Brothel tour off

Larry Henry

Thursday, April 17, 1997 | 10:55 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- All it took was one unflattering newspaper column for a lobbyist to cancel a legislative tour of the Mustang Ranch brothel.

"It would appear at least certain members of the press have a desire to embarrass and find fault with those that planned on taking this trip," said George Flint, lobbyist for the Nevada Brothel Owner's Association, in a prepared statement Wednesday.

One legislator said the cancellation is unfortunate because informational tours help lawmakers understand whether a variety of Nevada operations are being run properly.

"What's the difference in learning about a school, a prison or the Department of Motor Vehicles if it's informational?" asked Assemblyman Mark Manendo, D-Las Vegas. Manendo had not decided whether he was going on the tour.

Assemblyman Bob Price, D-Las Vegas, had scheduled an April 22 tour of the Mustang Ranch, located 13 miles east of Reno.

Price, chairman of the Assembly Taxation Committee, said some counties receive 30 percent of their budgets from brothel taxes. Thirty-four legal brothels operate in Nevada.

Fifty people joined Price on a tour of the Mustang Ranch during the 1995 session.

This year, however, Flint canceled the tour after Jeff Ackerman, publisher and editor of the Nevada Appeal, Carson City's daily newspaper, printed an opinion piece on Tuesday.

"In the end," Ackerman wrote, "it's probably good that these two groups of professionals meet face-to-face. Some taxpayers might suggest that, except for the degree of pleasure they provide, lawmakers and prostitutes might actually have lots in common."

Flint objected to Ackerman's tone.

"I consider the members of the Legislature as friends," Flint said in the statement. "I cannot, and will not, subject them to any additional criticism or denigration by any member of the media."