Also, you can make clean-air cars available to state employees, but you can't make them drive them.

To comply with federal laws aimed at reducing pollution from auto emissions, Utah's fleet of vehicles now includes a number of natural-gas fueled cars, but many of them remain in the state's fleet services parking lot while the more air-polluting gasoline fueled cars are checked out.

There are 23 natural-gas vehicles in the daily fleet, available for check-out by state employees needing a car for the day. But the average utilization rate for the natural-gas cars is only 58 percent.

Administrative Services Director D'Arcy Dixon Pignanelli says the division is trying to get the utilization rate to 70 percent, but one reason for the low use is the difficulty in finding places to refuel for natural gas.

One solution is to put maps in the cars highlighting where natural-gas fueling stations can be found, she said.

By contrast, Salt Lake City has 89 natural-gas vehicles in the city's fleet. Mayor Rocky Anderson says the surrounding area of Salt Lake City has the second-highest number of natural gas outlets in the country.

Congressional wisdom: Clayton Middle School in Salt Lake City boasts a model extended-learning program including an integrated English-history curriculum that is team-taught by three teachers, each with a master's degree in either English or history.

Students from throughout Salt Lake City School District apply to attend the ELP program.

Now, it seems, the teachers in the long-respected program are not qualified, in the eyes of our esteemed U.S. Congress.

The Highly Qualified Teacher provision of the federal No Child Left Behind Law requires teachers to have a college degree in the subject that they teach. So the three teachers would have to have degrees in both disciplines to meet the requirement.

The state Office of Education has haggled with the U.S. Department of Education over the finer points of the law since its inception, and it looks as though the three teachers in question are going to pass the test after special paperwork and letters of recommendation are submitted.

But the state is still having problems with the feds in the elementary education area, where a degree in elementary education isn't good enough because some states don't require proficiency in math and science, even though Utah does.

Above and beyond: A Salt Lake City firefighter reports that when the Fire Department responded to a roof fire at the home of 90-year-old Phyllis Chatwin on Wednesday, he saw something unusual.

The fire was started accidentally by a roofer using a torch to melt the ice on the roof. Joel McQuivey, owner of the Murray-based Fortress Roofing, immediately called crews from other jobs, his wife, and his partner to the scene. They moved valuables out of the house and into the garage. They wiped down pictures, gathered up books, and carefully stored the more fragile items. He called the company's insurance company to have a disaster cleanup firm respond immediately.

prolly@sltrib.com