers weren’t sure how to get the deer out of the water due to sheer cliffs but eventually roped the deer into a boat. DWR said the deer had been in the water for some time because it looked thin. The mule deer was blindfolded and transported to the other side of Lake Powell and released into the wild. DWR officials said that all in all, the rescue turned out to be successful.

MILFORD, Utah (AP)-David Pierce hit a walk off home run as the Milford Tigers outlasted the Bryce Valley Mustangs, 6-5 Tuesday in Region 20 baseball action. Korde Chynoweth had a triple in the loss for the Mustangs.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Brennan Rees homered and doubled and the Wayne Badgers got past the Panguitch Bobcats, 9-6 in Region 20 baseball action Tuesday. Riley Miller tripled in the loss for Panguitch.

MT. PLEASANT, Utah (AP)-Kelsie George posted two goals, while Ali Rosquist, Bailee Golding and Shelby Stevens also scored as the Manti Lady Templars waxed the North Sanpete Lady Hawks, 5-0 Tuesday. Heidi Richardson posted a shutout in the win for Manti.

DELTA, Utah (AP)-The Delta Lady Rabbits got goals from Angela Burton, Fadie Styler, Hailee Holt, Jalice Losee, Macklee Bliss and Stephanie Bennett as they downed the Richfield Lady Wildcats, 6-0 in Region 12 girls soccer action Tuesday. Diamond Tasados posted the shutout for Delta in the win.

SALINA, Utah (AP)-Paula Ferracini and Sarah Nilson each amassed hat tricks and the Gunnison Lady Bulldogs smacked the North Sevier Lady Wolves, 9-1 Tuesday in Region 13 girls soccer action. Miranda Wilcox had the sole goal in defeat for the Lady Wolves.

FILLMORE, Utah (AP)-Keri Brunson and Krystyn Stevens had two goals apiece and the Millard Lady Eagles shellacked the South Sevier Lady Rams, 8-0 in Region 13 girls soccer action Tuesday.

KANAB, Utah (AP)-Tressa Lyman posted 19 kills, 21 digs and nine blocks and the Enterprise Lady Wolves bested the Kanab Cowgirls, 3-0 Tuesday in Region 13 volleyball action.

SALINA, Utah (AP)-Neccia Sirrine and Shelby Sorenson combined for 26 assists and the South Sevier Lady Rams gashed the North Sevier Lady Wolves, 3-0 in Region 15 volleyball action Tuesday.

(ELSINORE) – Forest officials on the Fishlake National Forest say all forest roads near the Twitchell Canyon Fire are closed to the traveling public. Fire personnel are notifying the public that the fire is currently active in the area of the mountain slope on the west side of the fire, about five miles east of Sulphurdale. The fire is also active on the west slope of Mt. Baldy, on the southern end of the fire. All forest roads in the proximity of the fire are temporarily closed to provide for the public and firefighter safety. Fire officials say the fire has now consumed over 40,000 acres and is 25% contained in the Kimberly Mining District. Firefighters are working on containment to areas west of the fire, including the I-15 corridor.

(EL PASO, Texas)-While border patrol agents marshal themselves more fully against the onslaught of illegal immigration, they were able to defuse what could have been a major problem.

This past weekend, U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel confiscated almost 3,700 pounds of marijuana in a series of 10 seizures at the highly-trafficked El Paso Port of Entry.

Officers estimated the total value at more than $2.95 million.

The largest of the seizures occurred last Friday when a 1993 Volvo tractor hauling a trailer containing boxes of plastic-granule scrap entered the Ysleta cargo facility from Mexico, officer said, while it was pulled over to be X-rayed.

A CBP drug-sniffing dog alerted officers to the boxes in which they found 582 cellophane wrapped bundles concealed with the plastic scrap, officers said.

The contents tested positive for marijuana with an approximate weight of 3,367.32 pounds while the driver and contraband were turned over to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Department.

In addition to drug seizures, CBP officers said they seized more than $11,000 and a Taser in two separate incidents during outboard operations at El Paso’s Port of Entry.

(ST. GEORGE)-Interstate 15 in south St. George continues to undergo a facelift near Dixie Drive and the Southgate Golf Course. Here are the latest scheduled updates.

As of Monday October 4, the extreme south end of Convention Center Drive will be closed.

The closure will include a small area before the roundabout and 270 East as it passes by the south parking lot at the Dixie Convention Center.

The area will be well marked, making travel easier in rapidly growing St. George.

All parking lots associated with the adjacent Dixie Center will be accessible.

This closure will be effective over the course of the next eight months while crews begin construction on the new Single Point Urban Interchange needed for the new Dixie Drive.

Motorists are asked to obey posted speed limits in the area, as fines are doubled for speeding in construction zones.

Once again, UDOT would like to remind motorists that in the area, I-15 traffic has been shifted to the outside lane in both directions while the Virgin River Trail is open and the Hilton Trail Drive remains closed to all activities.

(SULPHURDALE) – Roads in the Sulphurdale area have been closed due to the proximity of the Twitchell Canyon Fire. Forest personnel say the fire is burning down a mountain slope on the west side of the fire about five miles east of Sulphurdale. The road closures are effective until further notice to provide for public and firefighter safety. Reports say firefighters are working to contain areas west of the fire, including the I-15 corridor. The fire has now consumed nearly 40,000 acres and is 25% contained in the Kimberly Mining District area. Ten forest roads also remain closed, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek Roads. Forest officials say about 27 firefighters have sustained minor injuries as a result of fighting the fire with 520 firefighters still working the blaze.

(ST. GEORGE)-Two Las Vegas men have been charged with armed bank robbery after allegedly running away with cash from a St. George credit union.

Aldo Sanchez and Brett Shumway, each of whom are 41 years old, were charged in U.S. District Court in Utah for their role in a September 2 robbery at a St. George Beehive Credit Union.

Shumway and Sanchez, who initially told police his name was Kristopher Johnson, were arrested shortly after the robbery when a St. George police officer initiated the traffic stop after spotting a vehicle with a man inside who matched the description of the bank robber.

A court hearing for the suspects has been set for Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. in St. George

(YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo.)-A controlled burn in Grand Teton National Park will force some closures throughout this week.

Death Canyon Road and the Death Canyon trailhead are closed because of the 84-acre burn near the Phelps Lake moraine which started Monday.

The Jackson Hole News and Guide says officials will decide whether to reopen the road and trail Wednesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, a 3,000-acre wildfire at Yellowstone is 50 percent contained while the Grand Loop Road between Tower Fall Store and Chittenden Road has now been reopened.

The lightning-sparked wildfire is the largest of the 11 fires reported in the park this year.

(AUSTIN, Texas)-Tuesday, a gunman opened fire inside a campus library at the University of Texas at Austin while police are searching for a second possible suspect, university police said.

Early Tuesday, a man fired an automatic weapon on the sixth floor of the Perry-Castaneda Library, UT police spokeswoman Rhonda Weldon said.

Furthermore, Weldon said the gunman later took his own life while adding no one else was reported injured.

After the gunman, who was wearing a suit and a ski mask while carrying an assault rifle, was spotted running around campus, university officials told students to remain indoors.

Consequently, the university has canceled all classes for the day.

Weldon said there was no report that the possible second suspect may have been armed but police are taking all precautions and keeping the campus on lockdown.

Investigators are seeking to determine what led to this gunfire on the Austin campus of the University of Texas system, which is one of the largest in the country with 50,000 students.

Law enforcement from campus police, Austin police and the state Department of Public Safety rushed onto campus at the first reports of the shooting while tank-like armored vehicles were placed near the library.

Additionally, a DPS helicopter circled the campus overhead.

UT-Austin has previously been the site of deadly shootings as in August 1966, Charles Whitman went on to the 28th floor observation deck at the UT clock tower in the center of the campus and shot at people below.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-One of the two dozen defendants caught up in a Four Corners bust of artifact trafficking says he can’t be prosecuted for a collection of ancient jewelry he found on private land.

Tuesday, Brandon Laws will appear in federal court in Salt Lake City as his lawyer asks a judge to toss out charges of theft and trafficking.

His attorney, Mark J. Gregersen, says prosecutors have offered no evidence that artifacts Laws offered a government informant came from tribal lands, as an indictment alleges.

The Blanding native has been detained by federal authorities since April for violating terms of his lease on the looting charges.

He has more recently been arrested on suspicion of methamphetamine possession.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The National Rifle Association’s political action committee is endorsing Utah Governor Gary Herbert in a statement the organization made Monday.

The NRA praised Herbert for signing what it considers several pro-gun bills into law, including one that allows concealed weapons in a vehicle and on a person’s property without a concealed firearm permit.

(PROVO) – A couple accused of murdering a former BYU professor now say they want to stand trial together. During a hearing in 4th District Court in Provo on Monday, attorneys for Roger Mortensen and his wife, Pamela, told the judge they wanted to stand trial together, instead of agreeing to defend themselves separately. Deputy Utah County Attorney Tim Taylor said his office is prepared to go to trial now. Prosecutors were planning for trial in December but now expect it’ll take two weeks for a trial and say its likely to be held in January or February. The Mortensen’s still proclaim their innocence and Pamela’s attorney, Chad Noakes, remains critical of investigators for focusing on the couple, not the two men the Mortensen’s claim held them hostage and committed the murder. Both Roger and Pamela were present at the home of Kay Mortensen in Payson Canyon on Nov. 16, 2009, when Kay was brutally murdered.

(ELSINORE) – Fire officials managing the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning northeast of Beaver now say the fire is burning towards I-15. Fire personnel say the fire is backing down a mountain slope about five miles east of Sulphurdale, toward I-15. Fire crews are still managing the fire for resource benefits, cleaning up brush, deadfall and litter on the forest floor but some residents in Beaver say heavy, thick smoke is still covering the area. The fire has now consumed nearly 40,000 acres and is 25% contained in the Kimberly Mining District area. Ten forest roads continue to remain closed, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek Roads. Forest personnel say about 27 firefighters have sustained minor injuries fighting the fire with about 520 firefighters battling the blaze. The lightening-caused fire ignited July 20. No full containment date has yet been set.

(RICHFIELD) – The 3rd Annual Sevier County Emergency Management Health and Safety Fair is coming to Richfield this Friday. EMS Director John Hunt said the entire day will be filled with dozens of booths and activities, including some new features. Hunt said the fair will feature free T-shirts to the first 100 kids to come to the fair, as well as hot dogs, drinks and door prizes. He said the fair will be held Friday from 2-6pm at the Home Depot parking lot in Richfield. The public is invited to attend and learn about health and safety.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County Commissioners have scheduled a public hearing Tuesday night to gain input concerning a Planned Unit Development application for the construction of a gas-fired power plant near Sigurd. The Sevier Power Company submitted an application recently for the building of the plant on their property and Commissioners want the public to comment on the PUD. The hearing will be held Tuesday at 7pm at the Commission Chambers at the Sevier County Administration Building in Richfield. The public is invited to attend and offer comment. The application is also available for review prior to the public hearing at the Administrator’s Office.

(GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK)-KPHO-TV, Channel 5 in Phoenix reports that Grand Canyon National Park personnel are reminding visitors that the park’s North Rim will soon be closed for the winter season.

North Rim staff will begin to shut down most visitor services and facilities, but the park will remain open to visitors through Sunday November 28 or until snow closes Arizona State Highway 67 leading into the park.

As of Monday November 29 at 8:00 a.m., gates to the park will be closed to motorized vehicles while hikers and cross country skiers are still welcome to enter the North Rim of the park through winter months, provided that backcountry permits have been obtained.

Reservations for the Grand Canyon Lodge North Rim will be accepted through Friday October 15.

All other concession-related visitor services, with the exception of the gift shop and gas station, will close as of dusk on October 15, which will also be the final day for mule rides.

Self service gas and diesel fuel will continue to be available through November 28 or until Highway 67 closes.

The Kaibab Lodge will have full services through Sunday October 31 while the North Rim Country Store will remain open through Tuesday November 2.

As always, Jacob Lake Inn will remain open throughout the winter while the Kaibab Plateau Visitors Center at Jacob Lake will have reduced hours in mid-October.

After October 15, visitors are encouraged to call Arizona Highway Information at 1-888-411-7623 for information on current road conditions along Highway 67.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-A Utah construction company is part of a consortium awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build a data center at Camp Williams for U.S. intelligence agencies.

Salt Lake City-based Big-D Construction will team up with Dallas-based Balfour Beatty and DPR Construction Inc. of Redwood City, Calif. to build the 1.5-million square foot facility for the National Security Agency.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced the selection Friday.

The data center will occupy 200 acres at Camp Williams at the south end of the Salt Lake Valley.

Construction of the data center is expected to be completed by June 2012.

Two other Salt Lake City area firms were also bidders on the project.

Spencer Eccles, the executive director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, said the project was estimated to have anywhere from 7,000-10,000 workers and could not have come at a better time, as other large projects in the area are winding down.

Eccles said the partnership between Big-D and large national construction firms is likely to yield dividends for Utah for years to come.

During the bidding process, Utah’s Procurement Training Assistance Center, part of the state’s economic development office, helped organize meetings between the Army Corps of Engineers, contractors and subcontractors.

Eccles said he expects another outreach meeting with the winning contractors.

According to a news release, center plans include 100,000 square feet of computer space, where the intelligence agencies will collect data for use by the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies to protect national security networks and issue warnings about cyber-security threats.

The computer center will be surrounded by more than 900,000 square feet of technical support and administrative space.

(FILLMORE) – The Utah BLM rounded up hundreds of wild horses last week in herd management areas west of Delta. BLM said 434 wild horses were gathered from the Conger Complex, consisting of the Conger and Confusion Mountains herds and shipped to the BLM Delta Wild Horse Corrals and the Salt Lake Wild Horse and Burro Center, where they’re tested and treated for any health concerns. Utah BLM wild horse and burro Director, Gus Warr, said the roundup was successful without serious injury to personnel or the horses. He also announced that the Winter Range wild horse gather scheduled for October 2010 in the Vernal area, has been re-scheduled for July 2011 due to the late season of the year for potential weather concerns and possible conflicts with other activities in the region.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah’s largest teachers union is endorsing Democrat Sam Granato for the U.S. Senate.

Granato received the Utah Education Association’s endorsement Monday.

Granato is a restaurateur running against Republican attorney Mike Lee to replace outgoing GOP U.S. Senator Bob Bennett.

Bennett had been seeking a fourth term but failed to advance to the Republican primary because many GOP delegates didn’t deem him conservative enough.

Granato is seeking to pull off an electoral upset by labeling Lee as someone who is far too extreme for Utah.

The state has not elected a Democratic U.S. Senator since 1970.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-A biography on Thomas S. Monson, the 16th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, is now available in bookstores.

The biography, entitled “To The Rescue: The Biography of Thomas S. Monson,” was released by church-owned publisher Deseret Book Monday.

The 588-page volume explores President Monson’s life and is rife with numerous stories which tell of his service to others throughout the world.

The book also consists of more than 140 photographs, many of which are from President Monson’s private collection.

Monson assumed the presidency of the 13.5-million member church in February 2008.

The biography was written by author/screenwriter Heidi S. Swinton whose work includes a documentary on Joseph Smith which once aired on PBS.

(GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.)-Sunday, a Colorado man was killed in a crash near the Utah-Colorado border.

According to the Utah Highway Patrol, a 26-year-old woman and her 36-year-old brother were driving east on Interstate 70 about two miles west of the state line.

Just before 2:00 p.m., one of the tires on their 2008 Ford F-250 blew out, causing the woman to lose control while the truck rolled into the median.

The male passenger, Dustin Donald Thompson of Windsor, Colo., was ejected from the truck and died at the scene.

Troopers reported he was not wearing a seat belt.

The driver, a native of Glenwood Springs, Colo., was taken to Grand Junction’s St. Mary’s Hospital with serious neck and head injuries.

(MONROE) – Sevier County Sheriff’s deputies are looking for an unknown person who crashed into the Monroe Cemetery Friday morning, knocking over two headstones. The report said a vehicle went off the road and through the cemetery fence, striking the headstones. Deputies say that no one has reported being involved in the accident but paint transfer on the fence and headstones is being investigated. Public Information Officer Nate Curtis said that not reporting an accident is against the law where there is damage to private property.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County Commissioners will hold a work session Wednesday with representatives from the Sevier Power Company concerning an application to construct a gas-fired power plant near Sigurd. Commissioners will consider conditions on the Planned Unit Development application that SPC recently submitted. The work session is scheduled for Wednesday at 1pm in the Commission Chambers at the Sevier County Administration Building in Richfield. The public is invited to attend but no comments will be taken.

