Business gets top billing from Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.

Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. wants to create a fertile field for business, Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert told a group of business people Friday during the second annual Nebo Economic Summit.

Utah County is facing a challenge to become a key element in that vision as it works to resolve a transportation crisis spurred by new growth, said Darrell Cook, executive director of the Mountainland Association of Governments. The agency is charged with regional highway planning.

"We’ll do our part to create the business climate — it’s up to you to find the business," Herbert said.

Business, rather than government, creates wealth and pays the bills, he said. While he opposes raising taxes on business — "It’s the people who pay them" — government should create a friendly business climate by not overtaxing, he said.

Utah doesn’t have as much ability to tax compared to other states, because more than 70 percent of its land mass is controlled by the federal government, Herbert said. The state gets "in lieu of tax payments" from the federal government, which Herbert compared to receiving "10 cents on the dollar."

Herbert also called for getting rid of "foolish regulations" that hamper business.

"(Overregulation) can run you out of business as quick as overtaxation," he said.

By Rodger L. Hardy
Deseret Morning News

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