Face the Facts: What are gaming and mining afraid of?

Friday, Feb. 17, 2012 | 7:18 a.m.

Here's the script from Thursday night's segement on "Face to Face" about those gaming and mining initiatives and why the industries won't talk:

NOW IT'S TIME FOR FACE THE FACTS.

TODAY'S QUESTION: WHAT ARE THEY AFRAID OF?

THEY ARE THE GAMING AND MINING INDUSTRIES. AND BEYOND BOILERPLATE OBJECTIONS, THEY HAVE BEEN RELATIVELY MUTE ABOUT TWO PROPOSED INITIATIVES THAT COULD AFFECT HOW MUCH THEY PAY INTO THE STATE TREASURY. I KNOW. WE HAVE BEEN TRYING SINCE BUSINESSMAN MONTE MILLER PROPOSED THE IDEAS TO GET REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE INDUSTRIES TO COME ON THIS PROGRAM AND DISCUSS THE THREATS TO THEIR BOTTOM LINES. THE STONE WALL HAS GONE UP.

THEY ARE "NOT READY" OR "NOT AVAILABLE" IS WHAT MY PRODUCER HAS HEARD FROM THE GAMERS AND MINERS. NOT AVAILABLE? NOT READY?

PLEASE. THEY ARE JUST HOPING THIS GOES AWAY, THAT MILLER, A CONSERVATIVE, RETHINKS HIS MOMENT OF PIQUE AND BACKS OFF. MAYBE HE WILL.

BUT THIS SILENT TREATMENT SPEAKS VOLUMES ABOUT JUST HOW WORRIED THESE INDUSTRIES ARE ABOUT THESE PROPOSALS. ONE WOULD RAISE THE CONSTITUTIONAL CAP ON MINING TAXES FROM FIVE PERCENT TO NINE PERCENT. THE OTHER WOULD CREATE A TOP TIER OF TAXES FOR THE BIGGEST CASINOS AT NINE PERCENT - THAT'S UP FROM SIX POINT SEVEN FIVE PERCENT.

BEYOND THE WHINING ABOUT HOW THIS WOULD COST JOBS AND CAUSE AN ECONOMIC CATACLYSM, THESE INDUSTRIES HAVE NO DESIRE TO DEBATE THE MERITS. AND THEY ARE DEBATABLE.

MINING'S TAX SHOULD NOT BE CAPPED IN THE CONSTITUTION. IT'S HIGH TIME THE STATE FIXED THAT ANACHRONISM. IT EXISTS ONLY BECAUSE BECAUSE INDUSTRY LEADERS WROTE THE CONSTITUTION IN 1864 AND EMBEDDED PROTECTIONS FOR ITS PROFITS.

GAMING HAS LONG BORNE THE BULK OF THE STATE'S TAXATION BURDEN. THE ISSUE NO LONGER IS WHETHER THE LARGER RESORTS CAN PAY MORE - THEY CAN. IT'S WHETHER THAT SHOULD BE THE FOCUS OF TAX POLICY IN NEVADA - IT SHOULDN'T.

FOCUSING ON MINING AND GAMING IS NOT THE ANSWER. BUT MILLER AND HIS CONSERVATIVE FRIENDS HATE TALK OF BROADENING THE TAX BASE BECAUSE THEY KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS: THEY WILL HAVE TO PAY MORE. OR, MORE CORRECTLY... PAY SOMETHING.

BUT FOR DECADES BUSINESS FOLKS HAVE RELIED ON THE PUBLIC'S WILLINGNESS TO TAX MAJOR INDUSTRIES, ESPECIALLY GAMING. AND MINING, ESPECIALLY AS GOLD PRICES HAVE SOARED, HAS BECOME MORE VULNERABLE TO TAX TALK.

GOVERNOR BRIAN SANDOVAL RECENTLY TOLD THE NEVADA NEWS BUREAU HE DOESN'T THINK TAX POLICY SHOULD BE MADE BY INITIATIVE. HE'S RIGHT. BUT HE ALSO SAID THE PREFERRED PROVINCE IS THE LEGISLATURE, WHICH HAS BEEN AN ABJECT FAILURE AT SETTING ANY SERIOUS TAX POLICY.

SO THE CYCLE BEGINS ANEW. LABOR WANTS TO RAISE BUSINESS TAXES, SO BUSINESS RETALIATES BY THREATENING MAJOR INDUSTRIES SO THEY WON'T HELP THE UNIONS. AND....NOTHING HAPPENS, WHICH IS REALLY THE PREFERRED SOLUTION FOR ALMOST ALL OF THEM. WHY?

YOU KNOW WHAT THE GAMERS AND MINERS ARE REALLY AFRAID OF? THAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY GET A CHANCE TO VOTE ON HOW MUCH TO TAX THEM. FACE THE FACTS. THEY KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN THEN.