Volunteers sought to write ballot argument

Friday, July 2, 2004 | 9:39 a.m.

What if you proposed a law that says the state can't create programs without properly funding them and cannot take money from existing programs to fund new ones?

Hard to argue against that.

That is the dilemma for Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax, as no one has volunteered to serve on a three-person panel to write the argument against that November Clark County advisory ballot question. The argument will be used as informational material to assist voters in making a decision.

"I suppose one argument against it could be that if you are from Northern Nevada you might want to divert funds from existing Clark County programs or taxes to fund new ones in rural northern counties," Lomax said, admitting he would have difficulty writing argument.

"This is the first time this has happened, where no one has come forward. I would like to get a two- or three-person committee, but now I'd settle for just one person. They don't necessarily have to be against the question, they just have to understand the issue well enough to write the against argument."

A state law was passed in the late 1990s requiring large counties to utilize volunteers to write the arguments, Lomax said.

At the last legislative session that policy was extended to state questions.

The issue is a non-binding advisory question that will be put on ballots in only those counties that authorize it to give state lawmakers a gauge as to how voters feel.

For Clark County questions, representatives for the pro and con write arguments of 400 words or less and rebuttals of 200 words of less, Lomax said.

Anyone interested in writing the against argument for the question can call the Clark County Election Department at (702) 455-VOTE (455-8683).