(ELSINORE) – Fire crews battling the Twitchell Canyon Fire northeast of Beaver are reporting the fire has increased in size at the northwest corner of the blaze. Officials say road blocks east of the fire have been relocated and both eastbound lanes of I-70 opened Sunday to the traveling public. Forest personnel say the fire has now grown to nearly 39,000 acres and is still being managed for resource benefits, except for a 22% containment area near the Kimberly Mining District. Almost 600 firefighters continue to battle the blaze with about 22 minor injuries reported. Forest officials say about 10 forest roads continue to remain closed, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek Roads. Castle Rock Campground remains under evacuation. The fire kicked up at the northwest corner due to warming temperatures Sunday and firefighters continue to construct firelines at the southwest corner to keep the fire from spreading to I-70.

ROSWELL, N.M. (AP)-Sure-handed Drew Robinson posted a pair of scoring receptions and the Snow Badgers scored 21 4th Quarter points to down the New Mexico Military Broncos, 31-17 Saturday in WSFL football action.

E.J. Perkins-Loving had a solid performance for the Broncos as he returned a kickoff for a score while running for another touchdown in the loss which dropped NMMI to 0-2 in WSFL play.

The Badgers will seek their third consecutive win next Saturday as they travel to Mesa, Ariz. to face the Mesa C.C. Thunderbirds at 8:00 p.m. MDT.

Please visit midutahradio.com for more information.

(RICHFIELD) – Richfield Police are investigating an apparent murder-suicide of a Richfield couple. Detective Trent Lloyd reported that police responded to a medical emergency at 747 North 400 East in Richfield at about 11:30 this (Friday) morning and found both 45-year old Scott Rickenbaugh and his wife, 41-year old, Lori, dead from apparent gun shot wounds. Lloyd said it appeared Rickenbaugh shot his wife and then himself. Both bodies were taken to the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Salt Lake City to determine exact cause of death with the full investigation to continue with the County Attorney. Richfield Police are not releasing any other details of the case.

(CENTERFIELD) – The Sanpete County Sheriff’s Office is searching for a missing Centerfield man. Sheriff’s reports say that 45-year old Dan Stark has been missing since Wednesday morning and are asking the public for help in locating him. Stark’s friend and co-worker, Buddy Williams of Gunnison, said his family needs help in finding him. Williams said that Stark is a family man and it’s unusual for him to go missing without notifying anyone. He said that police reported Stark using a credit card at Holly’s Pantry in Salina Wednesday morning for $15.00. A sheriff’s report said that Stark is described as five-foot, seven-inches tall, 170-pounds, with sandy hair. He’s driving a tan 2002 GMC single-cab two-wheel drive truck with plate number B504LD. If you locate him, call the Sanpete County Sheriff’s Office at 835-2191.

(MT. PLEASANT) – The Mt. Pleasant City recorder retired last Friday after five years of service. Sally East also spent a year as the city administrator and said that her biggest challenge was balancing the budget. According to the Sanpete Messenger, East announced her retirement last week due to what she characterized as a “difference of management style” with Mayor Sandra Bigler. Bigler said Tuesday she was surprised by East’s announcement and commented that she’ll be missed. East said most of the conflicts were between city officials and citizens and what was fair. She was born and raised in Antimony in Garfield County and was an employee for American Stores for 17 years before taking the job with Mt. Pleasant City. East said she’s looking forward to spending time with her husband, Tom and fishing, golfing and learning to play the guitar.

(FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.)-KPNX-TV, Channel 12 in Phoenix reports efforts to designate Sedona, Ariz. as a National Scenic Area and expand the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument have failed in the House.

Thursday, Democratic Arizona Representative Ann Kirkpatrick criticized Republicans for blocking bills she said would have boosted tourism and protected unique Arizona treasures.

The scenic designation sought to prevent land trades in a 250-mile square area of the surrounding Coconino National Forest.

Opponents in Arizona have said the designation was unnecessary and would mean a loss of local control.

Sedona boasts 4 million tourists annually.

The Casa Grande measure would have nearly doubled the 472-acre monument which consists of ball fields, ancient canals and mounds.

(ST. GEORGE)-The Southwest Utah Public Health Department is tracking recent developments in West Nile Virus and viral meningitis, two separate diseases that have a presence in southern Utah.

Earlier this month in Washington County, a deceased horse tested positive for West Nile, where mosquito samples were also found to contain the virus earlier this year.

The disease has been endemic in Washington County since 2003.

While it does spread to humans, only 20 percent of infected people experience symptoms of the virus which are comparable to flu without respiratory problems.

SWUPHD surveillance nurse Lisa Starr said the recurrence of the disease is a reminder that medical personnel need to remain vigilant in treating the disorder.

Furthermore, Washington County is experiencing a recent spike in cases of viral meningitis which develops from common enteroviruses which show up in the late summer and fall.

Starr says the best way to rectify the problem is for people to get in the habit of consistently washing their hands.

(MOAB)-While Utah’s stance on illegal immigration remains a hotbed of controversy, several immigrants took the right step Thursday.

Amid the backdrop of the red rock of Arches National Park, 24 immigrants who came to the United States under different circumstances officially became U.S. citizens.

The naturalization ceremony, which takes place in Utah every year, had particular significance this year with the polarizing issue of illegal immigration casting a dark pall over much of the western United States.

Nevertheless, Thursday’s ceremony was virtually bereft of politics.

Instead, recently legalized immigrants reflected on what it took to get to this point and the future they see for themselves as legitimate citizens in their new country.

Most naturalized citizens take their oath at the federal courthouse, but this special ceremony, the first of its kind in Utah, was one of 22 hosted at national park sites across the country under the theme, “Embrace Citizenship: Experience America Through Your National Parks.”

It was also planned to coincide with the annual celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, each of which occurred last Friday, September 17.

To become legal citizens of the United States, foreigners must submit an application, be fingerprinted, go through interviews and take civics and English tests.

Additionally, most are required to have lived in the United States for at least five years.

An estimated 9,000 candidates will become citizens at 63 special ceremonies throughout the country and around the world this week.

At Arches, 15 countries were represented among the 24 immigrants who became legal.

The oldest legalized citizen was 67 years old and the youngest was 20.

(OREM)-Utah Valley University’s racing team set a new world land speed record last weekend during the 24th annual World of Speed Event at the Bonneville Speed Flats by clocking 180 mph.

The winning 1969 El Camino, which was completely built and raced out of the UVU Automotive Department, was driven by the university’s automotive instructor Todd Low.

This was the fifth world land speed record set by the car since 2006.

An official world record is actually an average of two runs, each of which are three miles long.

Although Low was pleased with his attainment, he hoped for an even faster time.

UVU’s racing team consists of six automotive students, who, Low said, earned their spots on the squad.

(CEDAR CITY)-Authorities say a driver facing 10 felony charges in a deadly tour bus crash involving a Japanese tour group in southern Utah has been freed from jail pending an initial court appearance.

Jail officials and court records in Cedar City say 26-year-old Yasushi Mikuni was released on a $50,000 bond early Thursday.

Mikuni, a Japanese expatriate living in Las Vegas, is due in court in Cedar City October 19.

Wednesday, he was charged with 10 felony counts of negligent driving under the influence and a misdemeanor charge of having marijuana in his system.

He also faces logbook and lane change violations.

The Utah Highway Patrol says Mikuni fell asleep at the wheel August 9 on Interstate 15 near Parowan.

The crash killed three tourists and injured 11 others.

(ELSINORE) – The Twitchell Canyon Fire burning northeast of Beaver has now consumed nearly 39,000 acres and is still being managed for resource benefits. Incident Information Officer Annette Disert says fire crews are working to keep the fire from burning too close to I-70. She said that higher humidity from Wednesday’s cold front helped cool the fire producing light smoke throughout the burn area. Disert reported that 605 firefighters are working the blaze with 19 minor injuries and sickness affecting fire crews. Forest officials say that 10 forest roads remain closed due to proximity of the fire and no containment date has yet been set.

(RICHFIELD) – The Sevier Valley Medical Center in Richfield has been recognized by a health organization as one of nine Utah hospitals for excellence in quality care. HealthInsight, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care systems in Utah and Nevada, awarded the Richfield hospital with its 2010 HealthInsight Quality Award. The hospital, along with the Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George and other hospitals along the Wasatch Front, were chosen because they provided excellent care on publicly reported quality of care measures that are used nationwide. The Central Valley Medical Center in Nephi was also honored in the “most improved” category, for heart failure care.

(RICHFIELD) – A development company has secured final approval from Richfield City to build a senior living center in place of a low-income housing unit. Vesper Hills Development builder, Doug Crowther, gained approval from the city to construct the Vesper Hills Senior Living Community at the location of the possibly defunct Mt. Catherine Subdivision west of College Avenue and north of the 530 South intersection. Crowther said the company had started excavating the area but failed to gain a final permit from the state because the development was tied to a buy-back program with credits as part of a stimulus package. The state felt it couldn’t pull all the entities together by the end of 2009 and suggested the developer re-apply. Crowther said the development company will construct all the parts of the Mt. Catherine Subdivision that affect the project, to coincide with the Vesper Hills development. Councilmembers all voted to approve the application, with Richard Barnett voting against.

(RICHFIELD) – A prominent Richfield businessman is being forced by city leaders to remove a fancy gate in a cinder block fence along his property bordering the cemetery. At the city council meeting Tuesday night, Dr. Ted Christensen approached the city on a verbal agreement he made with a former administrator, saying he could install a gate in the cinder block wall but no formal agreement was ever made. The city hired a professional fence company to build a fence at the north side of the cemetery but an opening was left open at Christensen’s residence for the gate. City leaders said the gate poses a break in the continuity of the fence and needs to be removed and some councilmembers questioned why the gate has access to public property. Christensen commented that the gate is of high quality and is beautiful in appearance but is willing to remove it to satisfy the city if weeds are removed at that location. Councilmember Mike Turner said in the future, the city needs to void verbal agreements and vote on signed agreements. The City Council voted unanimously to pay for reconstruction of the fence at no charge to the property owner.

(ST. GEORGE)-St. George police have arrested two suspects in a brazen armed robbery.

Police responded to reports of a man with a handgun in the lobby of a Beehive Credit Union at 1227 E. 100 South on St. George’s east side just before noon Tuesday.

The suspect covered his face by a makeshift mask and demanded money from the teller.

The man fled foot with an undisclosed amount of cash which was equipped with a dye pack exploding while he was leaving the area.

A short time later, after police had notified all officers, a policeman pulled over a vehicle with an expired registration whose two occupants were acting suspiciously.

Inside the vehicle was a handgun and the mask allegedly used in the robbery. The money was also recovered.

The two men arrested in connection with the robbery were 41-year-old Brett D. Shumway (the driver of the vehicle) and 41-year-old Kristopher K. Johnson who were booked for aggravated robbery and possession of a weapon by a restricted person.

The two men, who are both Las Vegas residents, are being held without bail.

(INDIANOLA) – The Coffee Pot Fire burning north of Indianola in Sanpete County has remained relatively quiet this week. Fire personnel say that each day, the fire consumes dead and down trees with occasional short runs through grass and brush. The lightening-caused fire ignited on July 17 and has consumed nearly 800 acres about eight miles north of Indianola. Currently, about 95 firefighters are assigned to the fire and is being managed for resource benefits with no date for full containment.

(MOAB) – Some seasonal workers in Moab are living in buses but the Grand County Council says they’re violating the zoning ordinance. Bus dweller, Dre Carman, says he likes his style of living. Carman, like David Campbell, work in Moab during the city’s tourist season and say rent is expensive in Moab. The Grand County Council says living in buses or trailers is fine but the dwellers are in the wrong place. A group of people showed up to protest at the last County Council meeting, saying people should be free to live where they want. At the meeting, the Grand County Council passed a zone change for 60 units of affordable housing with construction set to begin this winter.

(MANTI) – A teenager involved in a brutal beating of two employees at a youth home in Manti in April has been sentenced to prison. According to court documents, 17-year old Brandon Bachman, of West Valley City, was sentenced to five years to life in prison for the beating of Ursula Jensen of Moroni and Ryan Cox of Fairview, in an escape from the Anchorstone Youth Home in Manti. Court records said that Bachman and two other juveniles hit Cox over the head with the headboard from a bed and hit Jensen over the head with the porcelain lid of a toilet. The juveniles then stole a vehicle and wrecked north of Manti and proceeded on foot to Ephraim, where they stole another vehicle and were later apprehended in Millard County. Police reports said that both Jensen and Cox suffered severe injuries and may have died, had it not been for others in the facility who helped them. Bachman was initially charged with aggravated robbery, burglary and escape but in a plea arrangement, Judge Wallace Lee dismissed all other charges, except for aggravated burglary.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County received First Place at the Utah State Fair this year for the best booth presentation of the county. Fair Chairperson Paula Martin said she’s pleased the county’s booth was selected. Martin said each of the 29 counties in the state is required to present what’s best about their county and its achievements each year at the state fair. The booth, entitled, “Underground Riches Make Sevier County Uncommonly Good”, featured articles and pictures of minerals throughout the county, including coal, salt, gypsum, clay and oil.

(TUBA CITY, Ariz.)-KPHO-TV, Channel 5 in Phoenix, reports a new jail is slated for the northern Arizona community of Tuba City in the Navajo Nation.

A groundbreaking ceremony for what is expected to be an 144,000-square foot complex is slated for this Friday, September 24.

The complex will serve as a Navajo Nation Department of Corrections, Division of Public Safety and Judicial Branch project and will consist of three buildings for the district court, law enforcement offices and a detention facility.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice, Beth McGary, Chief Justice Herb Yazzie, Speaker Lawrence Morgan and Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley will speak at the ceremony.

Construction is slated for November using American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds and loans approved by the Navajo Nation earlier this year.

(PULLMAN, Wash.)-Utah State University biology professor Daryll DeWald has been named as dean of Washington State University’s College of Sciences, furthering a connection between the two land grant institutions.

DeWald has been with USU for the past 15 years and currently serves as head of the biology department.

His research has explored plant stress physiology and cancer biology which helped him develop ties to Washington State University through collaborations with late biologist, Clarence Ryan.

The two universities have long exchanged administrative talent as USU recruited its former humanities dean from WSU while the two institutions also hope to embark on a joint doctoral program in veterinary medicine.

DeWald is expected to assume his new duties at the Pullman, Wash. campus by the end of 2010.

(PANGUITCH)-Federal regulators have ordered owners of the Panguitch Lake Adventure Resort to undo environmental damage the lake allegedly suffered during the construction of an RV park and marina three years ago.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a compliance order instructing the Polidori Corp Inc. and Poli-Gold, LLC about alleged violations concerning the Clean Water Act.

The director of the EPA’s Denver office, Mike Gaydosh, said unauthorized construction of the resort degraded more than seven acres of the lake and that those who impact surface waters and wetlands need to procure appropriate permits to protect water resources and functions they provide.

The EPA has granted the company 14 days to confirm whether it plans to comply with the order with a plan to restore or mitigate the damage, stated company attorney Wendy Silver.

The EPA alleges dredge or fill material disrupted about 7.5 acres of water at the lake and adjacent wetlands.

The unauthorized work, done in 2007 or 2008, included construction of a coffer dam, dredging and filling a large portion of an existing marina as well as the addition of large rocks around the edge of the new marina.

A rock wall was constructed at the RV park while large amounts of earthen fill were discharged with large rocks placed along a portion of the lake’s southern shoreline.

The EPA said Panguitch Lake and adjoining wetlands are a resource, providing aquatic and wildlife habitat, groundwater recharge, flood protection, recreation and aesthetics.

Backfilling these areas can have an adverse impact on the environment and wildlife communities for plants, insects and water animals, the agency said.

(CEDAR CITY)-The driver of a tour bus carrying Japanese tourists who crashed last August near Parowan has been arrested.

Wednesday, 26-year-old Yasushi Mikuni was booked into the Iron County Jail on investigation of 11 counts of DUI metabolite, a third-degree felony, along with making an unsafe lane change and a logbook violation.

Mikuni, a Japanese expatriate, was living in Las Vegas on a work and education visa, while he suffered minor injuries in the accident that resulted in the death of three tourists.

The group of 14 tourists had left Las Vegas for a four-day tour of Utah’s national parks and the Grand Canyon.

At the time of the accident, the van rolled into a grassy median and went 400 feet, flipping one and a half times and landing on its wheels.

Utah law allows for DUI metabolite charges if blood tests show traces of a controlled substance in a driver’s system, even if the driver was not impaired at the time.

Utah Highway Patrol troopers are scheduled to release specifics of toxicology on the driver and the findings of the crash investigation later this afternoon in Cedar City.

(ST. GEORGE)-A former St. George banker faces prison time and a seven-figure fine for setting up an account he used to embezzle thousands of dollars.

Monday, 35-year-old Gavin Larkin pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement and misapplication of bank funds in federal court in St. George.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert T. Braithwaite slated sentencing for December 7 while the conviction carries a potential 30-year prison term and a $1 million fine.

Larkin, an officer at U.S. Bank in 2008, approved a line of credit and a checking account under the name St. George Legal Documents, according to court documents.

Larkin regularly drew funds from the credit line, transferred them to a checking account and obtained cashier’s checks from the account for personal use.

