Demographics & Population

Utah’s Energy Use and Resources: Powering Our Standard of Living

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

How much energy do Utahns consume? How has it changed over time? Where does Utah’s energy come from? What can Utahns can expect for energy prices and supplies in the future? The Utah Priorities Survey ranked energy, including gas prices, as the number one issue of concern for Utahns this year. This report provides data and graphs to illustrate Utah’s current energy situation and trends, and makes these findings:

The 2008 Utah Priorities Survey: The Top Issues and Concerns of Utah Voters for the 2008 Election

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

Throughout this election year, Utah Foundation will work to provide information, analysis, and public dialogue on the issues that matter most to you as you consider the future of Utah. The project began with a survey conducted by Dan Jones and Associates to understand which issues are of greatest concern to voters. The results of this survey are now available here by clicking the links below. The survey found that the top 10 issues for … Continued

Property Tax or Sales Tax? Funding Transit Investments in Salt Lake County

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

This report analyzes the effects of proposed property or sales tax increases for transit improvements in Salt Lake County. The report was commissioned by the Salt Lake Chamber to help it understand the impacts each tax would have on household and business taxpayers with additional analysis on the policy and political implications of each tax option.

Fueling Our Future: Options for Financing Major Transportation Projects

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

Utah, especially along the Wasatch Front, is facing a transportation crisis. Among the components of the crisis are a growing population, constrained geography, limited funding, and highway capacity moving toward increased congestion. This summary provides a snapshot of funding alternatives that could be employed to fill the projected funding gap, which may be as large as $23 billion over the next 25 years.

Dealing with Growth in Utah

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

The rapid population growth that occurred in Utah during the 1990s is still expected to continue for the next thirty years. The challenges presented by the significant growth underlie many of the other top issues facing this state. Education, jobs, water supply, health care, crime, higher education, environment, and transportation are all greatly impacted by population growth. This brief will seek to explain how growth patterns will impact some of the top issues identified by … Continued

Utah’s Air Quality Improving But Vehicle Emissions a Growing Concern

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

The quality of Utah’s air was in the news a great deal during the last winter. Prolonged inversions along the Wasatch Front, coupled with concerns and miscalculations of air quality in the Cache Valley raised voters’ awareness of the issue. So how bad is Utah’s air? The answer depends quite a bit on which measure of air quality is being used. Those measures are tied to the standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) … Continued

Challenges in Meeting Utah’s Growing Transportation Needs

Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes

Utah faces a major challenge as the demand on the state’s transportation system continues to rapidly grow. From 1991 to 2001 Utah’s population increased 28%, while travel, measured by Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) increased by 52% (Figure 1). During that same period highway capacity (lane miles) on the state system has increased only about 2%. The rise in travel is a national trend, and the Federal Highway Administration forecasts that travel will increase another 50 … Continued