Taxes
IFC to hide behind unelected stakeholders
Scheme intended to shield legislators from accountability
Taxpayers should be concerned, because these "stakeholders" will be drawn explicitly from economic sectors that are the major consumers of tax dollars.
The 2009 Nevada Legislative Session
Review & Report Card
How did Nevada lawmakers address the state's mounting economic challenges in 2009? By imposing the largest series of tax increases in state history.
Nevadans deserve honesty from IFC
Constitutionally suspect body schemes to soak taxpayers even more
An unconstitutional body is using unconstitutional means to provide political cover for a tax increase in 2011.
Taxes trump transparency
Politicians’ priorities show contempt for taxpayers
When given a choice between putting Nevada's checkbook online or paying for a study that will be used to try and raise taxes, guess what Nevada's politicians chose?
Health care for the newly unemployed
‘Free’ health care would come at the expense of your job
One component of the proposed health care reform bill is a requirement that all employers provide a minimum amount of health insurance benefits to their employees. For small businesses especially, this mandate would mean a hike in labor costs that would likely force employers to lay off workers.
Larceny by any other name
The so-called ‘progressive’ agenda: Theft
Google the word larceny on the Web, and there, within the many definitions that come up, you'll find the sad intellectual plight of modern America. Multiple sources define the word as "any wrongful taking of property." Others define it as "any unlawful taking of property." Note the distinction: between wrongful and unlawful. While some people believe that taking others' property is simply wrong, others believe it's OK if some government law permits it.
Won’t get fooled again
The stimulus’ ineffectiveness could sink Obama’s other plans
There's no shortage of reasons for limited-government adherents to detest the massive federal stimulus package that was enacted in February. But there might be a silver lining to the stimulus after all: It just may be the magic bullet that kills both cap-and-trade and socialized health care.
Exit fee
Government wants to fine you for dying
The Greeks believed that the mythological figure Charon was charged with the duty of collecting taxes from the dead in order to allow them to pass to their final resting place in Hades. Similarly, the federal government would like to assume the modern role of Charon, imposing an outrageous tax on individuals in exchange for allowing them to pass to the other side. President Barack Obama has quietly included the largest increase in the death tax in American history in his 2010 Executive Budget.
Playing with the PERS
Lawmakers should not seek to influence investment decisions
Constitutional provisions prohibit the Nevada Legislature from dictating how money in the Public Employees' Retirement System is invested. However, in the final days of the recent legislative session, state lawmakers passed a law attempting to do exactly that.
Cap-and-trade conflicts with Nevada’s mandates
State renewable portfolio standard incompatible with 'market-based' scheme
Last week the U.S. House of Representatives passed the 1,200-page Waxman-Markey "American Clean Energy and Security Act" to impose new taxes on energy use. The bill is a cap-and-trade scheme that would artificially limit the amount of carbon dioxide that can be emitted by energy users from the combustion of fossil fuels. The bill would essentially create an energy rationing scheme that would require energy producers to acquire costly ration coupons for each ton of carbon dioxide they emit.