Larkin admitted to embezzling approximately $200,000 in bank funds over the course of several months.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-After nearly two years of price cuts, Utah state regulators have granted Questar Gas Company permission to raise natural gas rates by 3.9 percent.

Tuesday, the Salt Lake Tribune reported a rate increase approved by the state’s Public Service Commission will amount to about $2.15 per month for the typical customer.

Officials say the rate hike will have customers paying about $59 per month for natural gas, compared with $63 per month in 2008.

Questar spokesman Chad Jones says the company isn’t anticipating much of a change in natural gas prices this winter.

Typically, Utahns pay some of the lowest natural gas prices in the country, with Questar-owned wells providing about half the supply.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-On two occasions in the past couple of weeks, Utah incumbent Governor, Gary Herbert, has seen his popularity slip, most recently with his ignorance of the wildfire which struck near Herriman Sunday.

Herbert said he was unaware of any probability the fire would strike as no high wind warning had come up, he claimed.

Nevertheless, the National Weather Service had forecast high winds for Sunday evening along the Wasatch Front although both Herbert and military personnel were unaware of this until after the machine gun training had begun.

Political observers say that this situation, in tandem with the failed $13 million payout to a company that lost the contract to reconstruct Interstate 15 in Utah County, may have hurt Herbert’s standing among his constituents.

Bob Selzer, a longtime political observer and administrator at Westminster College says he served for two decades as a staffer to several U.S. Senate Democrats and that the governor has an opportunity to fully assess the situation and still save face.

The first campaign debate between Herbert and his challenger, Salt Lake County Mayor, Peter Corroon, is slated for Thursday.

(ST. GEORGE) – A former St. George banker faces prison time and a seven-figure fine for setting up an account he used to embezzle thousands of dollars. According to federal court documents, 35-year old Gavin Larkin plead guilty Monday to one count of embezzlement and misapplication of bank funds. U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Braithwaite set sentencing for Dec. 7. The conviction carries a potential 30-year prison term and $1 million fine. Larkin, an officer at U.S. Bank in 2008, approved a line of credit and a checking account under the name of St. George Legal Documents and regularly withdrew funds from the credit line, transferred them to a checking account and obtained cashier’s checks from the account for personal use. Larkin admitted to embezzling approximately $200,000 in bank funds over the course of several months.

(RICHFIELD) – A public hearing was held Tuesday night in Richfield concerning funding for a new water tank. The City needs to replace its old water tank due to problems with major leaks and a delapidated structure and wanted to get public input on the construction of a new 1.5-million gallon tank at a cost of about $1.2 million. Mayor Brad Ramsay said the city is pursuing CIB funding for the project, which would result in a minor increase in resident’s water bill. Ramsay said the new water tank will help furnish supplies for future growth in the city. He said that the CIB funding application must be submitted by Oct. 1 in order for approval by next year.

DELTA, Utah (AP)-Ali Rosquist scored the game’s sole goal as the Manti Lady Templars blanked the Delta Lady Rabbits, 1-0 Tuesday in Region 12 girls soccer action.

MT. PLEASANT, Utah (AP)-Shakara Merrill had two goals and Angela Hatfield also scored as the North Sanpete Lady Hawks ousted the Richfield Lady Wildcats, 3-1 in Region 12 girls soccer action Tuesday. Marisa Henrie had the sole goal for Richfield in defeat.

GUNNISON, Utah (AP)-Krystyn Stevens amassed six goals and Keri Brunson posted four more as the Millard Lady Eagles hammered the Gunnison Lady Bulldogs, 12-2 in Region 13 girls soccer action Tuesday.

BEAVER, Utah (AP)-Baylie Pender keyed a balanced scoring attack with four goals as the Beaver Lady Beavers shellacked the North Sevier Lady Wolves, 12-3 Tuesday in Region 13 girls soccer action. Miranda Wilcox had two goals in the loss for the Lady Wolves while Mishaell Sampson also scored for North Sevier.

PAROWAN, Utah (AP)-Tavia Price had two goals while Aloyna Hartlmaier and Stephanie Ormsby combined on a shutout as the Parowan Lady Rams decimated the South Sevier Lady Rams, 8-0 in Region 13 girls soccer action Tuesday.

MT. PLEASANT, Utah (AP)-Bailee Kendall had 17 kills and the North Sanpete Lady Hawks humbled the Juab Lady Wasps, 3-0 Tuesday in Region 12 volleyball action.

PAROWAN, Utah (AP)-Brittan Labrum posted 11 service aces but it wasn’t enough as the Millard Lady Eagles outlasted the Parowan Lady Rams, 3-2 in Region 13 volleyball action Tuesday.

TROPIC, Utah (AP)-Kalani Norris amassed 26 kills, nine digs and eight aces as the Panguitch Lady Bobcats won their state-record 49th consecutive match with a 3-0 sweep of the Bryce Valley Lady Mustangs Tuesday in Region 20 volleyball action.

MONROE, Utah (AP)-Tressa Lyman posted 25 kills, 20 digs and 24 blocks as the Enterprise Lady Wolves outlasted the South Sevier Lady Rams, 3-2 in non-region volleyball action Tuesday.

(GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.)-KREX-TV, Channel 5 in Grand Junction, Colo. reports that several lightning-caused fires have struck along the Interstate 70 corridor in Colorado.

A thunderstorm moving throughout western Colorado Monday caused several fires between Grand Junction and Eagle, Colo., while Glenwood Springs, Colo. has also been hit.

Officials say that currently no structures have been threatened while all the fires are smaller than an acre each and are burning on public lands.

(SANTA FE, N.M.)-One United States governor and six Mexican border governors in states near the U.S.-Mexico border called for reform of U.S. immigration policies Monday.

The only U.S. governor in attendance, Bill Richardson of New Mexico, said it’s unrealistic to expect Congress to act on the hot button political issue of illegal immigration before November’s general election.

Richardson made his comments at the close of a border governors meeting at the New Mexican State Capitol in Santa Fe.

Arizona Governor, Jan Brewer, had planned to have a similar meeting in Phoenix but rescinded it due to a planned boycott by Mexican government officials over Arizona’s SB1070.

California Lieutenant Governor, Abel Maldonado, was on hand in the stead of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

A joint statement by all governors in attendance said the need for comprehensive immigration reform in the U.S. is paramount and the deportation process needs to be based on the fundamental premise of respecting human dignity and the human rights of individuals being repatriated.

Richardson said he hopes immigration reform becomes a priority for Congress next year so the groundwork for legislation may be laid after the general election.

Richardson, whose terms ends this year, said legislation should include tougher enforcement against businesses hiring illegal immigrants while a path toward legalization should be paved for immigrants who follow necessary steps to successfully integrate into American society.

Richardson said in closing that dialogue is the goal through these discussions instead of division.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Thomas S. Monson, the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and Sister Julie B. Beck, the Church’s Relief Society general president, were among those who spoke at funeral services for Barbara Jean Bradshaw Smith Monday.

Sister Smith, a former Relief Society general president, was the Church’s public face during the organization’s opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment in the late 1970s.

Smith’s stalwart family, featuring seven children, 39 children and 84 great-grandchildren, filled the Ensign Second Ward LDS Chapel in Salt Lake City where services took place.

President Monson said Sister Smith did what she believed was right instead of following in the world’s footsteps while her children said she was the same person, rife with integrity and compassion, regardless of where she was.

Sister Beck called Smith a great vision of womanhood who was always looking out for the best interests of others.

Smith has been laid to rest in the Salt Lake City cemetery.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The newly opened diary of Leonard J. Arrington, one of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ more dynamic historians, promises to reveal many of his motives in truthfully telling the Mormons’ story.

The annual Arrington Mormon History Lecture is slated for Thursday in Salt Lake City and with three of Arrington’s children expected to speak, this will be considered the official opening of the diary.

The diary in question is actually a scrapbook which fills 50 boxes in Logan-based Utah State University’s Special Collections and Archives, where it was sealed for a decade after Arrington’s death in February 2009.

Arrington’s children plan to use this seminar as a time to express love for their well-versed father, who reportedly wrote as many as 30,000 pages while including important artifacts from his life, such as his temple recommend and announcements for family weddings and birthday parties.

Arrington began life as an Idaho farm boy and started recording his voluminous history at the age of 10.

His archives received numerous wrinkles through the years as he often recorded conversations with friends and family for the benefit of posterity.

(CEDAR CITY) – The Utah BLM Field Office in Cedar City is seeking public comment as it prepares an Environmental Impact Statement for a new Resource Management Plan. Planning Specialist Gina Ginouves says her office is seeking specific recommendations about the plan, instead of general feelings. Ginouves said that public scoping meetings will be held in Beaver in late October or early November for lands managed in Iron and Beaver Counties.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Since there are more than 100,000 Utahns without jobs and since small businesses employ most of the state’s workers, several business and government organizations have joined forces to create a new resource for entrepreneurs.

Monday, representatives of both business and government throughout Utah announced the new Utah Small Business Coalition which offers resources and expert advice for small business owners.

Salt Lake Chamber chief economist, Natalie Gochnour, noted there are 68,000 small businesses (with fewer than 500 employees) in Utah, meaning more than 90 percent of companies in Utah are considered small businesses.

These employ 60 percent of the state’s 1.2 million workers who, both nationally and statewide, have been the impetus of creating new jobs.

The coalition’s new Web site, www.utahsmallbiz.com, will provide assistance for both startup and growing businesses.

Additionally, there will be a section entitled “Ask An Expert,” which displays a “community chest” of information for the use of others, Gochnour said.

The coalition also plans to identify new resources when they emerge, avoid duplication and celebrate small businesses’ successes.

Small business owner Scott Pynes said he hopes people recognize the majority of taxpayers are employed because of businesses such as his.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Monday, Utah Governor Gary Herbert defended himself against what he called “below the belt” allegations connecting his campaign contributions to the award of state contracts and fax incentives.

During an hour and a half long meeting with the Deseret News’ editorial board, the governor acknowledged a $13 million settlement quietly negotiated with a losing bidder for a roads project could have been handled better.

Herbert did not take issue with any details reported concerning meetings he had with campaign contributions later awarded state contracts, including the contract for the disputed roads project, the $1.7 billion reconstruction of Interstate 15 through Utah County.

The governor, who had not addressed the questions being raised about the influence of his contributions to his campaign since a contentious news conference last week said if he had attempted to sway the award, the outcome would have been different.

Herbert said he was most concerned about being “blindsided” by news that the Utah Department of Transportation had settled earlier this year with the second-place bid team for the Interstate 15 project.

The $13 million payout to the Flatiron/Skanska/Zachry bid team did not become public until the governor’s news conference last week.

Herbert, legislative leaders and Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff have all said they know nothing about the settlement.

However, Herbert did say the settlement was legal and helped avert a costly delay on the project, suggesting the concerns raised by Flatiron about whether the state favored the Provo bid team amounted to be a “nuisance.”

Herbert said he had no specific proposals to improve the settlement process while UDOT is currently exempted from having to get approval from the governor and lawmakers for large payouts.

Herbert said he could make the same allegations concerning payouts against his Democratic rival, Salt Lake County Mayor, Peter Corroon, but he says he’s above that.

Herbert closed by saying he is being completely transparent with the media and his constituents in Utah and that he doesn’t plan to engage in “shady games.”

(RICHFIELD) – The fall fruit harvest in our local areas has been considered by officials to be in fair condition in spite of early spring rains and frost. USU Extension Agent Jody Gale says the local harvest is about 60% of normal. Fruit growers hope that the weather will be cooperative enough for next year’s growth to produce a better crop.

(RICHFIELD) – Two Sevier County Sheriff’s deputies are in line to receive awards from the Utah Sheriff’s Association. According to a news release, Sgt. Franco Aguilar will be receiving a purple heart award. Aguilar was killed in the line of duty on April 28, 2010 when he was struck by a vehicle while investigating a traffic accident on I-70. The report also said that Lt. Shaun Robbins will be given the Deputy of the Year award for efforts in covering Sgt. Aguilar’s shifts, taking care of his crew and was the point of contact for Aguilar’s family. In addition to those duties, Robbins continued to fulfill his responsibilities as Lt. over the Patrol Division of the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office.

(JUNCTION) – The Republican candidate running against Democrat Jim Matheson in the 2nd Congressional District will speak in Piute County Tuesday night. Morgan Philpot has been invited to speak at the Junction County Courthouse Tuesday at 6pm. Philpot says he’ll speak on critical issues facing the nation with the focus on getting more Utahns back to work, restoring more fiscal common sense and creating more access to federal lands in Utah. The meeting is sponsored by the Piute Republican Party and the general public is invited to attend.

(RICHFIELD) – The 18th Annual ATV Jamboree kicked off this morning at the Richfield City Park. Sevier County Travel Director Kevin Arrington said the 450 riders from around the world faced some road closures along the Piute Trail System due to the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning near Beaver. Fire personnel say most trails away from the fire area remain open and ATV riders should find easy access. Richfield City and Sevier County officials, along with businesses in the local areas, welcomed the four-wheelers to the valley and hope they enjoy the Jamboree.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The political tide that seems to be favoring Republicans across the nation appears to be sweeping Utah’s U.S. Senate Race toward a landslide.

The latest Dan Jones & Associates poll for KSL/Deseret News shows Republican Mike Lee boasts a commanding position, although incumbent Senator Bob Bennett appears on the ballot as an independent.

With election day occurring in six weeks, Democrat Sam Granato has failed to catch fire as a candidate while the poll indicates he is losing to Lee in every county in the state.

Kirk Jowers, the director of the University of Utah’s Hinckley Institute of Politics, confirmed this is even true in heavily democrat Salt Lake County.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent and is based on interviews with 600 voters.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah Governor Gary Herbert raised $700,000 at his premiere fundraising event at the Grand America Hotel ballroom in downtown Salt Lake City Saturday.

Herbert addressed nearly 1,400 people at his largest fundraising event of 2010 before his spokesperson ushered the media out to address allegations that Herbert is engaging in “pay for play” politics.

Earlier in the day, nearly 40 demonstrators marched outside of the Governor’s Mansion in downtown Salt Lake City, exhibiting their anger for the $13 million given to the losing bidder in an I-15 construction project.

The Herbert campaign has said that any document the protesters are asking for is available to the public.

(ZION NATIONAL PARK)-Zion National Park will waive entrance fees Saturday in observance of National Public Lands Day.

On this day, the National Park Service will join other public land management agencies in eradicating commercial tour and transportation entrance fees, among other things.

Tourists and visitors are asked to remember that this does not include camping or backcountry permit fees.

The park’s Public Lands Day volunteer project will be fence building and trail rehabilitation in the Kolob Canyons section of the park, near Zion’s northern border.

Volunteers for this project must preregister by calling the Kolob Canyons visitors center @ 586-9548

(TEASDALE) – A Teasdale man was arrested for DUI Friday night after crashing his vehicle on SR-24. Utah Highway Patrol investigated the crash involving 27-year old Troy Heiner, who was traveling westbound, when he went off the right shoulder of the highway, through a fence and impacted a large rock, before coming to a stop in his 1998 Toyota at about 8:30pm. UHP said Heiner was seen by EMS but refused to be treated. The driver was booked into the Sevier County Jail for DUI, driving on suspension and unsafe lane travel.

(FAIRVIEW) – A female motorcyclist from Taylorsville was injured on SR-31 up Fairview Canyon Sunday when she lost control of her bike. According to a UHP report, 33-year old Sheila Smith was traveling westbound on a 2006 Suzuki, when she rounded a corner about three miles east of Fairview and went off the right shoulder at about noon. The report said Smith lost control and flipped her motorcycle, sustaining a broken leg after being thrown. She was wearing a helmet and was transported to the Sanpete Valley Hospital.

(WALES) – A past president of the Sanpete Cattle Association has been arrested on several counts of unauthorized control of property and cattle handling. According to court records, Jeff Lamb of Wales was charged about a month ago on three counts of theft of mislaid-lost property in the fall of 2009. The court records had no details of the incidents and the Sanpete County Attorney could not be reached due to court hearings today (Monday). Lamb is currently on the Sanpete County Fair Board and is also an instructor at Snow College-Ephraim.

(SEVIER) – I-70 at Clear Creek Canyon continues to remain closed due to smoke from the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning northeast of Beaver. Fishlake National Forest Specialist John Zapell said that sustained high winds throughout the day Sunday increased fire behavior sending dense smoke across I-70, causing the closure. Utah Highway Patrol and the Utah Department of Transportation have rerouted I-70 westbound traffic at the Marysvale Canyon turnoff near Sevier and I-70 eastbound traffic from I-15 southbound is rerouted on SR-50 at Scipio. UHP says that northbound I-15 traffic is being rerouted at SR-20. More than 500 firefighters are battling the blaze, which has now consumed about 23,000 acres. No injuries have been reported and no structures are threatened.

MONROE, Utah (AP)-Slade Moyle tossed for 389 yards and three touchdowns as the Enterprise Wolves decimated the South Sevier Rams, 42-0 Friday in 2A West football action.

