use List::Util qw( first );
my @user_types
    = ( { name => 'member',
          numb => '037', },
        { name => 'public',
          numb => '165', },
      );
my $selected = first { $_->{name} eq $cgi->param( 'foo' ) } @user_types;
$selected ||= $user_types[0]; # in case nothing is selected
my $selected_numb = $selected->{numb};