San Juan County Commission appoints Justice Court Judge, updates land use in general plan

by David Boyle
News Director
Members of the San Juan County Commission approved a new justice court judge, updated a section of the general plan and tabled an update to commission meeting policies at their latest meeting.
Members of the San Juan County Commission approved the appointment of Stephen Whiting as the San Juan County Justice Court Judge at their February 3 meeting.
Former San Juan County and Monticello Justice Court Judge the Honorable Lyon Hazelton retired at the end of 2025 after serving as the county justice court judge for 32 years.
San Juan County Human Resources Director Tranner Sharpe outlined the process for selecting the new justice court judge.
Sharpe outlined the process to nominate a new justice court judge.
Noting that applications were reviewed by the Utah Judicial Court System and then turned over to a local nominating committee who conducted interviews that sent three names to the county commission.
San Juan County Commissioners also met with candidates and determined an order with the names of the applicants and a salary amount with an offer made.
The commission was also informed the Utah Judicial Court System has additional work to do including an orientation and approvals with everything in place for Whiting to become the justice court judge at the end of February.
Members of the commission voted to appoint Stephen Whiting as the Justice Court Judge by a 2-1 vote, with Commission Chair Lori Maughan voting against the approval.
Commissioner Silvia Stubbs added a comment with her vote, saying “It is a very hard process to go through that and so I'll just leave it at that.”
The county and city of Monticello approved a merger of their justice courts in January of this year.
The agreement establishes a 70/30 revenue split after expenses are covered, with the county receiving the bulk of the revenue.
In a January meeting Deputy County Attorney Jens Neilson reported the merger would bring “efficiencies to the justice court function.”
Members of the San Juan County Commission also held a public hearing before unanimously approving amendments to the Land Use section of the San Juan County General Plan.
Officials clarified that the general plan serves as a high-level visionary guide rather than a strict zoning ordinance for the county.
This update, required by state law, is the result of months of work by the planning commission to align local guidelines with recent state code changes.
County commissioners and staff offered thanks to the volunteer county planning commission for its members extensive work, including holding an extra meeting on December 23 in order to meet deadlines.
Members of the commission also voted to add Sanpete county to a regional infrastructure coalition.
In addition to adding Sanpete County, the commission also gave their approval for a name change. The coalition was previously called the Seven County Infrastructure Coalition, but the addition of Sanpete county means the coalition now includes eight counties and will bring with the addition a rebrand as the Rural Utah Infrastructure Coalition.
The group includes San Juan, Daggett, Uintah, Duchesne, Carbon, Emery and Sevier counties, in addition to Sanpete.
Members of the county commission considered new policies and procedures related to meetings of the county commission, but ultimately tabled the item for review and possible approval in the future.
County Attorney Mitch Maughan presented the item, saying the county is out of compliance with state statutes as he reported finding no record of a legally finalized document governing meeting order, despite previous draft versions being used.
Members of the commission discussed revisions, including the legal definition of convening a meeting and how to navigate conflicts of interests.
Commissioner Jamie Harvey expressed concern regarding the urgency and transparency of the process to update the policies.
Commissioner Harvey requested that the public be given access to the full text of the revisions in writing before a final vote at a future meeting.
Consequently, the commission voted to postpone the adoption of the policies until the next meeting to ensure all changes — highlighted for public clarity — could be reviewed.
Members of the commission also approved a contract with Medici Land Governance to provide software for using artificial intelligence assistance in indexing documents for the county recorder’s office.
San Juan County Recorder Cindi Holyoak explained that the $5,000 annual contract would reduce workloads in her office and move the county toward a more secure system.
County information technology staff noted that the previous system was susceptible to viruses and required additional maintenance.
Members of the commission also closed with commissioner reports. Commissioner Harvey highlighted the groundbreaking for the new Navajo Nation Judicial Court building in Aneth.
Commissioner Stubbs and Commissioner Maughan highlighted efforts of tracking bills during the 45-day Utah state legislative session, with a particular interest in a House bill that could impact funding for certain populations.
Commission Chair Maughan also reported on a productive meeting with Glen Canyon National Recreation Area officials regarding Hite Marina and its access to Lake Powell.
Maughan expressed optimism about future economic projects that could benefit San Juan County.