BEAVER, Utah (AP)-Jesse Rhodes ran for 168 yards and three scores as the Millard Eagles pummeled the Beaver Beavers, 35-12 in 2A West football action Friday. Slade Edwards had touchdown runs of 72 and 5 yards for Beaver in defeat.

PARK CITY, Utah (AP)-Jono Schettler amassed 131 receiving yards and a score and the Park City Miners got past Manti, 28-22 Friday in non-region football action.

GUNNISON, Utah (AP)-Jantz Jensen hauled in a pair of scoring receptions and Braden Harris added a 5-yard scoring run as the Gunnison Bulldogs downed the North Sevier Wolves, 20-14 Friday in 2A East football action.

KANAB, Utah (AP)-Helaman Garcia ran for two touchdowns and the Kanab Cowboys surged past the Parowan Rams, 28-21 in 2A West football action Friday.

STANSBURY PARK, Utah (AP)-Kyle Church amassed three rushing touchdowns and the Delta Rabbits ousted Stansbury, 21-8 Friday in non-region football action.

NEPHI, Utah (AP)-Brock Orme tossed for 241 yards and four touchdowns as the Juab Wasps doubled up the American Leadership Eagles, 42-21 in non-region football action Friday.

PRICE, Utah (AP)-Tyler Giddings ran for three touchdowns and Tyler Sorensen ran for two more as the Richfield Wildcats pounded the Carbon Dinos, 42-19 Friday in non-region football action.

MT. PLEASANT, Utah (AP)-Keefer Babbit had seven receptions for 251 yards and a score as the Wasatch Wasps got past the North Sanpete Hawks, 30-22 in non-region football action Friday.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Cam Fawson posted three doubles and the Panguitch Bobcats belted 15 hits overall in a 14-4 rout of the Bryce Valley Mustangs Friday in Region 20 baseball action.

BICKNELL, Utah (AP)-Taylor Albrecht and Zack Taylor both homered as the Wayne Badgers smacked the Escalante Moquis, 17-1 in Region 20 baseball action Friday.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Kalani Norris posted 10 kills and five aces as the Panguitch Lady Bobcats swept Bryce Valley, 3-0 Friday in Region 20 volleyball action.

(CEDAR CITY) – The Utah Department of Transportation is advising motorists of a road closure in southern Utah to accommodate marathon runners. UDOT officials say that a portion of SR-14 east of Cedar City will be closed both directions from 6am to 11am Saturday for the Cedar City Half-Marathon. The closure extends from 300 East in Cedar City to Wood’s Ranch. UDOT says that motorists desiring to cross between I-15 and U.S. 89 in Garfield and Iron Counties are advised to use SR-20 as an alternate route.

(EL PASO, Texas)-KVIA-TV Channel 7 in El Paso, Texas reports that the confidential informant at the center of the case against four men accused of plotting to bomb New York City synagogues testified that the FBI sent him to Pakistan in 2008 to attend a terrorist training camp, according to a report in Bloomberg.

The informant, Shaheed Hussain, has long been a shady character, as he initially entered the United States illegally at the border with Mexico at El Paso in 1994, a common thoroughfare for illegal activity through the years.

Thursday Hussain told a jury he returned to his native Pakistan in December 2008 to meet someone at the camp while he didn’t identify the organization running the camp or discuss the results of the investigation.

Hussain was testifying during the second day of cross-examination by defense lawyer Susanne Brody, a lawyer with the federal public defender’s office who is representing defendant Onda Williams.

Defense attorneys have argued their clients are victims of entrapment, poor men who were enticed into the plot with the allure of cars, cash and food by Hussain.

The men’s lawyers have sought to paint Hussain as a habitual liar who misled officials on political asylum applications, documents relating to his fraud case and statements to parole officers.

The trials of the 34-year-old Williams, 44-year-old James Cromite, 29-year-old David Williams and 28-year-old Laguerre Payen of Newburgh, N.Y., began August 23 before Judge Colleen McMahon in federal court at lower Manhattan.

The men are accused of plotting to bomb a synagogue and Jewish community center in the Bronx section of New York City and fire heat-seeking missiles at Newburgh’s Stewart International Airport.

The charges include conspiracy and attempted use of weapons of mass destruction in the U.S. while they face up to life in prison if convicted on the most egregious charges against them.

(RICHFIELD) – The Richfield City Council will hold a public hearing Tuesday night to receive comments regarding the funding of a new water tank in the city. At the city council meeting on Sept. 7, councilmembers approved funding for a feasibility study to construct a new water tank. Representatives from Jones and DeMille Engineering of Richfield told the council that the old water tank is leaking and in need of repair. They said the city has several options, including moving the old tank at a cost of about $915,000, or constructing a new 1.5-million or 2-million gallon tank. The city council selected at 1.5-million gallon tank at a cost of about $1.2-million. The city is applying for funding from the CIB by Oct. 1. The public hearing on the funding will be held at 7:10pm Tuesday at the Richfield City Council Chambers. The public is invited to attend and offer comment.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-New government data released Thursday reveal Utah is the most adept state in the union at helping those in need.

According to the first report ever issued by the federal agency, Corporation for National and Community Service, the Beehive State sits atop state-by-state rankings for both “Volunteering for an Organization,” and “Working With Neighbors To Fix a Community Problem,” checking in at 44 and 19 percent, respectively in either category.

The findings, entitled “Civic Life in America,” stem from statistics furnished by the U.S. Census Bureau.

In Utah, Lieutenant Governor Greg Bell has oversight of volunteerism in general and specifically the Utah Commission on Volunteers.

The Lieutenant Governor’s Chief of Staff, Paul Neuenschwander, says he believes the state’s proclivity for giving service is ingrained in the infrastructure of the community.

The state especially showed its affinity for service from June 1 to August 31 during the Summer of Service while more than 600 volunteers furnished 8,000 hours of service in conjunction with the program.

Shar Lewis, the executive director of the Utah Commission of Volunteers said her organization encourages all Utahns to get out and help in the community wherever they can.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Salt Lake County’s spokesman is getting a reprimand for an e-mail he sent from his county e-mail address.

Jim Braden, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon’s communications director, is acting as the mayor’s spokesman as well during his campaign for Utah governor.

Deputy County Mayor Nicole Dunn confirms Braden sent out an e-mail with a list of negative press clippings about incumbent Utah Governor Gary Herbert.

Dunn says Braden showed poor judgment in editorializing the news clips while she said Corroon was swift to reprimand Braden for his mistake.

Herbert’s campaign spokesman, Don Olsen, says he wants Corroon to publicly stand up and admit what happened in his camp while he thinks both Corroon and Braden should be publicly reprimanded.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-As Utah’s gubernatorial race enters its last stanza, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon has turned up the heat on his rival, incumbent governor Gary Herbert, on the matter of campaign contributions.

The two candidates appeared together for the first time Thursday since the controversy on Herbert receiving supposedly unjust contributions surfaced last week.

Thursday evening both candidates served as keynote speakers at the 25th Anniversary Celebration For Voices of Utah Children.

Both Herbert and Corroon addressed the audience about the future of the state’s children while they differed in their assessments of the current state of the children and in their approach to campaign questions asked afterward.

When the meeting ended, Herbert left the scene, but Corroon remained to field questions.

Corroon believes Herbert should lead efforts on campaign finance reform which explains why the Democratic candidate for governor has changed his TV campaign ads.

Herbert’s campaign has sent Corroon a letter stating that the assertions Corroon makes in his ads against Herbert have no basis of truth.

Herbert said that all the state does should be measured by how it helps the state’s economy which is still languishing.

Herbert also highlighted an initiative to improve reading proficiency in the state while he stated 10,000 more children have insurance today than three years ago.

Corroon says the state needs to improve in infant vaccinations and high school graduation rates.

Herbert’s campaign says he left the event Thursday to attend to his numerous duties as the state’s governor and that he is one of the more transparent governors in Utah’s history.

(BEAVER) – Forest officials on the Fishlake National Forest have issued a red flag warning for the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning northeast of Beaver. Forest personnel say the red flag warning is a weather descriptor used to indicate the high probability for extreme burning conditions. Incident Meteorologist Mark Struthwolf said steady winds of 15 to 20 miles per hour, with gusts of up to 30 miles per hour are possible over the Twitchell Canyon area. Officials say the winds could spread the fire, which has now consumed nearly 22,000 acres and could also produce heavy smoke and haze throughout the valley. Portions of I-70 at Clear Creek Canyon could close over the weekend if winds pick up and managers are watching conditions closely. Several forest roads remain closed, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek Roads.

(BRYCE CANYON) – Utah Highway Patrol investigated a rollover on SR-12 east of Bryce Canyon Thursday afternoon that injured an elderly Escalante woman. UHP said that 81-year old Audley Vidrine was traveling westbound when she went off the right shoulder of the highway and overcorrected to the left and right and rolled her 1998 Ford Explorer at about 4pm. The vehicle came to rest on its tires. UHP said Vidrine was wearing her seatbelt and was transported to the Garfield Memorial Hospital with unknown injuries.

EPHRAIM, Utah (AP)-Ali Rosequist amassed a hat trick and Kelsie George added two more goals as the Manti Lady Templars shellacked the North Sanpete Lady Hawks, 7-0 Thursday in Region 12 girls soccer action. Kaitlyn Pogroszewski and Christina Fullmer also scored for Manti while Heidi Richardson earned the shutout for the Lady Templars.

MONROE, Utah (AP)-Dacay Mattinson posted two goals and Olivia Collins added another score as the South Sevier Lady Rams blanked the Gunnison Lady Bulldogs, 3-0 in Region 13 girls soccer action Thursday. Lindsay Mattinson earned the shutout for South Sevier.

MOAB, Utah (AP)-Amanda Sheets and Shayla Dalton each scored two goals and the Grand Lady Red Devils routed the North Sevier Lady Wolves, 9-2 Thursday in Region 13 girls soccer action. Miranda Wilcox had both goals in the loss for the Lady Wolves.

BEAVER, Utah (AP)-Briana Elwell and Rachel Roberts each scored for the Beaver Lady Beavers in a 2-1 win over the Parowan Lady Rams in Region 13 girls soccer action Thursday.

MANTI, Utah (AP)-Ashley Soper had 18 digs but it wasn’t enough as the Delta Lady Rabbits swept the Manti Lady Templars, 3-0 Thursday in Region 12 volleyball action.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-The record-breaking Kalani Norris amassed 29 kills while Natashia Barney and Carly Holman combined for 36 assists as the Panguitch Lady Bobcats swept the South Sevier Lady Rams, 3-0 in non-region volleyball action Thursday.

(SALT LAKE CITY) – A bill proposed by a Layton legislator may affect property taxes in Sanpete County. Republican Senator Stuart Adams, co-chair of Utah’s Revenue and Taxation Interim Committee, presented a plan to “equalize” tax revenues across the state by shifting property tax collections to sales taxes. The move could reduce tax revenues for the South Sanpete School District by $826 per year. Adams says the state could increase sales taxes up to 5.7% from the current one percent collection for all purchases and school districts could collect from those taxes instead of property taxes. School districts generally prefer collections from property taxes because Utah law guarantees districts will receive at the least the same property tax revenue each year, whereas sales taxes is variable. The proposal will be taken up in the 2011 legislative session.

(EPHRAIM) – Snow College has been awarded a national grant to support the costs of completing the renovation of a historic home in Ephraim. Rosie Connor of the Advancement Office says the $2,000 grant will help with the restoration of a home that was built in 1872. The restoration project house is located directly north of the Greenwood Student Center on the Ephraim campus and provides students the opportunity to learn traditional building skills by restoring the craftsmanship of artisans from long ago. The grant was awarded by the National Trust for Historic Preservation from the Preservation Services Fund. A special ribbon-cutting ceremony and a public open house will be held on Oct. 8 to kick off the beginning of the restoration project.

(RICHFIELD) – The last remaining member of the Fullenbach family at the Richfield Reaper is set to retire on Friday. The Reaper reported that 88-year old Marge Fullenbach will say goodbye to her “Reaper Family”, after being involved with the newspaper since the 1940’s. Her husband, Norm and his family, owned the paper back in 1934 and Norm eventually took it over in 1959. When Marge married Norm, she began her career at the newspaper part-time, working in the subscription department, where she stayed until her retirement. The Reaper reported that when Norm died in 1977, Marge and their son, Mark took over the paper as co-publishers, until Mark’s death in 2007. At that time, Marge became the last remaining member of the Fullenbach family at the Reaper and became the matriarch of the paper. The Richfield Reaper will close the office from 1-2pm on Friday to honor Marge for her years of service, after which she will move out of the local area to be closer to her family.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-New York Times national correspondent Julia Preston shared her extensive views on immigration with University of Utah students at a speech at the university Wednesday.

While touring the Utah State Capitol Building Tuesday, Preston noted that she pondered deeply on immigration after seeing a niche in the Capitol’s rotunda entitled, Immigration and Settlement.

While she primarily spoke on her focus of hard facts underlying the issue of illegal immigration, she cited the requirement journalists have to continue providing a “civic voice” to the debate.

In her role, Preston has extensively traveled throughout the country and noted many instances where immigration has created wide chasms among community members in various places.

Preston said she hopes her readers and others find value in the type of reporting that does not take sides in this debate.

At the university, debate has also risen over the DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors) which would give a path to legal status for those who go to college or serve in the military.

University students are pressing for Utah Senators Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett to endorse the act when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada brings it to the floor.

Preston said Reid is likely bringing this act to the floor to court Latinos who comprise 15 percent of voters in Nevada, where he is in a tough reelection battle.

(SANTA FE. N.M.)-The New Mexico Tourism Department says the Four Corners Monument has a new plaza and interpretive panel for visitors.

A dedication of the new plaza, which is at the confluence where Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah meet, is scheduled for Friday.

Randy Bloom of the National Society of Professional Surveyors will speak at the event about the accuracy of the monument’s location.

The landmark was closed temporarily during construction of the new plaza.

The monument is maintained by the Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation Department.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Wednesday, the Utah Highway Patrol asked the Denver-based Federal Appeals Court to rehear a case involving 14 memorial crosses along Utah highways which had been ruled unconstitutional by an appellate panel.

Attorneys for the UHP, the state’s Department of Transportation and two other state agencies filed a petition for the rehearing, arguing that the full 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals must decide whether the ruling erroneously holds that private monuments erected on public land with the government’s permission is government speech.

The patrol wants to leave the 12-foot high crosses in place as the UHP has installed them to memorialize troopers who have fallen in the line of duty.

In August, a panel of three judges from the 10th Circuit said the crosses represent Christianity and that Christians would receive preferential treatment from troopers.

Nevertheless, the state agency asserts that the crosses only serve as reminders for motorists to drive safely.

As of Wednesday, it was unclear whether or not the court would decide to rehear the case.

The monuments were first erected in 1998 and were paid for with private funds raised by the association along with the endorsement of family members of slain troopers.

There are nearly 14 crosses on public land in the state.

American Atheists of Cranford, N.J. and three of its Utah members sued the state of Utah in 2005 over the use of the highway patrol’s logo and said the crosses should be removed.

The group said the memorials infer that the troopers who died at each location were Christians.

Brian Barnard of American Atheists says he anticipates attorneys for the UHP Association will submit a similar rehearing request.

The filing deadline is Thursday, Barnard said.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-A conservative group wants Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff to say no to violent video games being sold to children in a case now going to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The proposed law goes along with something the state of California has already ruled on as five years ago, California legislators made it illegal for children under 18 to buy violent video games.

However, an upper court deemed that to be unconstitutional.

As the case heads to the U.S. Supreme Court, the national and Utah Eagle forums conducted a Wednesday news conference in hopes of persuading Utah to side with California.

Republican Representative Michael Morley of Spanish Fork is siding with the Eagle Forum in hopes of attempting to classify the sale of violent video games to children in the same category as such taboo items as pornography, alcohol and cigarettes.

The Eagle Forum organization says it has support for the proposed California law being instituted in several states, but not Utah.

Shurtleff says he’ll make his decision by Friday, the filing deadline to send a brief to the courts outlining his opinion on the matter.

Some stores already have a policy against selling violent video games to children but national Eagle Forum organization director, Andy Schlafly says the system is weak and isn’t followed by everyone.

Shurtleff says he wants to weigh both sides of the issue judiciously before he makes a decision on which one he’ll endorse.

