Editorial: Creating a better Nevada

Sunday, Jan. 14, 2007 | 7:17 a.m.

Nevada has been blessed with economic prosperity. It is no surprise as to one of the reasons : Businesses have shown their commitment to excellence. It is a must if they expect to top their local, national and even international competitors. Second-best, let alone mediocrity, is not tolerated.

Yet, for far too long, Nevada's political leaders have tolerated mediocrity when it comes to the services provided by state government. Former Gov. Kenny Guinn made significant strides during his eight-year term that just ended, but even those efforts fell short of what was needed.

Over the next week, in advance of Gov. Jim Gibbons' State of the State address on Jan. 22, the Las Vegas Sun will publish a series of editorials identifying the most pressing issues facing Nevada and what steps should be taken to rebuild and transform state government and public education.

To grasp just why so much needs to be done, just take a look at where Nevada stands today:

Our public schools are woefully underfunded - and student achievement levels reflect that. Traffic gridlock is reaching a breaking point, not to mention that there is a looming multibillion-dollar shortfall in funding for road construction. Our health care system requires serious repair, particularly since Nevada has one of the highest rates in the nation of people without health insurance.

As if all that weren't enough, we have a shortage of state troopers and prison guards because of inadequate pay.

The problems facing state government extend beyond simply that of funding programs. For example, Nevada experienced one of its most frustrating elections ever in 2006 because of the confusion over some of the initiatives on the ballot. Too many out-of-state interest groups see Nevada's lax requirements of getting a question placed on the ballot as an easy way to ram their policies down our throats. If Nevada fails to rein in the initiative process, our representative form of democracy will be damaged.

At all levels of government there has been a growing disconnect between officials and those they represent. The Nevada Legislature, which meets for just four months once every two years, convenes in Carson City - more than 400 miles away from Las Vegas, where more than two-thirds of the state's residents live.

Nonetheless, what happens in Carson City has an incredible impact on our lives. One of the prime examples of this can be found in education, as the Clark County School District is straining just to keep pace with the metropolitan area's phenomenal growth.

When it comes to education, not everything can be boiled down to money. Parental involvement, for example, is critical to a child's academic achievement. Still, the state needs to spend considerably more money on education, including paying for full-day kindergarten and raising teacher salaries.

State legislators and governors for too many years have put off making the hard decisions, such as raising taxes when necessary, to support public schools and pay for essential government services. Indeed, the political career of Gibbons, the new governor, has been marked by pandering to the worst instincts in voters, irresponsibly suggesting that taxes don't have to be raised to sufficiently fund government.

The state has reached a crossroads, and the 2007 Legislature must deal with the pressing issues and stop passing the buck.

Otherwise, we will keep falling behind other states when it comes to important benchmarks, such as those measuring education, traffic and quality of life.

Nevadans have shown that they don't care much about party labels - they want honest solutions, not partisan mudslinging, to the problems confronting our state.

Political courage isn't about taking the path of least resistance just to get reelected. Political courage means having the conviction to stand up for your principles and fight for what is right. Nevadans deserve no less.