Dear Editor,
In your article about the Temple Mountain Troubles in the Dec. 28 newspaper you stated that $177,000 deferred maintenance funding and a Utah State OHV Grant was used to make some improvements to the area. Let me clarify the Utah State OHV Grant portion of it. The Price Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management applied for a grant of $125,000 in 2002. The money requested in the grant application was to be spent to close access to public lands for motorized OHVs with the exception of building one restroom. It was the consensus of the Advisory Council that more than one restroom was needed in the area and awarded $40,000 for two restrooms. The initial $125,000 was turned down because of the purpose for which is was intended (which was to close trails). When the restrooms were completed the BLM applied for reimbursement. But, because of their failure to follow proper procedure in the implementation of the grant their funds were not reimbursed.
Utah State OHV grant money comes from the registration a person pays on their OHVs. As an advisory council it is our responsiblility to see that the money is used for specified purposes among which are: trail development, trail maintenance, signage on trails, maps, trail systems, education, trail maintenance equipment, bridges, restrooms, trail heads, information kiosks and grooming of snowmobile trails.
These grants are available to any federal agency, political subdivision of the state, or organized user group for the construction, improvement, operation, acquisition, or maintenance of publicly owned or administered off-highway vehicle facilities including public access facilities.
New grant applications for 2005 are due by May 1. If you have any questions contact Utah State Parks or myself.
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