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Uncertain road led to mining tax resolution passage; uncertain road lies ahead, too
UPDATED WITH COMMENT ON PASSAGE FROM GOV. BRIAN SANDOVAL: From spokeswoman: "SJR 15 does not come to the Governor and he’s stated that he is opposed to increased mining taxes."
Everything that is new is old in Carson City
There are no new tax debates in Carson City. Some go back decades. Click on the attached, 20-year-old newspaper clip and find: 1. The gaming industry and the Live Entertainment Tax fight is not new. 2. The battle between good policy and money-scavenging by lawmakers is not new. 3. The effort by the gaming industry (like any other industry) to escape taxation is not new. 4. The debate over loopholes in the Live Entertainment Tax is not new. 5. The jobs may have changed, but the faces (Bill Bible, Mike Sloan) are not new.
The Session That Might Have Been
It has to be about more than caring. As state Senate Majority Leader Mo Denis emoted and state Senate Minority Leader Michael Roberson fulminated, and a chorus of colleagues chimed in with discordant, self-serving notes, the sound I heard was the music of “Taps.”
Roberson, three others recommended school board hire supe they hired
The letter was sent Monday, a day before the Clark County School Board made Pat Skorkowsky the new district superintendent. It came on the official stationery of state Senate Michael Roberson, but had three other lawmakers signed on, too: Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick, Ways and Means Chairwoman Maggie Carlton and Assistant Assembly Minority Leader Cresent Hardy. A bipartisan, southern letter of rec! How could the school board turn them down?
Dean Heller: Gun control advocate
"Knowing your interest in gun control, I wanted to give you an update on legislation I have cosponsored and supported rceently." Imagine how Nevadans felt when they received a letter that began that way from none other than Sen. Dean Heller, who voted against the Manchin-Toomey bill, saying he feared a creation of a gun registry despite his general support for the concepts in the measure. He was hailed by NRA types and blistered by gun control advocates. I wonder how many folks who received that missive fell for the having-it-both-ways Heller approach.
The greatest takedown of Session '13 I could imagine
It hits all the right notes. I'm not at liberty to say who produced it -- at least not yet. But worth watching:
Milam uses FOIAs to try to make connection, but to what?
LettertoDOIIG-SandraEvans&MildredWashington_May172013.PDF, FOIAtoDOIOfficesoftheSecretaryandSolicitor_May172013.PDF, FOIAtoBLM_May172013.PDF This week, an attorney for failed arena developer Chris Milam asked two federal agencies for a lot of documents that he clearly hopes will explain why the BLM canceled a land deal with him earlier this month. What is he looking for? A connection to Reid the Elder (the majority leader) or Reid the Younger (the Henderson city attorney)? I'd guess so. But is he fishing, looking for something specific or simply devolving into conspiracy theories? The letters are attached here.
No new taxes, but plenty o' fees
By now, you know Gov. Brian Sandoval's mantra so well you don't have to be reminded (Hint: Same as Jim Gibbons', only people listen.). But when he sunnily says, "No new taxes," you notice something about Sandoval's assertion: He doesn't also say, 'No new fees."
Would Assembly Democrats be crazy/dumb enough to take a bribe to kill SJR15?
Would Assembly Democrats really trade an extra $50 million or so from mining to kill SJR 15, the resolution taking the industry’s tax policy out of the Constitution? I don’t think they are that dumb or short-sighted, but I don’t want to bet my stash of gold bars on it. Nevertheless, the conversation did take place, Nevada Mining Association President Tim Crowley confirmed. Here’s what he tells me: