Panel facing a taxing situation

Mathis Winkler

Thursday, Dec. 13, 2001 | 8:22 a.m.

Meeting

The next meeting of the Governor's Task Force on Tax Policy in Nevada is scheduled for Jan. 16 at the Sawyer State Office Building, 555 E. Washington Ave. The meeting will focus on education and health care needs. Anyone interested in submitting written comments to the panel should call (775) 684-6800.

The panel in the coming year will discuss property, sales, mining and car rental and special energy taxes, consider taxes on franchise fees and admissions to entertainment venues and discuss the viability of a state lottery.

Other work will include comparing Nevada's revenues to those of other states, said panel members, who were appointed by Gov. Kenny Guinn, Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, and Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno.

"We need to assess what the needs will be and generally assess how other states pay for them," said Mike Sloan, a senior vice president of Mandalay Resort Group, who was appointed to the task force by Guinn.

Sloan, with Guinn, served on a committee charged with reviewing the state's financial structure in 1988.

The task force, created by the Legislature earlier this year, is chaired by Guy Hobbs, a former chief financial officer for Clark County. Other members are Nevada Mining Association President Russ Fields; Las Vegas attorney Eva Garcia-Mendoza; Las Vegas Sun Editor Brian Greenspun; Ken Lange, president of the Nevada State Education Association; Reno businessman Luther Mack; and North Las Vegas businesswoman Nancy Wong.

The group Wednesday heard several presentations from state officials on Nevada's tax structure.

The panel plans to solicit comments from interested organizations in the coming months, although some didn't wait to have their say.

Carole Vilardo, president of the Nevada Taxpayer's Association, asked members of the committee to carefully weigh tax increases against state spending.

"There is not enough money to do everything that everyone is going to want," she said.

Speaking on behalf of the Nevada Seniors Coalition, Edward Duffy urged task force members to disband the group and stop thinking about raising taxes.

"The flaw in Nevada is that expenditures are out of control," Duffy said. "The governor should form a new task force whose objective is to rein in uncontrolled growth."

Another speaker told the panel that Nevada's existing tax system was the reason people choose to live in Nevada. Sloan, however, said that decreasing government funding may result in current residents moving elsewhere.

"There are a lot of unmet needs," Sloan said. "There may come that day when Nevadans say this is not the place (to live), because we're not meeting our needs."

The eight-member committee will receive assistance from a technical working group, which includes Clark County Assistant Manager Michael R. Alastuey, Clark County School District Chief Financial Officer Walt Rulffes and Elko City Manager Linda Ritter.

Bill Bible, president of the Nevada Resort Association, Washoe County Finance Director John Sherman, former Las Vegas Administrative Services Director Marvin Leavitt and financial analysts Jeremy Aguero, Marc Hechter and Phil Stoeckinger also will work with the task force.

The committee will likely meet on the third Wednesday of each month until November 2002, when it is scheduled to present its conclusions to the governor and the Legislature.