Friday, Dec. 27, 2002 | 11:31 a.m.
Las Vegas saw plenty of big news in 2002, from a presidential decision on Yucca Mountain to an election that included a new congressional seat. There were crises affecting Southern Nevadans, including the price of electricity, the state's budget deficit, doctors leaving Nevada because of rising medical malpractice insurance premiums, and the ongoing drought. The top stories on this list have one thing in common: They'll be back in 2003.
Here, according to an informal survey of Sun editors, are the top 10 stories of 2002 in the Las Vegas Valley:
1. Yucca Mountain: President Bush and the Department of Energy decided to make Nevada's Yucca Mountain home to the nation's high-level nuclear waste. After Gov. Kenny Guinn filed his historic veto of a presidential decision, Congress voted to overrule Guinn and affirm Yucca Mountain as the site. The repository, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is being designed to hold 77,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste. Nevada has filed several lawsuits trying to stop the dump, and the state's fight against the repository will continue into 2003. The DOE is preparing an application to build and operate the dump, to be submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by December 2004. The NRC will then decide whether the dump will be built.
2. Medical malpractice: The state saw its medical system turned upside-down by a medical malpractice insurance crisis. Doctors saw their insurance costs skyrocket after insurance companies pulled out of the state, citing the lack of any laws limiting judgments on medical malpractice lawsuits. Some doctors left the state despite a law passed in a special session of the state Legislature this summer designed to help rein in the costs of malpractice judgments. Lawmakers say they'll revisit the issue after the Legislature convenes in February. Republicans, supported by doctors, say tighter controls over jury verdicts are the answer. Trial attorneys and Democrats say the law is fine the way it is and just needs time to take effect.
3. Power crisis: Nevada Power Co., Southern Nevada's power provider, sought to raise rates to recoup more than $922 million the company says it lost during the power crisis in the West. Customers and political leaders blasted the move, which would have meant a 20 percent rate hike for the average power customer. The PUC granted only half of the utility's request, and its parent company, Sierra Pacific Resources, saw its stock price plummet as analysts worried about the company's stability. Meanwhile, the Southern Nevada Water Authority made two bids to take over the company. The utility, which brought in former Clark County manager and Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce president Pat Shalmy as chief executive, rebuffed the initial $3.2 billion offer and has yet to answer the second. The issue is far from over. Voters approved an advisory question in Nove mber supporting legislation that would allow a public utility. The Legislature, which outlawed hostile public takeovers of ! private enterprise in 2001, is expected to revisit the issue.
4. Taxes/state finances: The Governor's Task Force on Tax Policy in Nevada recommended a comprehensive package of taxes as a way to solve the state's budget crisis. But as the work began the state's budget woes deepened. Gov. Kenny Guinn in September ordered cuts in state spending that included layoffs of 44 workers. Guinn said state spending has been cut as far as it can be and that taxes will have to be raised. The task force plan includes raising so-called "sin" taxes on alcohol and cigarettes, which the governor has endorsed, and starting a 0.25 percent tax on a company's gross receipts over $350,000. The gross receipts tax is the key part of the task force plan, but the business community and many Republican lawmakers are against it. The governor is expected to unveil his plan before the Legislature convenes in February.
5. Republican sweep: Gov. Kenny Guinn ran against minor opposition and led the state Republican Party to a huge victory in November's elections. The Republicans swept all six statewide elections, won the newly created 3rd Congressional District seat and picked up seats in the Legislature. The Republican victories left the Democrats trying to figure out what happened. The state Democratic Party will see a change in leadership and party leaders have been holding a series of meetings to try to reorganize the party for elections in 2004.
6. Homeless: A major provider of homeless services, MASH Village, closed its doors this year. The shelter's services were picked up in many instances by other providers, but the closure pointed out the glaring needs of up to 10,000 homeless people in the valley. It wasn't a good news year for the homeless: Police made three major sweeps to roust homeless people, a ballot question calling for a trust fund to help homeless and low-income people failed in the November election, and the only regional body to deal with the issue came up with a plan but has yet to implement it. Homeless advocates vow to continue trying to change the system. Through Oct. 31, 47 homeless people died this year in the streets. The issue again came to the forefront when a homeless man was flushed to his death after being caught in a wash by winter rains.
7. High-profile accidents: In May two teenage girls were killed in a car crash as they rushed back to Las Vegas High School from lunch. Two other girls in the car were disabled by injuries incurred in the crash, which prompted Clark County School District officials to close campuses for lunch. Eight other teens were killed in car crashes, including a 16-year-old who died driving home from Centennial High School. In another high-profile crash, Las Vegas Sun executive Sandy Thompson was killed on the Las Vegas Beltway when a driver on marijuana ran into the back of her car at a stoplight. Police say the crashes are a reminder to Las Vegas residents of using care on the valley's roads and of the danger of drunken or intoxicated driving. Lawmakers are discussing tightening teen driver license laws in the 2003 Legislature, and Thompson's death has the Re gional Transportation Commission discussing adding safety measures to the beltway.
8. University regents: The 11-member board that oversees the state's universities and colleges was mired in public squabbling and name-calling. In December the regents made the rare move of issuing a blanket public apology, but the contrition didn't last long. Within a week, regents were squabbling again. One lawmaker plans to introduce a bill that will cut the number of regents and others were talking about starting a move to appoint regents. The regents are currently elected.
9. Test scores/No Child Left Behind: Clark County School District administrators said test scores on a national proficiency exam were disappointing but unfortunately not surprising. On the first year of a test required by federal law, Nevada students at the state and district level performed close to the national average on a standardized test in reading, language, mathematics and science. A sharp dip in achievement by Clark County students between the fifth and sixth grades had educators calling for an investigation of the cause. As part of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, signed into law last January, states are required to test students in grades three through 10 each year. Schools that do not demonstrate adequate yearly progress face penalties. School officials have pledged to improve the scores.
10. Land use: The Clark County Commission threw long-range master planning into disarray by approving projects throughout the Las Vegas Valley that were contrary to existing land-use guides. The approvals sparked angry opposition in many neighborhoods, especially as a spate of zoning changes came at the end of the year, before Commission Chairman Dario Herrera's and Commissioner Erin Kenny's terms end. Neighbors have been upset that changes were made to master plans that could affect housing values and neighborhood quality of life. County officials, including two commission newcomers, Rory Reid and Mark James, have promised to overhaul the planning process.
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