general fund

After freeing up some $60 million in General Fund money, Gov. Brian Sandoval moved Tuesday to restore some of the most onerous cuts to Health and Human Services programs, sharply reducing the hi...

CARSON CITY – U.S. Rep. Joe Heck praised GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval in remarks to the Nevada Legislature today for proposing a budget that does not raise taxes, saying it is the way to an economic recovery.
Heck, R-Nev., also expressed appreciation for Republican lawmakers who so far this session have supported Sandoval’s no new taxes or fees position during the lengthy review of his two-year, $5.8 billion general fund budget.

By Andrew Doughman
CARSON CITY – The answer from Gov. Brian Sandoval is no.
Today the governor’s senior adviser, Dale Erquiaga, rebuffed a proposal from state Democratic legislators to hold public hearings and a public review process in selecting a replacement for resigning U.S. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev.
“I think the law and tradition are clear, this is an executive decision,” Erquiaga said at a press briefing this afternoon. “We appreciate the Assembly’s and Senate’s advice, but it’s not relevant to the current decision.”

By Sean Whaley
CARSON CITY – After a lengthy hearing in the Assembly today on what several witnesses said were the catastrophic effects of Gov. Brian Sandoval’s budget recommendations for higher education, Republican members held firm with the executive branch in a series of funding votes.

By Andrew Doughman
CARSON CITY – Nevada’s rural Republican legislators are struggling to defend the governor’s budget that cuts their communities.
Democrats have been showcasing cuts to the rural counties in order to convince rural Republican legislators that a vote for tax increases is a vote to mitigate the harm to their districts.
Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford, D-Las Vegas, said that rural counties are already “cut to the bone,” and in many cases could lose all that they have left.

Carson City leaders today will review the 2012 fiscal year budget, with overall spending down about 1 percent from 2011 figures.

Looking ahead to 2012, the Board of Supervisors will see a budget that serves 21 government funds with estimated expenditures of $80.5 million and 10 proprietary funds at $39.2 million, City Manager Larry Werner reports.

CARSON CITY – The debate over Gov. Brian Sandoval’s proposed cuts to public education shifted to the state Senate today, with members of the upper house getting the details of the reductions that the Clark County schools chief said would mean the loss of $400 million for a 19 percent cut in funding.
But there was no effort by Democrats, who control the Senate with a narrow 11-10 advantage, to force a vote on the schools budget as occurred yesterday in a more contentious Assembly hearing. There were no fireworks either.

CARSON CITY – It was not until 30 minutes before midnight that a six-hour debate in the Assembly ended with a promise to talk more later.
After listening to presentations outlining more than $1 billion in “major reductions” to the K-12 budget, legislators debated their willingness to compromise or negotiate about Gov. Brian Sandoval’s proposed general fund budget.

A plan to reduce school bond reserve requirements for counties and take the money freed up for the state's general fund drew protests from local officials."Please do not destroy the trust of the...

CARSON CITY – The Assembly was awash with numbers tonight.
As part of the Democratic strategy to close the budget, the Assembly as a whole discussed for four and a half hours the education budget so that all legislators could learn about the cuts.
Legislative staff presented to the Assembly more than $1 billion proposed “major reductions” to school districts. These numbers come from a variety of sources:

CARSON CITY – Assemblyman Pat Hickey, R-Reno, wanted honesty about the Legislature’s budget “end game,” and he got it.
At a legislative town hall featuring 21 lobbyists, lawmakers and business leaders, the candid comments from panelists seemed to suggest a looming budget compromise is a fool’s hope.

CARSON CITY – The Nevada Tax Commission today agreed to undertake a review of the exemptions granted mining companies to ensure the proper amount of taxes are being paid by the industry to the state and county governments.
The request for the review came from Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford, D-Las Vegas, acting in the capacity as a private citizen, using a state law to request the commission to undertake an emergency rule-making process.

CARSON CITY – Bills related to immigration at the Nevada State Legislature did not make it past an important deadline last week.
One bill from Assemblyman Pat Hickey, R-Reno, would have required Nevada to use an electronic database to verify a person’s employment eligibility.

CARSON CITY — In the anti-tax world, the Tea Party in Nevada might have one thing in common with progressives who want to raise taxes.
Both say that industries that get special treatment or have special provisions written for them in the constitution should not have those advantages.
Senate Democrats are sponsoring Senate Joint Resolution 15, a constitutional amendment that would remove mining industry benefits currently written into the state constitution.