(BEAVER) – Fire officials on the Fishlake National Forest say the Twitchell Canyon Fire has now consumed nearly 21,000 acres and experienced moderate growth with decreasing winds since Tuesday. High winds at the beginning of the week pushed the fire throughout the burn area northeast of Beaver, causing the closure of a portion of I-70 for several hours. Fire officials now say that I-70 remains open at Clear Creek Canyon but eastbound traffic has been cut back to one lane in order to create a buffer zone for firefighters. Forest reports say that five handcrews, two helicopters, two dozers and ten fire engines are working to control the blaze. Several forest roads remain closed, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek Roads and Castle Rock Campground is still under voluntary evacuation

(PANGUITCH) – Four alleged marijuana growers were arrested Monday afternoon on Barney Top in Garfield County. According to a sheriff’s report, the three males and one female, all Mexican Nationals, were arrested without incident, after a tip came in Sunday night from a bowhunter, who happened to spot one of the men on his cell phone, trying to make a phone call. The bowhunter left the area and called the Sheriff’s office. The sheriff’s report said a UHP helicopter flew over the area for two days and were able to locate the alleged growers. The report said it took two-and-a-half hours of a treacherous hike through rugged terrain to reach the grow site. Those arrested included, 31-year old Monica Saldivar and 45-year old Eleno Angulo, who both tried to flee the scene but were apprehended. Officials said that 51-year old Jesus Sepulveda and 29-year old Emilliano Arellano did not flee because they were intoxicated at the time. A 25-calibre automatic pistol was also located at the grow site, along with 413 plants with an estimated value at $413,000.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Cam Fawson amassed five hits and three RBI and Jory Owens added a double as the Panguitch Bobcats outlasted the Valley Buffaloes, 7-6 in 12 innings Wednesday in Region 20 baseball action. The Buffaloes’ Lance Maxwell and Panguitch’s Riley Miller both went the distance on the mound in the extended game.

MILFORD, Utah (AP)-Chris Manzanares homered and doubled while Trevor Behunin also doubled as the Wayne Badgers shellacked the Milford Tigers, 11-2 in Region 20 baseball action Wednesday.

(HOLDEN) – Two hunters were arrested last week in Holden for stalking and shooting a trophy buck in a hay field. According to a Millard County Sheriff’s report, 34-year old Jeff Gates of Holden and his brother, 35-year old Shawn Gates of Cedar City, were caught after a tip was received by law enforcement that the pair were stalking the buck with rifles. Millard County Deputies, UHP and a DWR officer, responded and set up a perimeter to apprehend the two men. The suspects were charged with wanton destruction of wildlife, possession of a weapon by a restricted person, criminal trespass and tampering with evidence, among other charges. The men were booked into the Millard County Jail.

(JOSEPH) – An Illinois motorcyclist was taken to the hospital with possible injuries Tuesday afternoon after crashing into a small gully on SR-89. According to a UHP report, 62-year old Raymond Pyle of Streamwood, IL. was traveling about seven miles south of Joseph on SR-89 on a 2005 Harley Davidson, when he failed to make a turn in the road and ran off the highway at about 1:45pm. UHP said Pyle came to rest in a small gully and were not sure what direction he was coming from. He was not wearing a helmet and was transported to the Sevier Valley Medical Center in Richfield with unknown injuries.

(COVE FORT) – Utah Highway Patrol has announced that I-70 at Clear Creek Canyon is now open for the traveling public but may close this afternoon due to the spread of a fast-moving wildfire burning in the area. UHP said a portion of I-70 was closed for about four hours last night due to heavy smoke from the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning about 14 miles northeast of Beaver. Troopers said a helicopter will be using fire retardant in fire suppression efforts to control the blaze, which has consumed about 21,000 acres. The retardant will be dumped close to the freeway, causing the possible closure of I-70 at the junction of I-15.

(CEDAR CITY)-The 10-year-old Lance Kinross of Beaver won the Beaver County grand champion award with his pig at the Southwest Junior Livestock Show this past weekend at Cedar City’s Cross Hollows Event Center.

The Yorkshire-Hampshire cross, named Sir Oinksalot, was Kinross’ first-year 4H project and the first pig he has raised.

The 266-pound hog placed third in the carcass competition, an ultrasound which determines the animal’s leanness.

Kinross placed first in the swine market class and finished third in the Herdsman competition.

Kinross’ hog project began last May while he successfully fed, watered and exercised with his pig daily.

Kinross will also compete in this weekend’s Utah State 4H Horse Show at the Salt Lake County Equestrian Center in South Jordan.

(MOAB)-A federal judge will allow several new holes to be drilled by a uranium company in the Manti-La Sal National Forest near Moab.

Three Moab-based conservation groups has asked Judge Dale A. Kimball to halt the drilling planned by Toronto-based Denison Mines Corp. at its Pandora Mine, claiming the U.S. Forest Service permitted the project without an adequate environmental study.

Uranium Watch, The Center For Water Advocacy and Living Rivers argued Denison would create radioactive air emissions and heavy metal contamination if it drills 16 exploration holes and two radon vent holes, a project approved by the Forest Service.

Kimball gave more weight to Denison’s environmental expert who claimed there was no significant risk of environmental damage.

Kimball also wrote that the Forest Service followed procedural rules when it allowed the project bereft of environmental assessments or impact statements.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Although Utah may give residents a “Rocky Mountain high,” new data suggests it could bring Utahns to an all-time low.

Research conducted by the University of Utah’s Brian Institute showed the Intermountain West’s high altitude has a significant influence on the high prevalence of suicide in this part of the country.

The findings, published in Wednesday’s online edition of the American Journal of Psychiatry, reports that the risk for suicide increases by nearly one-third at an altitude of 6,500 feet above sea level, which is reflective for much of Utah.

As of 2006, Utah’s suicide rate was 10th in national annals, while Nevada, which also features high elevation in the northern part of the state, was ignominiously in first place.

Additionally, the researchers, led by University of Utah psychiatry professor, Dr. Perry Renshaw, Utah’s suicide rate was 50 percent higher than the national average.

After analyzing data from U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on each of the 3,108 counties in the lower 48 states and the District of Columbia, Renshaw and his colleagues concluded altitude is an independent risk factor for suicide.

It is believed the association may have risen from the effects of metabolic stress associated with mild hypoxia in people with mood disorders which confirms why those living at higher altitudes may be more at risk.

To verify the study’s conclusions, data was studied in South Korea where researchers found suicide rates for residents living at 6,500 feet or higher increased by 125 percent.

Renshaw said that understanding the full relationship between altitude and suicide requires more study.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Husain Haqqani, the Pakistani Ambassador to the United States, thanked the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for its humanitarian assistance in his flood-ravaged country Tuesday in Salt Lake City.

Haqqani was in Salt Lake City as the Church’s special guest and spoke at a Tuesday morning news conference at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building to appeal to the American public to recognize Pakistan’s continual needs for humanitarian assistance.

Haqqani met with Church President, Thomas S. Monson and the First Presidency and said appreciates all the Church has done, while the First Presidency said they will continue to send supplies to Pakistan.

In closing, Haqqani said the influx of assistance from various charitable and religious organizations in the United States, has helped instigate a paradigm shift in predominantly-Muslim Pakistan about supposed American ideologies, proving that people of all faiths can work together.

(KANAB)-Kane County is taking over more roads crossing federal lands.

County officials say the the U.S. Department of the Interior has surrendered title to the Sand Dunes, Hancock, Mill Creek and Bald Knoll roads.

A fifth road, Skutumpah, was already released for county maintenance.

Kane County says the five roads provide access to private property, grazing allotments, mineral deposits and Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park.

Utah has filed legal action to take over many dirt roads while officials say a one-sentence 1886 law assured open passage across the federal lands.

However, it has also set off disputes about which routes crisscrossing the West qualify for local control.

(SEVIER COUNTY)-The westbound portion of Interstate 70 from milepost 1 to milepost 28 has officially reopened after being closed down due to the raging Twitchell fire in Beaver County.

Tuesday, the fire burned 6,000 acres near the interstate, putting the total burned area at 17,000 acres.

As of Wednesday morning, the eastbound portion of I-70 between Sevier and the junction with Interstate 15 near Cove Fort remained closed due to particularly heavy smoke in that area.

Currently, eastbound traffic is being rerouted on north Interstate 15 to Scipio and then onto U.S. Highway 50 en route to Salina where motorists can reconnect with I-70.

Officials say the closure will remain in effect until the fire’s threat is gone.

A voluntary evacuation order was in place for the area surrounding Fremont Indian State Park.

(BEAVER) – High winds have kicked up heavy smoke and haze from the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning northeast of Beaver. Forest officials say the fire has consumed nearly 12,000 acres in an area burning about 14 miles northeast of Beaver. Fire crews are allowing the bulk of the wildfire to burn in order to consume dense fuels in the area but are controlling a burn area near the Kimberly Mining District to protect structures. That portion of the fire is about 25% contained. No injuries have been reported or damage to buildings. Sevier Valley residents should continue to see smoke and haze blanketing the area while winds gust. Those with respiratory problems are advised to stay indoors.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County Commissioners held a five-hour work session today with representatives from the Sevier Power Company regarding a Planned Unit Development application for the building of a gas-fired power plant near Sigurd. Commissioners scrutinized each item of an 11-page Conditional Use Permit during the meeting, including legal language on worker safety, law enforcement, fire prevention, medical services, landscaping, temporary housing, site drainage and flood control, transportation, water issues, visual impacts and several other issues. SPC President Rod Clark said he appreciated all the work the Zoning Administration has done with the CUP and hopes the application will soon be approved. After the work session, Commissioners announced a public hearing on the application to be held Sept. 28 at 7pm followed by another work session on Sept. 29 at 1pm. Both meetings will be held at the Administration Building in Richfield.

(FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.)-The Coconino National Forest is planning prescribed burns near A-1 Mountain and East Clear Creek Tuesday, weather permitting.

The A-1 Mountain prescribed burn is targeting 130 acres south of Baderville, Ariz., east of Bellemont and between Interstate 40 and Forest Road 518. Smoke is possible for Baderville and Bellemont.

The East Clear Creek prescribed burn is targeting 200 acres west of Blue Ridge Reservoir and south of Highway 87.

On the Kaibab National Forest, a lightning-ignited fire 18 miles northeast of Williams, Ariz., is being allowed to burn much like a prescribed fire and was reported at 987 acres Monday, near the Hobble Mountains.

Near the Grand Canyon, the National Park Service is proposing to have prescribed burns over 1,100 acres this week, all south of Highway 64 near Grandview Point, about 10 miles southeast of Grand Canyon Village.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-A Utah judge has rejected arguments that rape charges were filed too late against polygamous sect member Allen G. Steed, a decision that allows the case to move forward to trial.

Fifth District Judge G. Rand Beacham denied a motion to drop charges against Steed, whose marriage to Elissa Wall was the basis of the state’s case against sect leader Warren S. Jeffs.

Steed was charged with rape September 26, 2007, a day after a jury found Jeffs guilty of being an accomplice to rape and after testifying as a defense witness.

Steed’s attorney, Jim Bradshaw, argued the state waited too long to charge steed.

Jeffs performed a so-called “spiritual marriage” between the then-19-year-old Steed and the then-14-year-old Wall at a Caliente, Nev. motel in 2001.

Wall testified during Jeffs’ trial that she objected to marrying and having sex with Steed but was ignored.

Steed then testified that Wall initiated the intimacy in their relationship.

In July, Jeffs’ convictions were reversed by the Utah Supreme Court which found he was denied fair trial because of faulty jury instructions.

The Supreme Court then sent the case back, but Washington County Attorney, Brock Belnap, has not yet decided if a new trial should be sought.

Meanwhile, the state of Texas is seeking to extradite Jeffs to face charges of bigamy, aggravated sexual assault and sexual assault.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-His Excellency, Hussain Haqqani, the Pakistani Ambassador to the United States is in Salt Lake City Tuesday as a guest of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

His visit comes in the wake of humanitarian aid the Church has provided in flood-ravaged Pakistan.

Haqqani is expected to visit Church headquarters Tuesday and meet with Humanitarian representatives of the Church.

Last week, the Church shipped an estimated 400,000 pounds of food, blankets and other relief aid to Pakistan.

While the Church donated the physical goods, Islamic Relief oversaw shipping and distribution.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Environmental groups are again asking a federal appeals court to stop a plan to build a $3 billion natural gas pipeline from Wyoming to Oregon.

Defenders of Wildlife, the Toiyabe Chapter of the Sierra Club and Great Basin Resource Watch filed a new challenge to the Ruby Pipeline last week with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

They allege the federal Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers didn’t conduct adequate environmental reviews.

A Sierra Club official told the Deseret News that planners failed to consider potential harm to water, public and tribal lands and wildlife.

Earlier, the 9th Circuit rejected requests to halt construction of the 980-mile pipeline which would cut across Utah and northern Nevada en route to Malin, Ore.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Monday, a top Utah regulator approved plans for the first commercial U.S. oil sands project.

John Baza, the director of Utah’s Division of Oil, Gas & Mining upheld an earlier decision by his staff to give Earth Energy Resources Inc. a permit to mine a 62-acre pit in eastern Utah.

Environmental activists had objected to the project and demanded a hearing conducted by Baza in July.

Monday, Baza concluded that his staff followed all the legal requirements in giving its approval for the tar sands project a year ago.

The company is still trying to raise $35 million for the project, stated Glen Snarr, the president and CEO of Calgary, Alberta-based Earth Energy, which needs only the local approval of Grand County to get started.

Opponents, who argue that the project would dig up fragile topsoil and pollute groundwater, may still appeal Baza’s decision to a state board.

Baza’s personal review was unusual as he normally leaves decisions concerning mine permits to a staff of engineers and scientists and doesn’t sign off on approval permits.

He agreed to have protest hearings to take objections from Grand County residents and environmental groups while groups promised not to file a formal appeal to a state board pending Baza’s review.

Baza said his only role was to ensure proper protocol was followed by his staff of professionals.

Earth Energy insists it won’t pollute anything and will leave Utah’s oil sands as clean as beach sand after processing with a citrus-based solvent.

The company plans to truck the waxy crude to Salt Lake City for refining.

The company also plans to produce bitumen, a tar-like petroleum which comes from oil-soaked sands.

For decades, other Utah operators have used oil sands as a poor man’s asphalt, although no one has sought to produce petroleum from U.S. oil sands on a scale planned by Earth Energy.

(SALT LAKE CITY) – A former president of the General Relief Society of the LDS Church has died. Church reports said that 88-year old Barbara B. Smith, the 10th Relief Society General President, died late Monday night from complications due to pulmonary fibrosis. Family members said she was surrounded by her seven children and their families. Smith served as General President from October 1974 to April 1984 and became a beacon of light in her community and LDS Church activities, even after her illness. She met with kings, queens and talked with U.S. Presidents during her leadership role and was a strong voice on women’s issues. Family members said that her dying breath was concern for other people and how they can be helped and lifted.

(BEAVER) – Fishlake National Forest personnel now say the Twitchell Canyon Fire has consumed 11,300 acres. Forest Supervisor John Zapell says the bulk of the lightening-caused wildfire is being allowed to burn for resource benefits. Zapell said about 23% of the fire is being contained around the historic Kimberly Mining District to protect the area from threatened structures. Forest officials say gusty winds continue to cause the spread of the fire and crews are monitoring the fire. Several forest roads are still closed, including the Indian, Shingle and Mill Creek Roads. Smoke is still visible from the Sevier Valley area.

(NEPHI) – A man facing several charges in connection with the shooting death of a Millard County deputy faced a judge in a hearing in Nephi Monday. Court records said that 37-year old Ruben Chavez-Reyes appeared in 4th District Court to face charges of assisting 38-year old Roberto Roman, who is charged with killing Deputy Josie Fox at a traffic stop on Jan. 5 in Delta. Prosecutors said that Chavez-Reyes allowed Roman to drive his car, picked him up when he was stranded, drove him to Salt Lake City and made a plan to go to Mexico after Fox was shot. Police reports said that the two men hired a driver to take them to Los Angeles but lacked the money and ended up being stranded in Beaver, where they were apprehended a few days after the shooting. The defense for Chavez-Reyes said he knew nothing about the shooting until they arrived in Salt Lake City. Judge Donald Eyre granted the defense a change of venue from Millard County to Juab County, where Chavez-Reyes’s hearing will continue throughout today (Tuesday) and Wednesday.

(RICHFIELD) – A Richfield man escaped serious injury when another vehicle collided with him late Saturday night on Main Street in Richfield. According to a UHP report, 18-year old, Dustin Pence was traveling southbound in the outside lane, when he was impacted by a 2010 Dodge Avenger, driven by 22-year old Matej Hrusovsky of Slovakia at about 11pm. The report said that Hrusovsky was also traveling southbound in the inside lane when he made a quick right turn at 1160 South Main and hit Pence, driving a 2000 Dodge 1500 pickup. The crash pushed Pence over the curb. Both drivers were wearing their seatbelts and escaped injury. Hrusovsky was cited for failing to yield right of way.

(PROVO)-As the world falls more into degeneracy and despair, strong families and homes are essential, was the message of Elder Richard G. Scott’s address to young adults Sunday evening at Brigham Young University’s Marriott Center.

Elder Scott, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ Quorum of Twelve Apostles, using a mixture of humor and instruction, interviewed a young couple during his address, wherein they told the congregation of the blessing marriage has been to them.

Afterward, Elder Scott spoke of the importance of men treating their wives with property courtesy and that they should remember important decorum at all times, regardless of the situation they may be in.

