Editorial: New era dawns in Carson City

Tuesday, Jan. 5, 1999 | 10:19 a.m.

It's tough enough getting comfortable saying "1999," let alone remembering to write it instead of 1998 when making out checks. For Nevadans, the new year also ushers in another difficult transition of mind over matter, this one political.

Governor Kenny Guinn. It will take some time before those three words roll off the tongue. After all, for 10 years Bob Miller has been governor, serving the longest of any Nevada chief executive. Considering that Nevada's unprecedented growth triggered an avalanche of new residents moving into this state during the 1990s, for many the only governor they have known is Miller.

For most of Miller's tenure, Nevada has prospered from an amazingly healthy economy. A healthy surplus of revenues allowed Miller to significantly boost spending on education, especially K-12. And during the early 1990s, when Miller faced a state budget crisis during a national recession, he was more than up to the task. Rather than raise taxes he cut state programs, reductions he eventually was able to restore after the economy got its footing again.

Guinn, who was sworn in Monday, obviously has a tough act to follow. Although he enters office with a healthy economy there are warning signs that the state's revenues won't keep pace with all the new demands on education and social services that growth has created. And despite the new megaresorts being built on the Strip, there are concerns that Las Vegas may be overbuilding, potentially leading to a glut of hotel rooms that could harm the area's economy.

Not until Guinn submits his two-year budget and delivers his State of the State address later this month will Nevadans know how he will put his plans into action. These policy blueprints will be the first real sense Nevada will get of Guinn as governor.

As Guinn looks ahead he will be getting plenty of advice from all quarters, most of it unsolicited. On occasion it also may help him to look back and assess the decisions Miller made as governor, including the successes and the failures.

Many political insiders don't see many substantive differences on policy issues between Miller and Guinn, and both have earned reputations as consensus builders without much stomach for partisanship. Yet in the end, despite all of their similarities, Guinn must be his own man and govern the way he feels most comfortable. For the benefit of all Nevadans, we wish him well and hope he succeeds.