Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2005 | 11:04 a.m.
Standing before the County Commission pitching a sales tax hike to hire more cops was the last place in the world Sheriff Bill Young wanted to be Tuesday.
Young was in the middle of mourning the loss of his mother and uncle, who were killed in a massive auto accident near Elko on Friday.
But the sheriff fought through his grief to explain to the commissioners why they needed to pass the quarter-cent hike.
The commission bought his argument, voting 6-0 to approve the increase, which will take effect in October.
"I feel good," Young told reporters afterwards. "Most people said we were going to lose it."
It was a personal victory, indeed, for the sheriff, who has led the charge the past three years for the tax hike in a political climate that hasn't exactly been tax-friendly.
The 2003 Legislature took a lot of heat from the public for passing an $833 million tax increase to keep up with the state's rapid growth. This year's session was marked by a property tax cap.
Through it all, Young spearheaded a ballot iniative that won the approval of the voters, and he lobbied for the legislative bill that gave the County Commission the ability to raise the sales tax.
As a result, Metro Police will be able to hire as many as 150 new officers a year over the next decade and give the undermanned department a better chance at protecting the public, Young said.
The public, Young said, should see the new officers hitting the streets within a year.
"We're not going to be putting them in desk jobs," he told the commissioners.
But as fine a moment as it was Tuesday for Young, the additional money for more cops is going to put pressure on the sheriff to run the department in a more fiscally responsible manner.
He might have to do things that won't be good for department morale.
A taxpayer-financed audit recently made 135 recommendations to help Young save the department millions of dollars in the months ahead.
Though Young promised Tuesday to implement most of those recommendations, he said he would not act on some of the more controversial cost-saving measures, such as going to an eight-hour day, five-day-a-week schedule for officers. Currently officers are on a 10-hour shift four days a week, which gives them a popular three-day weekend.
The sheriff's overall selling point for more cops was that it would give the department a bigger presence in the community. Most of the officers are expected to be in uniform -- in traffic and gang units and on patrol in crime-ridden neighborhoods.
They'll also be assigned to the Strip, where Young said their presence is needed more than ever in this age of terrorism.
Young, heavy heart and all, said all of the right things on Tuesday, and he staked his words to his own reputation.
Just prior to the vote, County Commissioner Lynette Boggs McDonald, who has raised questions about the tax hike in the past, applauded Young for his passion and persistence.
"I got that from my mother," the sheriff responded from the audience.
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