Editorial: Let decision stand

Friday, Jan. 23, 2004 | 5:02 a.m.

WEEKEND EDITION

January 24 - 25, 2004

To resolve an impasse that was threatening the state's financial stability, the Nevada Supreme Court last year decided that the 2003 Legislature could pass tax increases without a two-thirds majority vote in both houses. The court found that the constitutional requirement for the Legislature to fund education had more weight than the constitutionally required two-thirds vote. As it turned out, the increases subsequently were passed with a two-thirds majority. Opponents of the court's decision, however, appealed directly to the U.S. Supreme Court. They feared the decision subverted the will of the people who voted for the amendment requiring the two-thirds majority.

The high court will decide sometime this spring whether it will take the case. We hope it doesn't. The court had to intervene because two state constitutional provisions were presenting a conflict that the Legislature couldn't resolve. By deciding the issue, the state Supreme Court was fulfilling one of its roles -- interpreting and ruling on its own state constitution. There is no role here for the U.S. Supreme Court. This was Nevada's business and it was handled properly by our own high court.

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