Bryan calls nuclear waste, Bush bad for Nevada tourism industry

Monday, Aug. 7, 2000 | 10:50 a.m.

Sen. Richard Bryan's report to Nevada attorneys on the state of the gaming industry included his usual updates on the status of the NCAA college betting bill, Indian gaming and gambling on the Internet.

But it was his review of last week's headlines that generated the most interest when he addressed attorneys of the State Bar Friday at Paris-Las Vegas.

Bryan, D-Nev., said that while some of those issues threaten to impact Nevada's largest industry, bold headlines about how highway accidents could produce a deadly nuclear disaster spell out what he thinks is the biggest concern on the state's horizon.

If Congress approves legislation that would authorize the transport of high-level nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Bryan said that it "may be a little more difficult to market Nevada as a resort destination."

An accident involving a gasoline tanker on U.S. 95 last week was a catalyst for antinuclear factions to step up the campaign to fight plans to ship waste to Nevada.

Bryan said he and some of his congressional allies have fought off attempts to approve waste shipments to Yucca Mountain. President Clinton has vetoed legislation that would have ordered the shipments and Bryan and his colleagues have had enough votes to sustain the veto.

That could change when President Clinton leaves office, leading Bryan to an observation of the other top news item of the week: the acceptance of the Republican presidential nomination by Texas Gov. George W. Bush.

"George W. Bush," Bryan said, "is a bad bet for Nevada."

Bryan predicted Bush wouldn't veto a Yucca Mountain nuclear waste authorization if he were elected president. He also said most of Bush's comments on the gaming industry have been negative, making him wary of what a Bush administration would mean for Nevada.

Responding to a question about whether Republican Senate candidate John Ensign, a former congressman, could be more effective than a Democrat when Bryan retires from the Senate, Bryan said whoever represents the state should represent Nevada's position and not a party stance.

The Republican Party, which is expected to keep its majority role in the Senate, has been critical of Clinton's Yucca Mountain vetoes but Ensign says he thinks he can convince other Republicans to change their minds on the nuclear issue.

Switching to legislative updates, Bryan said he fears that it is only a matter of time before proposed legislation to ban betting on amateur sports, including collegiate games, hits the Senate floor.

Pressed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the bill would take a financial bite out of Nevada's legal sports books. While there is casino gambling and bets on horse racing in several states, Nevada is the only one that permits legal bets on sports events.

Bryan says the bill "enjoys enormous superficial appeal" and that his Senate colleagues are cowed by big-name coaches like Penn State's Joe Paterno who have been lobbying for the bill's passage. Emotion and not logic are guiding lawmakers on the bill, the senator said.

Bryan said because the Senate will be occupied with appropriations bills and many members will want to tend to election priorities, the sports betting bill isn't expected to reach the floor in the current session. But he also predicted that not only would it return next year, but Nevada won't have enough friends in the Senate to block the bill's passage.

The senator also said he agrees with the theory that Indian gaming ultimately will hurt the state because of the impact it will have on Northern Nevada, Laughlin, downtown Las Vegas and some of the weaker resort properties.

Bryan reiterated his support for the Kyl bill, which would ban betting on the Internet and use Internet service providers to help block gambling sites from operating in the United States.

The Kyl bill has been stalled in the House following Senate passage.