CARSON CITY –Assemblyman William Horne, D-Las Vegas, nudged his bill out of committee today, meaning the state could secure anywhere from $20 to $50 million from the casino industry.
Under Assembly Bill 219, if you lose or do not redeem a paper voucher printed from a slot machine, the state would sweep that money into its coffers as unclaimed property. Right now, casinos pay taxes on that money and count the remainder as revenue.

CARSON CITY – The Nevada Legislature finally took up the issue of reforms to the state’s public employee retirement system today, but the proposed changes from Democratic Assembly Speaker John Oceguera are modest.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval said today the Legislature should take up the policy initiatives he has proposed in his budget and State of the State address based on their own merits, and not be used in trade for negotiations on fee or tax increases.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval said today the Legislature should take up the policy initiatives he has proposed in his budget and State of the State address based on their own merits, and not be used in trade for negotiations on fee or tax increases.

CARSON CITY – A proposed constitutional amendment that would require a two-thirds vote in the Legislature to cut funding to or impose an unfunded mandate on local governments was heartily endorsed today by local officials including the mayors of Reno and Las Vegas.

CARSON CITY – A proposed constitutional amendment that would require a two-thirds vote in the Legislature to cut funding to or impose an unfunded mandate on local governments was heartily endorsed today by local officials including the mayors of Reno and Las Vegas.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Advocates for a tax hike on cigarettes and liquor made their case in the Nevada Legislature today, both to raise revenue and improve public health.
The proposal received a mixed reaction from lawmakers, and some lobbyist opposition, however, because of the negative consequences on business.

CARSON CITY – Advocates for a tax hike on cigarettes and liquor made their case in the Nevada Legislature today, both to raise revenue and improve public health.
The proposal received a mixed reaction from lawmakers, and some lobbyist opposition, however, because of the negative consequences on business.

RENO, Nev. — An additional round of budget reduction proposals totaling $13.8 million was announced at the University of Nevada, Reno today.

Today’s announcement follows the University’s March 2011 announcement of $26 million in proposed budget reductions, according to a news release issued by UNR officials. When combined, the proposals represent a reduction of $39.8 million and the elimination of 318 positions. A total of 1,600 students are directly impacted by the proposed academic program reductions.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Tax revenues, or more specifically the lack thereof, have been topic No. 1 during the 2011 legislative session.
Thus far it’s been mostly talk, with GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval saying no to any new taxes or fees and some Democrat lawmakers saying additional revenues are essential to preserve education and critical social services. Republican lawmakers thus far are standing with the governor.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – A two-hour review by the full Senate today of Gov. Brian Sandoval’s proposed two-year, $5.8 billion general fund budget spent a lot of time on what his spending plan could mean well into the future.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval said emphatically today he will veto a bill passed by Democrats in the Legislature that would allow school districts to use up to $300 million in bond reserve funds to rehabilitate older schools.
He also expressed confidence that $60 million in general fund Medicaid rate reductions included in his budget are legally defensible and can be implemented despite a legal opinion to the contrary.

Last month, the Carson City Board of Supervisors heard complaints from the owners of two private golf courses about the city subsidizing the operator of the city-owned Eagle Valley Golf courses by forgiving its $200,000 lease payment.

One issue brought up at the time was that the city needs the Eagle Valley courses to help dispose of effluent water from its sewage treatment plant. If Eagle Valley was not operating, then the city would be forced to spend more money to build more storage for the water.

CARSON CITY – Nevada Health and Human Services Director Mike Willden said today he believes the state can reduce Medicaid rates to medical providers as proposed in Gov. Brian Sandoval’s budget, but acknowledges the issue is “muddy territory.”
Willden’s view suggests the Medicaid reductions can be imposed without the state being subjected to successful legal challenges based on a recent appeals court ruling.

CARSON CITY – A legal analysis provided to the skilled nursing home industry regarding a proposed Medicaid rate reduction to cover the cost of caring for Nevada’s seniors says the cuts would be a violation of federal law.
The analysis says the proposed reductions of $20 per Medicaid resident per day are being proposed in Gov. Brian Sandoval’s budget, “purely as a means to alleviate the budgetary crisis.”

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – An analysis of a cut in Medicaid payments to skilled nursing facilities proposed by Gov. Brian Sandoval paints a sobering picture for the industry and its future in Nevada.