Gibbons bypasses lawmakers, names stimulus director

Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009 | 6:29 p.m.

Charles Harvey

Governor, Democrats on brink of showdown over stimulus funds (8-16-2009)
Gibbons skirts legislators in action to oversee stimulus (8-14-2009)
Governor balks at shift of stimulus authority (8-12-2009)
Gibbons ready to tear at legislative patch (8-9-2009)
Legislature reins in Gibbons; Democrats cite incompetence (8-5-2009)
Committee vote delays $10M in stimulus money (8-3-2009)
Democrats reject Gibbons' 'stimulus czar' proposal (8-3-2009)
State board OKs $509,000 request for stimulus ‘czar’ staff (7-28-2009)

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Gov. Jim Gibbons today named a stimulus director to oversee the $2.2 billion in federal money designated for Nevada under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Charles Harvey, currently the assistant Clark County recorder, will enter a political fracas raging between Gibbons and Democratic lawmakers over control of the stimulus money.

Gibbons last week issued an executive order creating the stimulus coordinator position and granting his office control over the stimulus money. The Interim Finance Committee earlier this month rejected Gibbons' proposal for a $120,000-a-year project and an assistant, opting instead to put an accounting position under Democratic Controller Kim Wallin.

Changes to the budget while the Legislature is not in session have gone through the Interim Finance Committee, made up of legislators, for the past 40 years.

But Gibbons' office argues that the governor's executive order allows him to bypass the system -- for both the stimulus coordinator position and the rest of the $2.2 billion in stimulus -- because the state could lose money if there's a delay.

Wallin said last week she believed an attorney general opinion from 18 months ago means that any change in the budget has to be approved by the Interim Finance Committee, meaning she wouldn't process the position.

But Gibbons wrote a letter to Wallin on Tuesday that used the same legal opinion to argue for processing the budget changes.

The letter pointed to a passage in state law that said the governor could change the budget without legislative approval if "life or property" was in danger.

Deputy Chief of Staff Stacy Woodbury said the tight timeline under the stimulus could mean the loss of money if there are delays.

Woodbury said she had consulted with the attorney general's office before submitting the letter. Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. Wallin was out of state and also couldn't be reached for comment.

Harvey has worked in the Clark County Recorder's office for more than 10 years, according to the governor's office. He is also a case management coordinator for the Eighth Judicial District Court. He previously served in the U.S. Air Force.

Discussion: 9 comments so far…

By SgtRock

8/18/09 at 7 p.m.

Suggest removal

The IFC has no Constitutional power and all its votes are meaningless in the view of the law.

Only the full Legislature voting in a Constitutional sanctioned session can pass laws and budgets that are enforceable on the state and the executive branch.
By mred

8/18/09 at 7:56 p.m.

Suggest removal

Why didn't he appoint Roland Burris?

A complete zero and the court will throw this guy under the bus.
By Birdiedreamin

8/18/09 at 9:39 p.m.

Suggest removal

how the hell is jimmie boy gibbons the loser clown still governor of this state???
isn't it time to impeach his sorry behind???
how many skeleton's do you think there are in his closet???
i mean, of course, in addition to the skeleton's we already know about!!!
By theCanimalsHusband

8/18/09 at 9:58 p.m.

Suggest removal

What will we tell the children when they ask "why do we need a stimulus director?"
By DessertSun

8/18/09 at 10:02 p.m.

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Good for Gibbons! Good for the State of Nevada. Now, let's get busy governing.
By renomuse

8/18/09 at 10:30 p.m.

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Gibbons the hypocrite who was against the stimulus before he was for it. What a joke!
By Nevada_Scandalmonger

8/18/09 at 10:47 p.m.

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From the Nevada Appeal
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/2009...

'[Gibbons] executive order flies in the face of long-standing law requiring legislative approval to spend any money. According to Legislative Counsel Bureau Director Lorne Malkiewich, the State Budget Act, NRS353, requires legislative approval to receive and spend any federal money.

'He said it's his understanding that ARRA puts the governor in control of the money, "unless otherwise provided by state law and our state law requires it go through the state budget act." '
By SgtRock

8/19/09 at 6:48 a.m.

Suggest removal

It is true that the legislature has the power to approve spending.

The IFC is not the legislature. The Nevada Constution does not empowers an oligarchy subset to have super legislative powers. That would be unequal representation.

The Nevada Constitution trumps any state laws.

The full body is the legislature and only votes by the full legislature can approve spending.

The legislature can only vote in either a normal session (ever other year) or when in a special session called by the governor and the special session agenda is set by the governor.
By Vegasjeff

8/20/09 at 7:13 p.m.

Suggest removal

I'm surprised that anyone even penned a letter about his latest action. I guess this is nothing for a man who leads his executive directors with the threat of termination every time he wants something done. Just ask some one from the Department of Corrections about his latest fiasco with the state email system. NRS requires that the state IT group provide the lowest cost solutions for the state but recently the governor ordered all departments to provide state email for their employees using the state email system or no email at all. That means that the tax payers of the state are now going to have to pay six dollars a month x 4,000 employees for a service that is currently provided by the department for free. This is an example of one department but the order is a requirement of all departments and once again, noncompliance means termination. He didn't just walk all over his wife; he's doing it to everyone that he has contact with so for him to snub his nose at the legislature and in so doing, the citizens of the state of Nevada, how can this be a surprise? My recommendation is to add the next election date to your calendar and unless you're dead, go vote.