The county permit Valar will need: state law says approve it if harms can be reasonably reduced; state law requires no hearing

recordconfirmed

2025-11-06 · csite-015 · Carbon County, Office of the Property Rights Ombudsman

The Trust Lands memo says the parcel is zoned Mining and Grazing (M&G), where large industrial projects are a conditional use, and that the county conditional use permit (CUP) process is public, 'requiring the publishing of notice, a public hearing' and acceptance of public comments. Utah Code 17-79-506 (effective 6 November 2025) says a county land use authority 'shall approve a conditional use' if reasonable conditions can mitigate its reasonably anticipated detrimental effects (mitigation need not eliminate them), and may deny it only if they cannot be substantially mitigated. Utah's Office of the Property Rights Ombudsman states that state law does not require a public hearing on a CUP and that local ordinances decide. The conditional-use chapter of Carbon County's Development Code, as published on August 28, 2023, does not require a public hearing before a conditional use permit is approved; the memo's statement may reflect later changes or county practice, so ask the county which applies (see who decides, on the County Transparency page, which cites the code).

In plain termsA conditional use permit is the county's main say over what gets built on this land. But under Utah law it is not a yes-or-no vote on whether a project is wanted: if reasonable conditions can reduce the harms, the county must approve it with those conditions. State law does not require a public hearing; the county's own rules decide. The state's memo says Carbon's process includes notice, a hearing and public comment; the conditional-use chapter of the county code's 2023 edition does not require one (see who decides, on the County Transparency page). The county's planned code update (csite-013) is where residents can shape those conditions.

09.17.2026 TLA Board Packet (Item 10A: SULA 2095-OBA Board of Trustees Memorandum, Carbon County letter, lease map) (Utah Trust Lands Administration (Utah Public Notice Website), 2026-09-17) primary government “The CUP process is a public process requiring the publishing of notice”
Utah Code 17-79-506: Conditional uses (effective 11/6/2025) (Utah State Legislature, 2025-11-06) primary government “A land use authority shall approve a conditional use if reasonable conditions are proposed”
OPRO Conditional Uses (Utah Department of Commerce, Office of the Property Rights Ombudsman, 2026-04-10) primary government “State law does not require a public hearing when considering a conditional use permit decision.”
Carbon County Development Code on the county's code site; its download gives the 2023 edition, dated 8/28/23 (sections 5.1 and 5.3, conditional uses) (Carbon County, Utah (civiclinQ code hosting), 2023-08-28) primary government

verified 2026-10-02: Holds. Re-read in late September 2026: memo p. 21 (Zoning and Local Land Use); Utah Code 17-79-506 (effective 11/6/2025); OPRO conditional-uses page (modified 2026-04-10). Quotes exact.

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