Geoffrey Lawrence
Ruling class becoming too big for britches
Critics and big-government advocates have continuously derided Gov. Jim Gibbons' repeated pledge for "no new taxes." These critics are more concerned with the wealth and size of the ruling government class than they are with the welfare of Nevada families. They are calling for large tax increases during a deepening recession.
Legislature addresses imaginary ‘shortfall'
Band-aids are applied to prop up high spending
As the debate over whether to increase taxes or scale back government spending rages on in Nevada, state lawmakers met this week to explore options for averting a supposed "shortfall" in the current biennial budget. All the while, legislators and media pundits decry the revisions being made in the budget and proclaim that tax rates must increase if the state is to provide an adequate level of services.
Union attempts to hold essential services hostage
Bosses flex muscle in attempt to extort taxpayers
Union bosses recently tried to hold emergency-response services hostage in Clark County. Service Employees International Union Local 1107 – the union representing a portion of the county's emergency medical response workers - recently threatened to strike because the county's contract service provider refused to negotiate with unauthorized representatives.
Playing with fire
Getting burned by the firefighter union
Residents of Clark County who want to invest in the future of their children should take away their schoolbooks and buy them a box of matches. Why? Because in Clark County, knowledge of fire and fire suppression is apparently of more value than is knowledge in specialized academic fields such as law.
Taxing charity?
Nevadans have been asked to support an amendment to the state constitution that would make it easier for legislators to increase the tax burden and would create uncertainty over the tax structure.
Corporate welfare, corruption and the ‘blight' of the poor
The case for reform of Nevada's redevelopment laws
The need for reform of property rights in Nevada is clear. Property rights that are defensible under the rule of law are the very foundation of a market economy. However, property rights in Nevada have eroded due to a set of community redevelopment laws that confer dangerous amounts of power upon local politicians.
Bursting the spending balloon
Budget shortfalls should give hope to Nevadans.
The current financial crisis and related economic downturn are leading to sharply reduced tax revenues across state and local governments in Nevada. While the resulting budget shortfalls are frequently viewed as deplorable, they could be the silver lining of these cloudy times.
Less Is More
How Government Caused the Financial Crisis
Public authorities in Nevada and across the globe are pointing fingers in the wrong direction. They are blaming private investors and entrepreneurs engaging in free enterprise for the faults of Washington. Senator Harry Reid's website claims that a lack of government involvement in transactions between private individuals "caused the current financial crisis hurting Nevada families."
Is the tax structure broken?
No, but the spending structure is.
An economic slowdown in Nevada has state and local governments considering tax increases to cover declining revenues. At the state level, much ado has been made about a supposed "budget shortfall" while the Nevada Association of Counties is pushing legislation that would allow counties to increase property taxes.
Putting utilities on the dole
Why subsidies for renewable energy are a bad idea
Nevada Senator Harry Reid is among those pushing a bill through Congress that would extend the federal government's biggest subsidy for renewable energy sources – the Production Tax Credits program.
