Tuesday, Jan. 14, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
A violent flood that swamped Northern Nevada early this month might have landed a Las Vegas legislator in hot water.
Republicans Monday criticized Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, for remarking on a television show that state officials should keep an eye on damage reports to make sure Northern Nevada doesn't reap an inflated amount of state emergency money.
"You know, there are rascals up north," Titus said on a public television program broadcast Friday in Las Vegas and Reno. "We want to be sure that what we pay for is what was really damaged, that we aren't putting in some improvements that weren't there before the flood."
Republican Party spokesman Chuck Muth said Titus' remark was in "poor taste." Two people were reported missing in the flood and are presumed dead.
Titus also has a history of provoking sectional squabbles to enflame Southern Nevada voters, Muth said.
"It appears she still has a North-South problem," he said.
Muth noted that Titus once called Washoe County a "sponge just soaking up the income that's been earned by the blood and sweat of miners, gamblers, ranches throughout the rest of the state."
Titus said Republicans have taken her quote out of context because they're worried she might run for statewide office in the future and are looking for excuses to damage her credibility in Northern Nevada.
Titus said she will probably run for higher office at some point, but she has not decided which one.
She also said Muth, who ran against Titus in a state Senate race in November, has not gotten over his election defeat.
"My comments about rascals were made in jest, and everybody on the show laughed," Titus said. "By rascals, I meant the politicians, not the flood victims. I stand by my point that we need to be sure that local governments report an accurate figure."
Preliminary estimates indicate flooding damage could reach $500 million.
Federal emergency funding will pay 75 percent, while state and local governments will account for the other 25 percent, said Richard Urey, Gov. Bob Miller's press secretary.
Miller has not determined how much state money he will authorize.
Nevada has a $300 million budget surplus, Urey said, as well as a so-called rainy-day fund of $123 million for use in emergencies, such as flooding.
The state has spent about $300,000 providing 360 conservation camp inmates to clean up debris in Lyon County, he said.
The uncertainty of final damage totals means the state could find itself liable for a larger bill than originally believed, Titus said. In the 1960s, state budget officials were ordered to reimburse the federal government after auditors discovered damage totals had been padded following a flood in Battle Mountain.
"These flood victims are real people with real problems," Titus said. "I just don't want local governments playing games. The same is true of Southern Nevada. We can't say, 'Give us money for our infrastructure needs, and we'll give you the money you need for flood damages.'"
Urey said officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency have been called in to assess damage. That should prevent local governments from boosting final totals, he said.
"These people are experts who know how to look at claims," he said. "It's like if you've been in a car collision. The claims people are experts. If you try to claim prior damage, they're going to know it."
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