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Tuesday, May 24, 2011 | 3:10 p.m.
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CARSON CITY — Democrats in the Legislature are at loggerheads over how much they should concede to the governor and Republicans, now that it’s evident they won’t be able to raise taxes other than extending the 2009 increases set to expire next month.
The Las Vegas Sun has obtained a list of $250 million in cuts Democrats have agreed to in order to win Republican support. But some Assembly Democrats say these cuts go too far.
Assembly Ways and Means Chairwoman Debbie Smith, D-Sparks, acknowledged passions were running high in her caucus.
“We’re all tired; we’re all frustrated,” she said. “We’ll take everything one step at a time, one hour at a time.”
Under the proposal, the state would assume school districts would implement a 2.5 percent pay reduction for teachers and district personnel, higher education would get another trim and a variety of social services programs would be slashed.
Smith said the cuts beat “the alternative — what you see in the governor’s recommended budget.”
She said a bigger unknown than the unity of the Assembly Democrats’ caucus is the status of Senate Republicans, who still publicly have refused to negotiate.
Terms of the proposal:
• A 2.5 percent pay cut in salaries for all school employees, including teachers and administrators, saving the state $117.5 million over two years.
• Reduce basic per-pupil school support by $100 in each year, saving the state $85 million.
• Reduce higher education funding by $20 million over two years, putting the cut from 13.54 percent to 15.34 percent.
• Eliminate a senior citizens property tax assistance program with 16,609 participants who, on average, get a refund of $267 a year. It would save $1.2 million over two years.
• Not fund a portion of the self-directed autism program, saving $2.8 million.
• Reduce Medicaid and Nevada Check-Up funding by $19.3 million for the biennium. That includes a $5 per bed-day reduction for nursing homes, a 0.7 percent rate reduction for dental services, a 15 percent rate reduction for surgical centers and ambulance services, and increased costs to counties.
• Not funding subsidized child care for 295 children of people on welfare, saving $2 million.
• Reduce mental health services by $2.3 million.
• Reduce supported living arrangements for mental health services.
• Eliminate a high-intensity team to deal with those with mental health needs, saving $1 million.
• Eliminate supported living arrangements for 54 positions, saving $3 million.
• Shift costs of youth parole services to the county for about $5.5 million.
• Reduce room and board funding for youth with mental health programs, saving $1.4 million.
This still isn't any kind of legislation. This is a simple list of stuff that realy isn't on the table but they think might get voters back on their side. Its nothing! I hope no one takes this article too seriously, as not one piece of passed legislation has even had one cut in it. This is just the dems playing politics again with the pres. Every cut in the article is just about pulling the old heart strings or to piss off a union or too.
Our schools are under funded. Pension funds are being robbed from state workers.
Yet, the mining industry is making all time highest profits?
The people own the mineral rights and they should get the benefits not rich corporations.
The repugnicans are in the pockets of rich corporations and as a result the people suffer.
How hypocritical are politicians.
WOW, The Dems just threw a bunch of people under the bus in order to save their own paychecks!
Why do people on welfare need child-care services anyway? If they're not working the least they can do is take care of their own children themselves. As for the property tax assistance for senior citizens - by eliminating that doesn't that it basically amount to a tax increase for these seniors? So much for not raising taxes (if this is approved).
You DON'T GET THE SUNSETS--they WILL EXPIRE. You need to cut much more than this time-wasting "effort." START REPRESENTING THE TAXPAYERS OF NEVADA, not the illegals.
Many welfare "clients" receive child care because they are career-minimum wage workers. Clients irresponsibly have several (or more) children while they are unable to support even themselves--so they have kids so the public will support all of them. Welfare programs INSIST they work some so the government finds them "jobs" and they keep collecting benefit upon benefit plus tax refunds of money they didn't pay in. Figure it out: Live alone on your minimum wage or have a few kids and get $5-10K tax refund, food stamps, TANF cash assistance, MEDICAID, paid child care, LIHEA utility credits, public housing assistance.... GET THE PICTURE. We're taxing the middle class so every one else can live like the middle class--except the minimum-wagers live better than the rest of us.
I would think that cutting education funding is not going to do anything to prevent more people going on welfare. Penny wise and dollar foolish.