Titus pops up on ‘Net

Kirsten Searer

Thursday, March 17, 2005 | 10:08 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Sen. Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, through a pop-up Internet ad, is plugging her idea to fix property taxes.

Web surfers see a bar graph that illustrates property taxes rising through the years, until they skyrocket in 2005. But an animated version of Titus' name magically brings down on the 2005 bar graph, aligning it with the tax levels of previous years.

The ad reads, "Help Sen. Dina Titus freeze your property taxes," with a link to Titus' Web site, www.dinatitus.com.

Titus, a potential gubernatorial candidate in 2006, said she wanted to float her idea to cap property taxes to the general public and get input on what people think.

"Somebody advised me this is new technology," she said.

Her Internet company, Geary Interactive, reports that the ad has been seen by "thousands" of people since it went up this weekend, while "hundreds" have gone to Titus' Web site and "dozens" have signed up to receive updates on the debate on how to curb property taxes.

Typically, Internet users click on about 2 percent of pop-up ads, Titus said. But about 20 percent of people who see her ad click on it, she said.

"I'm very pleased with the response," she said.

One of Titus' potential adversaries in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, said he doesn't blame a fellow legislator for using a new tool.

"I think Dina's done everything she can to bring attention to her cause," he said.