In closing, Elder Scott reminded the congregation of the importance of having strong marriage and family ties to combat Satan’s tactics, which are based on destroying that which is most dear to members of the Church.

(CEDAR CITY)-Southern Utah University and a Utah state land agency have inked an agreement enabling students and foresters to use a local forest as an interactive laboratory.

SUU and the Utah State Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands will share use of university’s 2,200-acre Mountain Ranch on Cedar Mountain as a demonstration forest, according to a Salt Lake Tribune report.

Forestry and fire officials will use the land to practice forest and fire management techniques. Students and faculty will use it to learn about forestry, agriculture and outdoor education.

The agreement, which will be in place for 20 years, became effective August 31 and was signed by SUU President Michael Benson and state forester Richard Buehler.

The university acquired the Mountain Ranch land through donations dating back at least 80 years, stated Brian Cottam, SUU’s associate director for government relations and regional services.

The property has primarily been used to study sheep grazing, as the university manages herds of about 400 animals.

The idea for a demonstration forest began to grow two years ago when an advisory council was formed with the state to discuss how the forest could be used for the benefit of all, said Cottam, whose office oversees the property.

The new demonstration program will be financed with an $100,000 federal stimulus grant and will dovetail with SUU’s agriculture college and a degree program focusing on outdoor recreation in parks and tourism.

Patrick Moore, the state’s forester for southwestern Utah, said foresters will use the area to study wildlife, water and air-quality issues while thinking of new ways to enhance forestry in the region.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County Commissioners will hold a work session Tuesday morning to consider an application for the construction of a gas-fired power plant near Sigurd. Commissioners want to scrutinize the particulars of a Planned Unit Development application submitted by Sevier Power Company. SPC representatives will meet with Commissioners to answer questions on the PUD. The work session will be held Tuesday at 9am in the Commission Chambers at the Administration Building in Richfield. The public is invited to attend but no comment will be taken.

(ST. GEORGE)-Data from a statewide crime survey shows a downturn in the annual rate of serious crimes in many southern Utah communities.

Preliminary data from the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification released last month shows a drop in the number of robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries, thefts and stolen vehicles across Washington County between 2008 and 2009.

The Spectrum of St. George also reported that the downward trend was also seen in nearby Beaver and Iron counties while Iron County saw an increase in the number of reported rape and arson cases. Iron County also had the highest per-capital rate of overall crime.

Only Kane County bucked this trend as it reported a sharp increase in overall crime.

Report data shows a spike in theft cases, or larcenies, countywide while in Kanab, larcenies tripled from 28 to 107.

Among southern Utah cities, St. George has the largest crime per capital ratio, while Hurricane and Washington City were second and third on the list respectively.

Nevertheless, St. George has had an overall decrease in crime which in part is because of St. George police officers closely tracking data related to crimes, according to department spokesman, Johnny Heppler.

(RICHFIELD) – Health professionals, counselors and educators from around the state and our local area gathered over the weekend in Richfield for a health summit. Speakers at the summit met with the public on Saturday for the day-long seminar at the Sevier Valley Center in Richfield to discuss tobacco, prescription drug and substance abuse around the state. Dr. Glen Hanson, professor of the University of Utah School of Medicine, said Utah is low on hard, illegal drug abuse, compared to the nation but high in prescription drug abuse. Other lecturers included youth outreach coordinators, teachers, counselors, state education officials and tobacco prevention representatives. Those who attended the conference included those from the Central Utah Drug Task Force, Richfield Police and Sevier County Sheriff’s Departments, Central Utah Counseling and Utah Health Departments. Attendees were entertained by local performers from “Sevier’s Got Talent”, sponsored by the Sevier Valley Substance Abuse Coalition.

MANTI, Utah (AP)-Matt Grover ran for 106 yards on 19 carries and a pair of touchdowns while Jon Jones amassed 194 all-purpose yards and two more scores as the Cedar Redmen smacked the Manti Templars, 35-13 Friday in non-region football action. Allen Fowles had 19 carries for 95 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the loss for Manti.

SPANISH FORK, Utah (AP)-Colby Limb, Boedi Lofland and Anthony Gibson each scored touchdowns and the Beaver Beavers snuck past the American Leadership Eagles, 20-14 in non-region football action Friday.

PAROWAN, Utah (AP)-Zack Wood accounted for five touchdowns and the Parowan Rams bludgeoned the Gunnison Bulldogs, 52-15 Friday in non-region football action.

PAYSON, Utah (AP)-Spencer McPherson returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown while Ryan Worwood, Taren Wright and Johnny Dykster also scored as the Juab Wasps ousted the Payson Lions, 29-21 in non-region football action Friday.

MOAB, Utah (AP)-Jesse Rhodes ran for four touchdowns and Nate Robison added another score as the Millard Eagles got past the Grand Red Devils, 32-21 Friday in non-region football action.

KANAB, Utah (AP)-Telon Weiss tossed for three touchdowns and the Moapa Valley (Nev.) Pirates shellacked the Kanab Cowboys, 48-7 in non-region football action Friday. Brandon Nielson hauled in a 30-yard touchdown pass in the loss for Kanab.

MAPLETON, Utah (AP)-Rhett Bird threw for a pair of touchdowns and Bradee Sunderland returned a fumble 17 yards for another score as the North Sanpete Hawks held off the Maple Mountain Golden Eagles, 28-27 Friday in non-region football action.

ENTERPRISE, Utah (AP)-Slade Moyle threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more as the Enterprise Wolves hammered the North Sevier Wolves, 47-0 in non-region football action Friday.

MONROE, Utah (AP)-Tyler Sorensen threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more scores as the Richfield Wildcats decimated the South Sevier Rams, 40-0 Friday in non-region football action.

DELTA, Utah (AP)-Parker Anderson threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third score as the South Summit Wildcats gashed the Delta Rabbits, 22-7 in non-region football action Friday.

BICKNELL, Utah (AP)-Taylor Albrecht doubled but it wasn’t enough as the Piute Thunderbirds downed the Wayne Badgers, 7-4 Friday in Region 20 baseball action.

(ST. GEORGE) – A Washington County man reportedly high on cocaine was tasered by police Thursday after jumping out of a moving vehicle on I-15. St. George police reported that several people called dispatch at about 7am, complaining of a man causing a disturbance and endangering himself in northbound lanes on the freeway. Police said the man jumped from the vehicle which was traveling about 50 miles-per-hour. When officers arrived, they discovered the man’s girlfriend was taking him to the hospital after he had taken a large dose of cocaine and was suffering from an adverse reaction. Police reports said the man was uncontrollable and had to be tasered to take him into custody. He was taken to the hospital and treated for complications from ingesting an excessive amount of cocaine and booked into the county jail on multiple charges.

(RICHFIELD) – Several road closure notifications have been lifted in the Piute Trail System due to the Twitchell Canyon Fire burning northeast of Beaver. Fire personnel say the wildfire has now burned nearly 11,000 acres and is five percent contained. Managers anticipate another six miles of fireline will be built by firefighters, most of which will be in the northeastern portion of the fire perimeter. Officials say several roads in the Piute Trail System have now been opened to travel, including the Max Reid Trail, Dry Wash, Deer and Beaver Creeks and Poison Creek Roads. Three other forest roads remain closed near the wildfire but should not affect outdoor enthusiasts who will be joining the ATV Jamboree slated for Sept. 20. Communities in the Sevier Valley may still see smoke from the fire.

(GUNNISON) – A Gunnison home polluted by the fumes of the Top Stop gas spill in 2007 is being torn down today. City officials say the home of Jeremy and Marlo Taylor, located at 255 South 100 West in Gunnison, is being demolished because fumes from the gas spill cannot be dispersed in the home. Reports say the Taylor’s have not occupied their new home since they were notified of the leak in 2007. City officials also said the Taylor’s were not able to recover their losses from Wind River, Inc., the owners of the Top Stop gas station.

(LAYTON)-Utah Governor Gary Herbert championed what he called a “triple play day” Thursday for northern Davis County commemorating a groundbreaking ceremony for a large-scale composites manufacturing company planning to the anchor tenant of a long-anticipated aerospace industrial park.

Later, he helped usher in the announcement that Janicki Industries of Washington D.C. will be in tandem with an $100 million capital investment by ATK to locate a composites campus at a building at Freeport Center.

Over the next 20 years, the facility is expected to create more than 800 full-time skilled employee positions.

The two announcements were followed by an event at Hill Air Force Base where the opening of “Building 674,” was officially observed in a ceremony signaling the start of operations for an F-22 composite aircraft overhaul and test facility.

Herbert said the state is positioning itself to continue its aerospace traditions that will leave a legacy for years to come.

ATK officials say they already have work set to go to fill commercial and military orders that include the Air Bus 350 and the F-35 Joint Striker Fighter or the Lightning.

With the facility at Hill Air Force Base already under consideration as a preferred site for the location of three Squadrons of the Lightning, the private business ventures of Janicki and ATK will fit a niche well into the future, noted Utah Senator Orrin Hatch in remarks read at the Layton groundbreaking.

(ST. GEORGE)-Sunday, a number of graves in St. George were damaged after police say two drunken men went on a vandalism spree.

Police discovered an “extensive amount of damage,” to more than a dozen headstones at the St. George City Cemetery, said police spokesman Johnny Heppler.

Heppler said there was also damage incurred to a maintenance shed that had had its windows broken out.

Overall, Heppler estimates there were over $12,000 incurred in damages.

Police were summoned to the area (near Tabernacle and 700 East) by the owner of a nearby convenience store who noticed two drunk men acting inappropriately while Heppler said police spotted them at 600 East and Tabernacle, near the western edge of the cemetery.

After a short foot chase, 20-year-old Rykky Perez and 19-year-old Jordan Orr were arrested for investigation of criminal mischief.

Heppler said they admitted to responsibility for vandalism in a subsequent police interview and stated the culprits blamed their drunkenness for their actions.

(SALT LAKE CITY) – An LDS Apostle will speak at a Constitution Day event planned for later this month in Salt Lake City. Organizers of the event have selected Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, as a speaker of a two-day series of lecturers on the Constitution. Oaks is a former Utah Supreme Court Justice and was on Pres. Ronald Reagan’s short list for the U.S. Supreme Court. Oaks will speak on Sept. 17 at the LDS Tabernacle on Temple Square and Sen. Bob Bennett, a Utah Supreme Court Justice, will be speaking Sept. 18, along with several educators. Admission is free but tickets will be required and can be ordered online at lds.org/events. A limit of four tickets per family is allowed.

(SAN BRUNO, Calif.)-Fire crews sprayed water on smoldering homes Thursday evening after a massive explosion triggered by a broken gas line sent flames roaring through a neighborhood near San Francisco, killing six and injuring dozens more, officials said Friday.

Crews are still working to douse the flames and authorities say there could be other casualties and the number of deaths is rising, stated San Francisco-based Senator, Leland Yee.

California Lieutenant Governor, Abel Maldonado, said he knew of at least four people being killed and more than 50 injured during a news conference.

Reportedly, a natural gas line ruptured in the area Thursday evening at 6:24 p.m. PDT and the explosion, which shot a fireball 1,000 feet in the air, was heard for miles around.

By late Thursday, subsequent flames continued to shoot at least 100 feet in the air while the fire had spread to 15 acres and was 78 percent contained.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company said in an e-mailed statement they are responsible and will take accountability for the incident.

Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board said it had sent a four-member team to San Bruno, a city of 40,165 residents about 12 miles south of San Francisco, to investigate the blast.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Records in the state archives of Utah show big donors are getting meetings with incumbent Utah Governor, Gary Herbert, as the gubernatorial race intensifies.

Meanwhile, these donors appear to be getting favorable statement from the state although Herbert insists there is no connection.

Donors include a prominent southern Utah mine, the I-15 CORE reconstruction in Utah County and Provo River Constructors although John Njord of the Utah Department of Transportation says the Provo River team won the bid because they agreed to do more work through the canyon more swiftly than had been projected.

However, Herbert’s competitor, Salt Lake County Mayor, Peter Corroon, says things look funny in Herbert’s campaign and his campaign says they plan to address this in some new spots raising questions on the matter next week.

(ELSINORE) – A man was arrested for drug possession on I-70 after a crash south of the Elsinore exit over last weekend. Sevier County Information Officer Nate Curtis said he was close to the incident and responded. Curtis said that when he arrived on scene, he noticed the man and another woman standing outside of a small tan passenger car. A sheriff’s report stated that the woman told Curtis that she had fallen asleep at the wheel, overcorrected and ran down an embankment. Curtis said the situation appeared suspicious and he asked the man if he could search the vehicle. The search indicated a Coca-Cola box containing a baggie of 108 grams of Crystal Meth. The man, who identified himself as 50-year old, Randy Sabers, was arrested and charged with possession of Meth with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was booked into the Sevier County Jail. Curtis said Sabers has several felony drug charge convictions.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County Commissioners approved a vacation transfer request for a deputy injured in an accident on I-15 last month. Public Information Officer Nate Curtis met with Commissioners at this week’s meeting to make the request for Deputy David Larson, who was ejected from his private vehicle when a tire blew apart while he was traveling toward Nephi. Curtis said it was honorable for officers to step up to help Larson out while recuperating from his injuries. He said Larson has used up all his vacation and compensation time while away from work and appreciates all the officers that contributed their own time to help him out.

(ZION NATIONAL PARK)-Zion National Park superintendent, Jock Whitworth, has announced the start of a project to rehabilitate campsites and improve utilities in the tent-only areas of Watchman Campground.

The project will consist of reconstruction and delineation of 69 campsites with new site furnishings, such as resurfacing the road system, re-vegetation, installing new irrigation lines and water and sewer line improvements.

The Loop D tent area will be closed as of Tuesday October 12 while the two camping loops will be closed until the project’s completion in early April 2011.

The project is being funded by fees collected in Zion National Park as part of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act.

(ST. GEORGE) – A Southern Utah newspaper conducted an analysis for arsenic levels after several water wells were shutdown last week in the St. George area. The Spectrum of St. George bought self-test kits to evaluate levels of arsenic in drinking water Sunday from wells in St. George, Washington, Hurricane and Ivins, to check compliancy with new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards. The tests showed that the water wells were performing at EPA standards. The cities voluntarily shut down the wells in an effort to meet the newer, stricter standards regarding arsenic content. The nine wells produced about 15% of the city’s water supply before they were shutdown.

(OGDEN)-The final site plan for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ renovation of its temple in Ogden got the go-ahead from the city’s planning commission Wednesday.

The project, which involves creating a new exterior for the 38-year-old temple, as well as renovating the interior and removing the steeple from the adjacent Ogden Tabernacle, doesn’t have an official start date, stated project manager Greg Rasmussen.

The starting date for demolition, sometime in 2011, is expected to be announced later this year.

Otto Gehring, an architect with The Richardson Design Partnership, said the goal of reinforcing the seismic stability of the temple will be instrumental in enhancing downtown Ogden’s profile while the Tabernacle is hoped to be a place for community events, such as parties and wedding receptions.

Ogden planning manager, Greg Montgomery, said the temple’s renovation could be a major impetus in giving a much-needed boost to downtown Ogden’s economy.

Gehring told planning commissioners that the renovation will add up to 50 parking spaces while there are currently about 400 parking slots.

Other changes include moving the temple’s main entrance from the west side to the east, facing Washington Boulevard, while maintaining a west entrance and having a street-side dropoff while the temple property would also consist of a fountain and gardens.

(DENVER)-The U.S. Forest Service plans to cut about 14,000 acres of trees near communities and in more than 350 recreation sites throughout Colorado and Wyoming as it deals with damage from an insect epidemic that has killed millions of acres of pine forests.

The agency has mapped out the projects in response to questions from U.S. Senator Mark Udall about how $30 million will be spent on Colorado’s bark beetle problem.

In June, the Colorado Democrat said he was worried money may not be sufficient to address the problem.

People in communities near the hardest-hit areas were also concerned about problems with beetle-killed trees falling and quickly burning in cases of wildfire, said Doug Young, one of Udall’s representatives.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the Forest Service, announced in late 2009 that it would funnel $40 million to the Rockies to attack the beetle problem.

Of those allotted funds, $30 million would be used to cut infested trees and for other work in Colorado’s White River, Medicine Bow-Routt, Arapahoe and Roosevelt national forests.

The rest of the money will be used in beetle-ravaged areas in Wyoming and the Black Hills of western South Dakota.

A national team of experts is helping the Forest Service manage the attack against the pine beetle infestation.

Last week, the regional Forest Service office in Denver said the agency has removed beetle-killed trees from 268 campgrounds and along 89 miles of trails over the past 9 months.

Forest managers said contractors have removed beetle-infested trees from along 258 miles of roads.

Udall said more money is needed to combat this epidemic which has currently killed more than 3.5 million acres of pine trees.

Other Western states with beetle infestation problems include Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington while more than 30 million acres of pine forests have been affected in western Canada.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-September is expected to be “idle-free” awareness month throughout the state of Utah.

