State controller projects growth

Monday, Jan. 5, 2004 | 10:38 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Nevada's economy is on the mend but it won't return to the explosive growth experienced in the 1990s, says state Controller Kathy Augustine.

Augustine issued a condensed version Friday of the annual Comprehensive Annual Financial Report that said growth in Nevada will exceed the national growth rate.

The report said "a key development will be the extent to which the recent uptick in tourist and gaming trends can be maintained. Fortunately, continued growth in the gaming industry, especially in Southern Nevada, is unfolding."

It notes Steve Wynn's ongoing construction of a new hotel-casino at the site of the old Desert Inn on the Strip and a number of expansions of existing resorts.

The gaming win in the state fell by 2.8 percent in fiscal 2002 but inched up by 1.1 percent in fiscal 2003 that ended last June 30, the report said.

Augustine said that Global Insight, a firm under contract with the state, is forecasting average annual job growth of 2.9 percent in the 2003-2005 period and 3 percent during the three-year period following that.

"That represents the strongest growth among all states for both time periods," she said.

Personal income is expected to grow an average of 5.7 percent through 2005 and by 6.5 percent from 2005 to 2008, putting it highest among all states.

"All told, Nevada appears to be emerging from the economic slowdown in solid shape," she said. "While a return to the extremely strong growth of the 1990s is not likely, economic trends in Nevada are still expected to be quite impressive, both in absolute terms and relative to the rest of the nation."

MGM MIRAGE of Las Vegas leads the state in assessed property values pegged at $1.4 billion on its resorts followed by Park Place Entertainment Corp. at $812 million; Mandalay Resort Group at $783.5 million; Nevada Power Co. at $646.4 million and real estate developer F.S. Rouse LLC at $483.5 million.

Assessed value is 35 percent of full cash value.

In fiscal 2003, the report said 40.6 million passengers arrived and departed from Nevada's airports. And there were 177,103 hotel and motel rooms to serve visitors.