Herbert taking an active role
He is eager to begin work on some heavy-duty assignments
"When we talked, we discussed the possibilities for about three and a half hours, and I told him, 'My answer depends on what you expect,' " he said. "He said he wanted someone who is capable of being governor, someone who complements the governor's office."
Now, after winning the November election, the GOP's Huntsman is doling out tasks to his top advisers — and Herbert has been given some heavy-duty assignments.
Herbert says he is starting to feel the weight of responsibility.
And truth be told, he's not sleeping as well at night.
"Specifically (Huntsman) is going to task me with transportation. Transportation is a significant mountain to climb. It's going to cost more than $20 million to fix. We need a short-, middle- and long-term plan, one we do not deviate from, one that's nonpolitical with autonomy left to local government."
Then there's the challenge of finding a way to pay for it all.
"It can't be parochial. That being said, we've heightened the awareness. I-15 in Utah County is now being recognized as a state problem," he said. "For us, it's a local road, but it is also the conduit from one end of the state to the other."
Huntsman also is asking Herbert to act as the liaison to the rural areas to discuss access to public lands, energy policies involving state trust lands and wilderness protection. He'll be dealing with water issues, too.
"The assignments involve issues that are significant, real and tough," he said. "It does seem a little bit overwhelming. The only thing that gives me peace is that Utah is blessed with good, decent people who are well-educated and a lot more sophisticated than some might think. Even with significant mountains to climb, we've got good people to climb with."
He's already expected to attend out-of-state conferences and nearly daily meetings in Salt Lake City related to his new job while he's still functioning as a county commissioner, a post he's held for 14 years.
He wants to hold up his end as a county commissioner but is expected to get recommendations and programs ready for Huntsman's review before the swearing-in this January.
That translates into a lot of 14-hour days and time on the road.
"There's just a lot to do. It's a significant balancing act," Herbert said. "It started right off. I was elected Tuesday night, got home to bed at 3 a.m. and had breakfast meetings at 7 a.m. that morning."
You can be the first to comment on this story.