State and city leaders throughout Utah are signing on to a campaign which would keep auto exhaust to a minimum and clean up the air.

The plan is for drivers to shut off their ignition when stopped in places such as parking lots and drive-thrus at restaurants or pharmacies.

It is believed this will save gas and reduce emissions at the same time.

For more information, please visit www.idlefree.utah.gov.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-A Utah commercial real estate brokerage firm is taking over a Las Vegas franchise.

Commerce Real Estate Solutions says it has acquired the assets of Prudential IPG Commercial of Las Vegas.

Terms of the deal were not released.

Commerce already operates in Las Vegas and says the merger will make for one of the city’s largest commercial brokerages while the firms will maintain separate offices.

Commerce CEO and President, Mike Lawson, says the firms have been looking at combining operations for a while.

Prudential’s focus was on industrial real estate giving Commerce a new market.

The managing broker of Prudential IPG Commercial, Cassie Catania, says the partnership will be good for her agency too.

She is assuming a new position as branch broker for her firm.

(Gunnison) The South Sanpete School District has finalized the sale of the old Gunnison Elementary school building. Fieldstone Academy purchased the building on September 3rd for $251,000 dollars. The purchase included 20 shares of water, 20 acres of land, as well as some school furniture and equipment. The school district retained the mineral right and the bus compound. Fieldstone Academy is a private boarding school for boys primarily in grades nine through twelve. It is not a troubled youth home, or “youth in custody” facility. The Academy also has a facility in Richfield and operates on a nine month school year schedule. The program focuses on helping students who are academically deficient to get back on track for high school graduation.

(RICHFIELD) – Farmers and ranchers in Sevier County are feeling the effects of a poor hay crop throughout the summer due to severe spring rains. USU Extension Agent Jody Gale said the late spring storms damaged crops throughout the region. Gale said that hay prices have been fair but could have been better if spring rains had not damaged so much of the hay. He said the dairy industry normally sets the hay price and dairy farmers have been hit hard with declining revenues. Gale commented that Sevier Valley is not normally suited for fourth crop hay production, so farmers had to rely on the hope that their second and third crop yield would be productive but it didn’t happen over the summer months.

(RICHFIELD) – Discussions over city street and parking lot lights took center stage at the Richfield City Council meeting Tuesday night. Councilmembers discussed the use of white lights or the traditional amber lights when lights needs to be replaced or repaired. Officials said that white lights give more light but the amber lights last longer. Councilmember Mike Turner questioned whether the city wants more decorative lights or more safety when replacing lights and councilmember Richard Barnett commented that the city wants both. Further discussions also revealed the city saves more money by maintaining lights, rather than Rocky Mountain Power doing the work. At the end of discussions, the city adopted an updated standard for street lights but officials still need to decide on what kinds of lights to install.

ESCALANTE, Utah (AP)-Jacob Ihde belted a pair of triples while Mauricio Hernandez added two doubles as the Milford Tigers shellacked the Escalante Moquis, 26-0 Wednesday in Region 20 boys baseball action.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Riley Miller went yard twice and amassed seven RBI in the fourth inning alone as the Panguitch Bobcats dismantled the Piute Thunderbirds, 15-1 in Region 20 boys baseball action Wednesday. Kelton Price doubled in the loss for Piute.

FILLMORE, Utah (AP)-Keri Brunson, Krystyn Stevens, Makinzie Hunter and Shelby Sheriff each scored and the Millard Lady Eagles bested the Manti Lady Templars, 4-1 in non-region girls soccer action Wednesday. Ali Rosquist scored the sole goal for Manti.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Kalani Norris set a new state record for kills as she amassed 25 kills in a 3-0 win for the Panguitch Lady Bobcats over the Wayne Lady Badgers Wednesday in Region 20 volleyball action. Norris now has 1,509 kills for her career, eclipsing former Woods Cross standout Kathryn Lovell who had 1,504 kills. Olympian and Highland High product, Logan Tom is third in Utah state annals with 1,355 career kills.

(RICHFIELD) – Sevier County Commissioners denied a recreation tax increase at the county commission meeting today but approved a Transient Room Tax Rate hike. Commissioner Gordon Topham said the county has no recreation department, so there was no need to impose the tax. Tourism Director Kevin Arrington approached Commissioners with the hope that officials would raise the Transient Room Tax Rate from 3% to 4.25%, the highest the state of Utah will allow for a room tax rate. Arrington said visitors to Sevier County enjoy the events and activities the county offers and the rate hike will help fund those activities. He said the rate increase would begin to be collected on Jan. 1, 2011. Commissioners both denied the recreation tax increase but approved the Transient Room Tax Rate, which only affects motels and campgrounds in the county.

(DENVER)-A wind-whipped Colorado wildfire sent flames through a rugged canyon in the state’s northern foothills.

Tuesday, authorities acknowledged that the fire also burned the homes of several firefighters battling the blaze.

The blaze initially broke out northwest of Boulder, Colo. in Four Mile Canyon and rapidly spread across 5.5 square miles while erratic 45 m.p.h. wind gusts sent the fire in several directions sporadically.

Fire managers have said 1,000 homes had to be evacuated from the canyon as of Tuesday.

Footage from Denver’s KUSA-TV has confirmed the danger the fire presents in Colorado’s rocky terrain.

In the interim, the Red Cross has set up an overnight evacuation center at the Coors Events Center on the University of Colorado’s campus at Boulder.

A shelter for livestock has also been set up at the Boulder County Fairgrounds in Longmont, Colo.

(FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.)-The 23-year-old Fredonia, Ariz. man accused of murdering a Kane County sheriff’s office deputy has been returned to his native state to face the charges.

The Arizona Daily Sun of Flagstaff, Ariz. reports that Scott Curley had his initial appearance at the Coconino County (Ariz.) Detention Facility Saturday and is being held without bond at this time, according to jail personnel.

He was returned to Arizona last week after slaying Harris during a foot chase near Fredonia.

Coconino County issued a warrant for his arrest on a murder charge and Curely did not fight extradition charges.

While Curley was sent to Flagstaff Friday, his next court date has not yet been set.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-An exhibit opening Wednesday evening at the University of Utah depicts 30 undocumented students at the U. who are undocumented immigrants.

Proposed legislation on the matter, which would create citizenship for undocumented immigrants who arrived as children, has been mired in immigration politics for nearly a decade.

The United States is home to about 2.1 million undocumented immigrants who arrived as children.

Under current law, many cannot legally work, go to college or obtain financial aid. Undocumented students in Utah may enjoy tuition for instate colleges but only if they’ve attended schools in the state for at least three years.

Of course, many Utah lawmakers remain reticent to create a change in the state’s stance on this issue.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The fifth year of the “Parents Empowered” campaign against underage drinking in Utah commenced Tuesday with incumbent governor, Gary Herbert, and other state officials urging Utahns to pay attention.

Herbert said the goal is to educate families and youth about the dangers of underage drinking as the latest television spots on the issue were aired during the proceedings.

State Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and several other legislative leaders in attendance noted the program was spared from this year’s massive budget cuts.

The spots primarily focused on the impact parental involvement can have in preventing young people from starting to drink.

The state’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, which manages Utah’s monopoly on the sales of liquor, wine and high-alcohol beer, generates significant state revenues, including more than $26 million for school lunches.

DABC officials had previously been vocal about their concerns over losing revenue as a result of cuts, but auditors said it wasn’t clear this would be the case.

The Legislative Auditor General’s Office is expected to release a more detailed examination of the department next week.

(PROVO)-Individuals need to learn to balance activities in their lives with the appropriate amount of zeal those activities require, Brigham Young University President, Elder Cecil O. Samuelson said Tuesday.

President Samuelson, who is also a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints’ First Quorum of Seventy, and his wife Sharon, served as keynote speakers for the university’s first devotional of the fall semester.

President Samuelson said that while numerous people are passionate about politics or their favorite sports teams, an unhealthy level of zeal can lead to unnecessary discord with our friends, families and others we come across on a daily basis.

During his address, President Samuelson referenced and endorsed a report that will soon be released by the BYU Presidential Commission on Sportsmanship, a group chosen broadly across the community.

The report includes suggestions and recommendations.

In closing, President Samuelson told the audience that it’s important to maintain appropriate decorum and conduct in all situations, regardless of whether or not others may not treat you appropriately and warned of the danger of judging others.

Devotionals will recur on a weekly basis throughout the fall semester.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah Governor Gary Herbert’s office is estimating that the state’s budget shortfall is about $28 million.

The news was actually better than some had anticipated while previous estimates ranged from $50 million to $150 million.

The estimates are for the budget year that ended June 30.

Final, audited budget numbers for the previous fiscal year will not be released until November.

Herbert said in a statement the estimates are a sign Utah’s economy is improving.

(WEST JORDAN)-Polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs is fighting his extradition to Texas.

Tuesday, Jeffs appeared in 3rd District Court and refused to sign a waiver which would have allowed Texas authorities to transfer him there to face criminal charges.

In June, he refused to sign a similar warrant and his lawyer says he’ll continue to fight his extradition.

While Tuesday’s hearing was brief, the stage is set for another legal showdown once he returns to Texas.

In Texas, Jeffs faces numerous charges ranging from bigamy to aggravated sexual assault.

About a dozen of Jeffs’ followers, all men, attended Tuesday’s hearing and as a sign of respect for their leader, they stood during the proceedings.

(RICHFIELD) – The development of a sewer dump station in Richfield will not be happening anytime soon. At the city council meeting last night, the Council discussed whether there was enough interest in establishing a dump but most councilmembers determined there was no need for it and voted to table the item indefinitely. Councilmember Dan Chidester was the only one voting in favor of continuing the discussion because of problems of outdoor recreationists using public land to dump their refuse. Chidester said that the city has property available at the south end of the Industrial Park and can hook up to the sewer line at that location. He says he thinks the issue is dead and the city council won’t bring up the issue in future meetings.

(RICHFIELD) – The Richfield City Council has decided against establishing a minor subdivision ordinance. At the city council meeting Tuesday night, the council discussed minimum improvements in R-1 zones for developers who want to divide one lot into two, or more. City Building Inspector Paul Hinrichs said the council will use a Waiver of Improvements on a case-by-case basis. Hinrichs said even though the city won’t have a minor subdivision ordinance, city officials can still waive improvements, according to circumstances. The council voted unanimously on the measure.

(WEST VALLEY CITY) – The search for a West Valley City mother of two is now in its ninth month since she disappeared from her home last December. The emotions surrounding the disappearance of Susan Powell are still very fresh after thousands of hours of investigation have turned up no sign of the woman. Powell’s husband, Josh, is still considered the only person of interest in the case and his sister, Jennifer Graves, says she thinks he has knowledge of her whereabouts. Graves commented that the fact that no new information has been presented about Susan’s case is still very frustrating. West Valley City Police reports say that more than 6,800 man-hours have been spent over the past nine months searching for Powell at a cost of around $150,000. Police say that five detectives are still active with the case. Graves says she still hopes that something will happen soon to locate Powell. Josh Powell’s family says they think Susan left on her own the morning she disappeared on Dec. 7, 2009.

(MT. PLEASANT) – Water officials in Mt. Pleasant are concerned about the lack of irrigation water in a water year that’s already in short supply. Pleasant Creek Water Master Lynn Larsen said several incidences have occurred recently that left water users without the necessary water they need. Larsen said two other incidences involved kids playing with flow brackets in ditches and allowing water to escape. He said the Pleasant Creek Irrigation Company is constructing steel brackets and chains with locks to stop the vandalism. Company President Mark Jorgensen says he believes some water theft has also been a problem with some farmers taking more water than what they’re allocated, causing early drainage of the canals. He says he has to move his sprinkler pipe twice a day at his farm to keep up with what water is available. Jorgensen says he hopes officials keep the pressure on the Utah Legislature to push the Gooseberry Narrows Water Project to bring more water to the northern end of Sanpete County.

(RICHFIELD) – The Fishlake Resource Advisory Committee will hold their second meeting of the year to establish operating guidelines for the RAC and recommend projects for approval. The meeting will be held this Wednesday beginning at 10am at the Sevier County Administration Building and the public is invited to attend to offer comment. Forest officials say funding in the amount of $454,821 is available for projects decided upon in 2008 and 2009 and $208,000 available for projects in 2010 and $187,000 in 2011. The projects must be decided upon by Sept. 30, 2012 for funding to be finalized for the projects.

(Ephraim) Snow College is gearing up for its second series of Entrepreneurship Seminars, beginning this week. The seminars are designed to give local business owners and other entrepreneurs an opportunity to receive advice from successful business leaders from around the state. The seminars will be held each Wednesday at 12:30 PM at the new Karen Huntsman Library at Snow College in Ephraim. The presentations are free of charge, but can also be attended for college credit. This weeks speaker will be David Bateman, the CEO of Property Solution. The topic of the presentation will be “financing your business”. The public is invited to attend any or all of the seminars.

(FLAGSTAFF, Ariz.)-American Indian tribes, intent on protecting the San Francisco Peaks, near Flagstaff, Ariz., which they believe to be sacred have seat aside their differences in order to weigh in on the debate of snowmaking in this mountainous region.

The matter in question concerns the Flagstaff City Council’s to stick with its original contract providing treated wastewater to the Arizona Snowbowl for snowmaking purposes.

Officials had also considered sending potable water to the resort near Flagstaff.

Representatives of various feuding tribes weighed in with their thoughts at a Flagstaff city council meeting last week and while they remained unsure about how to proceed, they remain undaunted in standing up for what they believe in.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has long tried to forge a compromise among the tribes, the city of Flagstaff and Snowbowl resort owners after the tribes lost a legal battle over religious rights.

However, the tribes still are reticent to allow snowmaking, regardless of what type of water is used.

Last July, the USDA acknowledged a compromise wasn’t possible and issued a permit for snowmaking.

Navajo Nation Tribal Council President, Joe Shirley Jr., says desecration is inevitable and that these decisions hurt the indigenous peoples who have lived in these areas for centuries.

Tribal leaders said they remain hopeful that the city of Flagstaff will continue to hear their concerns.

Hopi Tribe chairman, LeRoy Shingoitwea, said the city owes these tribes more respect as thousands of Hopis and Navajos spend millions of dollars to fund Flagstaff’s economy as many of the indigenous residents of northern Arizona do their shopping in the city, consisting of nearly 53,000 residents.

(ZION NATIONAL PARK)-The Angels Landing hiking trail in Zion National Park will be closed periodically from mid-September-mid-October according to a press release issued by the park.

Additionally, from September 15 and 16 to September 22 and 23, the West Rim Trail will be closed from The Grotto to Scout Lookout, while Angels Landing will be closed from its summit to Scout Lookout as well.

All climbing routes on the cliff faces of Angels Landing will also be closed during these periods.

During this time, a park crew will be working on route improvements, including re-chiseling existing steps and drilling and installing new posts and chains in some areas.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The Utah Department of Corrections is seeing a dramatic rise in the number of elderly inmates over the past decade. Conversely, as the inmates get older, costs to cover their medical expenses are also rising.

In the past six years, the percentage of inmates over the age of 55 (the age when prisoners are considered to be senior citizens) has increased to more than 8 percent.

The Utah State Prison’s infirmary is well equipped to handle many injuries sustained during prison life, although there’s several issues personnel cannot handle.

Correction officials aren’t exactly sure how much they’re suspending to treat inmates, but they know costs have escalated and are currently trying to pinpoint why.

(BEAVER) – The Great Basin Incident Management Team is taking over a wildfire burning northeast of Beaver due to the spread of the fire from high winds. Fire officials report the Twitchell Canyon Fire, burning about 14 miles northeast of Beaver, has now scorched about 7,000 acres and is now spreading to the north and east of the burn area. Officials report that about eight forest roads have been closed due to the increase of the fire but no structures are threatened. No injuries have been reported as a result of fighting the fire. Smoke may be visible from the Richfield, Marysvale and Beaver areas as firefighters work to manage the fire. The fire is being allowed to burn to reduce fuels in the area.

(MT. PLEASANT) – A 12-year old Spring City boy and the driver in another vehicle were taken to the hospital over the weekend after colliding at the intersection of SR-117 south of Mt. Pleasant. According to a UHP report, 69-year old Larry Langschwagner of Spring City was traveling westbound in a 2006 Chevy Impala, when he crossed U.S. 89 and was hit by another vehicle at about 9:45am Saturday. Langschwagner, along with his two sons, 13-year old Jordan and eight-year old, Jaxton, were all wearing seatbelts and not transported to the hospital but a passenger, 12-year old Trevor Mickel of Spring City, was taken to the Sanpete Valley Hospital with unknown injuries. He was also wearing his seatbelt. UHP said that the driver of a 1999 Honda Civic, 30-year old Joshua Craft of Spanish Fork, was traveling southbound on U.S. 89 and hit Langschwagner at the intersection. Craft was taken to the hospital with unknown injuries and his passenger, 27-year old Zachara Craft of Provo, was not injured. Langschwagner was cited for failure to yield.

