Candidates for Nevada Legislature seats representing Carson City talk taxes, education funding

Four Nevada legislative candidates who hope to represent Carson City took to the microphone Wednesday night at the Carson City Chamber of Commerce candidate forum.

Each touted their qualifications, noting their conservative credentials and their commitment as Republicans to tackle a legislative body dominated by southern Nevada Democrats.

All candidates voiced absolute opposition to the margins tax proposal on the ballot in November which would tax small businesses that make more than $1 million. All candidates said they will fight to keep state money going to Western Nevada College rather than release more money to southern Nevada community colleges. Each candidate also said they support the idea of making the de-commissioned Nevada State Prison in Carson City a tourism designation.

Assembly District 40 Candidate Jed Block of Carson City noted he is a classical conservative with a belief that if government should be involved in decisions, it should be determined at which level: federal, state or local.

At his core Block said he would legislate as a "do no harm" representative for Carson City with a firm focus on strengthening Nevada's economy.

Block is the owner of State Agent and Transfer, which was founded in 1903. He has served on a number of boards, committees and commissions including the Chamber of Commerce; Carson City Cultural Commission; Brewery Arts Center (Chair); Western Nevada College Foundation; Carson City Redevelopment Authority-Citizens Committee; Carson City Historic Resources Commission and the Carson City Board of Equalization.

Assembly District 40 candidate Phillip "PK" O'Neill spent four decades in law enforcement, 30 years of those with the Nevada Department of Public Safety as a law officer, agency administrator and criminal investigator. He is a 34-year resident of Carson City. He said he is guided by a principle learned in the department, which is to serve the people and that his values as a lawmaker would be based on limited government and low taxes. He has been endorsed by Pete Livermore, who announced he would not run for re-election for the District 40 seat.

He said he knows the legislative process firsthand, working on legislative issues surrounding law enforcement.
O'Neill was appointed by Gov. Kenny Guinn to SEARCH, a national consortium for the sharing of criminal justice information. He has been an active member of the Nevada Sheriff's and Chief's Association, the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Association and the Native American Law Enforcement Association.

Nevada Senate District 16 candidate Gary Schmidt said he is a Tea Party conservative backed by the State Republican Party, the Carson City Republican Central Committee, the Nevada Republican Assembly and the Veterans in Politics.

Schmidt is a semi-retired businessman who has owned, developed, and managed agricultural, commercial, and residential properties for 45 years.

He said he is not one to negotiate instead preferring that lawmakers "be kept on a short leash." He called his incumbent opponent Ben Kieckhefer, a RINO (Republican in Name Only) because he negotiated with the Democrats during the last legislative session. He said his focus is take education out of the hands of federal and state government, cut programs, taxes, positions and get back to the principles found in the U.S. Constitution.

Ben Kieckhefer said as a Senator during the last legislative session he united with fellow Republicans against any significant tax increases and to block implementation of the margins tax (which will go before voters in November) and the "family fun tax" which would have levied taxes on movie tickets and sporting events. He said being a Republican in a Democratic controlled Legislature, there were many defensive successes, with every business in Nevada now paying a lower tax rate than they did four years ago thanks to legislation he backed. He also touted his endorsement from the NRA and a successful effort to block legislation that would have required universal background checks.

A question posed was what the candidates feel are the three major issues facing Nevada. Block said the Margins Tax on the November ballot and the need to defeat it, efforts by southern Nevada legislators to move the state legislature to Las Vegas and strengthening education.

Block said Nevada schools need to focus on raising standards demanded in a global economy, which means more math, science and information technology.

"This is not the same K-12 that Joe Neal set up," said Block.

O'Neill said vital issues to Nevada are the economy and strengthening it by making it a business-friendly environment; investing in our schools and enhancing our economy with education in mind by identifying successful programs already working and empowering local school boards to get involved and make decisions about them and higher education and our community college system.

Schmidt said the three things are revenue, spending and ethics. He said Nevada can't be made a business friendly state when it taxes its businesses. He said spending in Nevada on unnecessary programs needs to happen and that too much money is being spent by the state on education, specifically teachers unions. He said too much money is being spent on education at the state and federal level and said money for schools should be decided at the local level only. He faulted students for lacking a "work ethic."

He said school administrators make too much money in the public schools creating "an upside down pyramid" and tenured college university instructors make too much in the state's colleges and universities. "We need fewer highly paid professors and more community colleges and trade schools," said Schmidt.

Kieckhefer said the biggest threat to Northern and rural Nevada is that more funding is being directed at southern Nevada schools, community college and projects. "Regionalism is very real and we need to take this down as soon as possible," he said. "Education is critical to where we are going."

He said collective bargaining needs to be "loosened up" because government spends more money than it has to. While not directly responding to Schmidt's assertion that he is a RINO, Kieckhefer said he has sided with his party on all matters regarding cutting taxes, but that is important to negotiate or else Northern Nevada interests in business, colleges and schools will lose.

Regarding public education, he said he sponsored legislation in the last session that would have allowed schools to pool their resources, giving them local control but the measure failed.

Block said what was done with Nevada public schools in the 1960s no longer works today and that the whole mechanism of public school funding out to be looked at. But in no way should the margin tax be approved as it would be a killer of jobs, businesses and the future of economic growth in Nevada.

Education is vital to the future of Nevada. He said he would sit at the table and look at ways Nevada could balance education "with a balanced discussion at the table," said Block.

O'Neill said the state must identify a sustainable funding source for education so parents, teachers and the workforce knows what to expect. "We need to identify successful programs, empower teachers, parents and school boards," he said. "The secret is to spend money in an efficient and prudent manner, identify and support successful programs."