MILFORD, Utah (AP)-Riley Miller had three hits and struck out 13 batters as the Panguitch Bobcats got past the Milford Tigers, 7-4 Saturday in Region 20 baseball action.

GUNNISON, Utah (AP)-Sarah Nilson had two goals while Kaitlyn Hyatt and Paola Serracini also scored as the Gunnison Lady Bulldogs downed the Virgin Valley (Nev.) Lady Bulldogs, 4-1 in non-region girls soccer action Saturday.

(RICHFIELD) – Four teachers in the Sevier School District were recognized at the Opening Institute for earning higher degrees. Three teachers that were honored at the Institute on Aug. 24 for receiving their Master’s Degrees included, Special Education teacher, Ammon Trimble from North Sevier High School, Richfield High science teacher, Nathan Blackner and Kristen Utley, Special Ed teacher at Richfield High and Red Hills Middle Schools. Trimble earned his Master’s at SUU, Blackner from the University of Maryland and Utley from the University of Utah, with an emphasis in Severe and Profound Special Education. North Sevier High School math teacher Renae Seegmiller was also recognized for earning a Doctorate Degree from the University of Montana in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in math education. All teachers received a certificate of recognition, a carry bag and applause and praise from their peers. Sevier School District Superintendent Myron Mickelson and board members John Johnson and Clint Johnson made the presentations.

(RICHFIELD) – The 300 North road construction project in Richfield continues to move forward to completion. Jones and DeMille Engineering representative Carson DeMille, says several parts of the project are nearing completion. DeMille said the project was held up for about two weeks due to crews removing phone and power lines and severe rains that drenched the work area last week. He said the project should be complete by the end of the month. Crews are asking motorists and pedestrians to be careful in work zones and avoid the area as much as possible.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The chances of the state of Utah going to court to try to refuse $101 million in federal education money have apparently been dashed as the result of a dismissive legal opinion from the Attorney General’s Office Thursday.

Assistant Attorney General, Jerrold Jensen, said in his opinion that the chance of the courts finding the law unconstitutional is as “close to zero” as one can get.

This view was reinforced by a similar opinion from the Legislature’s general counsel that also said the prospects for succeeding are unlikely.

The Education Jobs Fund of 2010 allocates $10 billion to states in an effort to keep recession-stricken schools from laying off teachers.

If states refuse this money, the law allows the U.S. Department of Education to send it directly to school districts.

Utah stands to get $101 million, which could prevent the loss of some 1,600 education jobs according to state officials.

The White House has estimated it would save 1,800 jobs.

If lawmakers were to pass a bill refusing the money or blocking districts from spending it, the federal preemption of state laws would require it to be released.

(ORDERVILLE)-U.S. Highway 89 will be closed in the Orderville area this afternoon for the funeral of slain Kane County Sheriff’s deputy Brian Harris.

Authorities will close the highway from 1:30-3:30 p.m. while motorists are advised to seek alternate routes during those hours.

For instance, those who need to go to St. George and are south of Orderville can take S.R. 9 through Zion National Park, or Arizona S.R. 389 out of Fredonia, Ariz., which becomes S.R. 59 en route to Hurricane.

Those who need to go to Cedar City can take S.R. 14 north of Orderville at Long Valley Junction, or S.R. 20 north of Panguitch which connects with Interstate 15 near Parowan.

(KANAB)-A man accused of ambushing and killing a Kane County Sheriff’s Deputy will head back to his native Arizona and appear in court.

Scott Curley, a 23-year-old Fredonia, Ariz. native, waived his extradition rights Thursday in court at Kanab.

Sixth District Judge, Paul Lyman, asked him if he knew what waiving those rights meant.

Curley said he did and he will now be transferred to Coconino County (Ariz.) court in Flagstaff, Ariz.

In addition to murdering deputy Brian Harris, Curley is also charged with attempted burglary and trespassing charges in Utah, although the Kane County attorney will allow Coconino County authorities to prosecute him first.

It is unclear at this point whether or not Coconino County authorities will submit him to the death penalty.

(FARMINGTON)-State court officials in Utah say 2nd District Court Juvenile Judge Kathleen M. Nelson has died as a result of injuries incurred in a fall. She was 58.

Utah State Courts spokeswoman, Nancy Volmer, said Nelson died Tuesday.

Volmer declined to prove details of the accident, citing concern for the judge’s family.

Nelson was the 2nd District’s presiding juvenile court judge and she was appointed to the bench in 1998 by then-governor Mike Leavitt in 1998.

She has been credited for developing drug court for juveniles in the district and presided over the Weber County Family Drug Court and Delinquency Court.

Juvenile court executive, Beani Martinez, says Nelson was best known for her “unwavering passion” for her job.

(JOSEPH) – A California man was injured when he impacted a concrete barrier twice on I-70 Wednesday afternoon. According to a UHP report, 68-year old Howard Wray of Medesto, CA., was traveling eastbound in a 2005 Hyundai Accent, when he apparently fell asleep at the wheel and drifted off the right shoulder of the highway about 13 miles west of Joseph at about 2pm. UHP said Wray overcorrected to the left and slammed into a concrete barrier and then overcorrected to the right and hit a concrete barrier on the opposite side of the highway. His vehicle came to rest on the shoulder of the highway. He was wearing his seatbelt and was transported to the Sevier Valley Medical Center in Richfield with unknown injuries.

BEAVER, Utah (AP)-Krystyn Stevens posted two goals while Keri Brunson and Shelby Sheriff also scored as the Millard Lady Eagles downed the Beaver Lady Beavers, 4-1 Thursday in Region 13 girls soccer action. Rachel Roberts had the sole goal in the game for Beaver.

SALINA, Utah (AP)-Jayden Bernhardi and Tavia Rice each amassed hat tricks and the Parowan Lady Rams smoked the North Sevier Lady Wolves, 7-0 in Region 13 girls soccer action Thursday.

MANTI, Utah (AP)-Kati Tucker and Kamee Christensen combined for 24 kills as the Manti Lady Templars swept the Gunnison Lady Bulldogs, 3-0 Thursday in non-region girls volleyball action.

(PHOENIX)-While numerous residents of the western United States have traditionally flocked to Arizona hot spots such as Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon for Labor Day weekend, the Arizona Department of Transportation has confirmed that there will be no construction closures on Arizona highways for the 3-day weekend.

KPHO-TV, Channel 5 in Phoenix reports that although there are no scheduled closures, ADOT spokesman, John Halikowski, urges visitors to remember that unscheduled closures may occur potentially at any time.

ADOT recommends visitors to bring extra drinking water, snack foods and other supplies to keep cool as Arizona still remains hotter than many of its neighboring states in the region well into September.

During Labor Day weekend last year, Arizona had an alarming amount of fatalities as seven people were killed in five fatal car crashes on Arizonan local roads and highways.

(RICHFIELD) – The Utah BLM is planning a prescribed burn Sept. 7-11 near Hanksville in Wayne County. Natural Resource Specialist Bob Bate says the burn will take place in an area known as Beaver Wash. Bate said the purpose of the burn is to get rid of standing, dead tamarisk, which is non-native vegetation, currently creating increased fuel loading. The BLM says that due to the increase of fire hazard of dead and dying herbicide-treated vegetation, the Richfield Field Office is creating a fuel break in riparian corridors to prevent the spread of invasive, non-natives and catastrophic wildfire, along with protecting the public and firefighter safety.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah District Judge Clark Waddoups reheard arguments in the Peni Cox vs. Recon Trust Company matter in which the plaintiff’s attorneys contend the court erroneously ruled it had jurisdiction and vacated the preliminary injunction issued by a state court halting Bank of American/Recon Trust foreclosures in Utah.

The oral and written presentation to the court by lawyers John Christian Barlow and E. Craig Smay said the court relied upon the erroneous conclusion of preemption.

The plaintiff’s attorneys asked the court to correct its findings and remand the case to state court.

Bank of America/Recon Trust’s attorneys asked the court to dismiss the action, claiming Cox lacked a cause of action while the plaintiff’s attorneys said Recon Trust used the bank to foreclose on homes.

Recon is permitted to serve as a trustee in the state but is required to register and have offices in the state along with its competitors, but only after it becomes a recognized entity. It will then be allowed to foreclose non-judicially.

Waddoups took the matter under advisement following both written and oral reports while his decision is expected in a few days following the judge’s memorandum decision explaining the basis upon which the case is determined.

The plaintiff has filed an appeal of the previous decision to the 10th Circuit Court in Denver which could be heard in late October, depending on the outcome of next Tuesday’s rehearing decision.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The flow of illegal immigrants to Utah has slowed to the point that it may have reversed direction with more of them returning to their native countries according to a statement released Wednesday by the Washington D.C.-based Pew Hispanic Center.

Furthermore, the study estimated the number of illegal immigrants dropped by 8 percent, or 10,000 people from 2008 to 2009.

Nevertheless, study authors cautioned those numbers are within statistical margins of error, so it’s possible no decrease occurred.

Of course, conservative leaders in the state believe these numbers could be outdated as the data was compiled more than a year ago.

The Pew study made its estimates by subtracting the number of citizens and legal immigrants from the overall foreign-born U.S. population annually estimated by the U.S. Census. It also assumes the residual are illegal immigrants.

Meanwhile, the Pew study also confirmed Arizona’s illegal immigration has plummeted by 21 percent although there is no evidence suggesting SB1070 played a role in this.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-Utah company, EnergySolutions Inc., says it has now officially closed an agreement to decommission a former nuclear power plant in the Chicagoland area of Illinois.

Exelon Nuclear hired EnergySolutions to handle the project at the Zion Power Station north of Chicago.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission licenses have been transferred to ZionSolutions, a subsidiary of EnergySolutions that will act as owner of the former plant during its deconstruction.

EnergySolutions says the transaction with Exelon should speed up the long process of dismantling the closed nuclear site safely.

(HELENA, Mont.)-A group of states seeking freedom from federal gun stipulations were dealt a blow Wednesday when a federal magistrate recommended dismissal of a lawsuit launched by gun rights advocates who argue Congress has overstepped its bounds in gun control.

Magistrate Jeremiah Lynch sided with the U.S. Department of Justice which says courts have already decided Congress can set standards on such items as guns through its power to regulate interstate commerce.

The recommendation is now slated to go to the federal judge in Missoula,Mont., Donald Molloy, who will be hearing the case while even gun rights advocates believe it’s likely he will side with the magistrate.

The issue was first launched last year when “firearm freedoms act” laws come into play backed by Montanan gun advocates with the backing of the governments of Montana, Utah, Alabama, Idaho, South Carolina, South Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming.

The states in question argue that they should decide which rules, if any, would control the sale and purchase of guns and paraphernalia made inside their borders.

They say the 10th Amendment of the Constitution assures the federal government only has those powers that are specifically given to it by the Constitution.

Lynch beat back this argument Tuesday and also challenged the standing of Gary Marbut and his Montana Shooting Sports Association to file the lawsuit in the first place.

(DELTA) – A public hearing was held Wednesday night in Delta concerning amending the General Plan on transmission line construction. Those who attended the Planning Commission meeting included representatives from Rocky Mountain Power and First Wind, Inc. to discuss construction of a 345-Kilovolt transmission line in the county. Planning Chairperson Sheryl Dekker said RMP and First Wind wanted a Conditional Use Permit for construction of the line but did not want Planners to amend the General Plan. The Planning Commission tabled the decision to amend the plan until further discussions can be held with the County Commissioners. Dekker said the General Plan requires amendments to be made to the Plan if entities want to construct transmission lines in the county.

ESCALANTE, Utah (AP)-Ty Rees had two doubles and Bryan Batty belted a triple as the Wayne Badgers decimated the Escalante Moquis, 20-0 Wednesday in Region 20 baseball action.

PANGUITCH, Utah (AP)-Kalani Norris amassed 23 kills and five aces to lead the Panguitch Lady Bobcats to a 3-0 sweep of the Piute Lady Thunderbirds in Region 20 volleyball action Wednesday. The Lady Bobcats have now won 43 consecutive matches in region play.

(BULLHEAD CITY, Ariz.)-ABC-15 in Phoenix reports that a boat explosion injured five people in Bullhead City, Ariz., a city about 97 miles southeast of Las Vegas.

The Bullhead City Fire Department says those injured Tuesday afternoon suffered burns when a pontoon-style boat exploded on the Colorado River.

A Bullhead City Fire Department battalion chief says those who were injured were taken to a local hospital.

A spokeswoman for Western Arizona Regional Medical Center says four patients were in stable condition and one was flown to University Medical Center in Las Vegas in critical condition.

The fire department says the boat exploded upon ignition.

(NEW YORK)-Leaders of both Judaism and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints issued a joint statement Wednesday acknowledging that concerns between members of both groups concerning baptisms for the dead have been eliminated.

According to the statement, which was issued to news media simultaneously in New York and Salt Lake City, The American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and Their Descendants had pointed out to the church that its practice of “proxy baptism” had caused unintentional pain due to the inclusion of names of Holocaust victims.

Today’s statement indicates a breakthrough has occurred as new computer systems change the way such names are submitted.

It credits “dialogue and extraordinary efforts of the Church” as well as “policy initiatives” with resolving the issue.

LDS doctrine teaches that those who have not received the gospel of Jesus Christ in this life may receive it after death while the practice of proxy baptism or “baptism for the dead,” as the Church calls it, allows them to receive this ordinance.

Church leaders note that their policy specifically precludes proxy baptism for Holocaust victims unless the name is submitted by an immediate family member or permission is granted from the most immediate family members.

Jewish and LDS leaders have discussed this practice for 15 years while in 1995, the Church removed thousands of Jewish names from its genealogical database in order to honor Jewish leaders who acknowledged the Holocaust provides a unique sensitivity and awkwardness.

In the interim, several safeguards have been initiated as Church members are now asked to certify that their submissions for proxy baptisms meet Church policy.

In the event that any inappropriate submissions are found, the new system allows the record of the baptism to be removed from the public database while submitters are contacted to ensure such errors are not repeated.

Furthermore, Church personnel also search records regularly to identify inappropriate submissions and prevent such baptisms from being performed.

Meanwhile, both Jews and Latter-Day Saints believe that their already amicable relationship will continue to blossom.

(WASHINGTON)-The country’s future energy prospects rest in the vast resources to be found in the state of Utah and other areas throughout the Intermountain West, said Mark Muro, a researcher for the Brookings Institution Tuesday.

The study, which Muro and his colleagues have undertaken is, in part, a promotion of “energy innovation hubs,” created under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy and agricultural experiment stations, such as the one at Utah State University in Logan.

It is believed the regional economy already has the expertise in spinning off new companies and creating jobs by seeding research advances in the marketplace.

Muro also said the University of Utah is tied with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with the highest number of research-related firms nationwide.

Meanwhile, USU is already a hub for sustainable energy research in biofuels, particularly in maximizing biomass production of oil-rich algae for use in alternative fuels, as well as investigating electric lighting consumption with the goal of reducing 35 percent of all U.S. electrical power consumed by industries.

Muro also lionized Utah for maintaining the pioneer spirit that led the area’s first colonists to the one-time arid desert in the 1840s as well as the state’s varied resources, ranging from low-sulfur coal to solar, wind and geothermal energy potential.

(SALT LAKE CITY)-The Utah Education Association has endorsed both gubernatorial candidates in the state’s race for governor.

Both of the candidates, incumbent Gary Herbert and challenger Peter Corroon, have met with the association’s political action committee seeking the endorsement of the teacher’s union.

UEA president, Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh, has praised Herbert for arguing against tough budget cuts in the last legislative session and Corroon for raising concerns about the decline in funding for public schools.

The decision to endorse both major candidates comes after the Utah Public Employees Association broke with tradition and backed Herbert.

This commemorates the first time in 18 years the public employee group has endorsed a Republican candidate for governor.

(SANTAQUIN)-The Utah Highway Patrol says a man and two children were killed while a mother and two other children were hurt in a rollover crash on Interstate 15 near Santaquin early Wednesday morning.

UHP troopers say the family was from Provo while investigators say it appears the male driver may have dozed off while driving on northbound I-15 at 75 miles an hour around 2:30 a.m.

The man and two girls, aged 11 and 4, were killed in the wreck, while a 1-year-old boy in a car seat received minor injuries.

The mother and a 6-year-old child were thrown from the vehicle, but survived.

They were taken to Mountain View Hospital in Payson with serious injuries while the 6-year-old was flown to Primary Children’s Medical Center thereafter.

(ZION NATIONAL PARK)-Zion National Park rangers say they will continue a crackdown on drunk drivers in the park throughout Labor Day weekend.

Park superintendent, Jock Whitworth, says rangers will expand DUI checkpoints and patrols to ensure a safe visit for the 2.7 million annual park visitors.

Enforcement activities will include sobriety checkpoints and increased patrols on many of the park’s roads.

Zion rangers will also partner with the Utah Highway Patrol on some of the enforcement activities.

High visibility patrols are also planned for late October, around Halloween, and hunting season.

Regular enforcement efforts will continue to occur throughout the year.