job creation

CARSON CITY – A broader measure of Nevada’s unemployment picture, including those who have given up looking for work, showed slight but continued improvement through the first quarter of 2012, a federal report released today shows.

The rate in Nevada dropped from 22.7 percent in the four quarters through Dec. 31, 2011, to 22.3 percent through March 31, according to the quarterly report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

CARSON CITY – A new business index evaluating the states on the effects of their tax systems on entrepreneurship and small business ranks Nevada 3^rd behind South Dakota and Texas.

The Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council’s “Business Tax Index 2012” pulls together 18 different tax measures, and combines them into one tax score that allows the 50 states and District of Columbia to be compared and ranked.

CARSON CITY – U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., today downplayed the notion of any disagreement with GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval arising from their opposing views on the Small Business Jobs Act passed by Congress in 2010.

CARSON CITY – Nevada’s jobless rate fell from a revised 13 percent in December to 12.7 percent in January, down from 13.8 percent a year ago and a peak of 14 percent in October 2010. The number of unemployed Nevadans remained relatively flat at 174,700, but is down 16,300 from the same month last year.

CARSON CITY – There was a flurry of candidates filing for office and some political maneuvering today as Nevada’s 2012 election season officially got under way.

Over 90 candidates filed for a variety of offices in Clark County.

Another 17 filed with the Secretary of State’s office and others filed in their respective counties around the state.

RENO – Gov. Brian Sandoval said today his plan to repeal 654 unnecessary regulations will assist in the state’s efforts at economic diversification and job creation by making Nevada more business friendly.

In addition to the repeal of more than 600 rules, another 1,100 will be updated as a result of an executive order he issued in January 2011 imposing a one-year freeze and calling for his cabinet to thoroughly review the entire regulatory framework of the state. The review was finalized last week.

The Homewood Mountain Resort project, which cleared the strictest of environmental hurdles at Lake Tahoe, is now being sued by a consortium of groups including the Sierra Club who, among other things, wish to stop promised environmental improvements, job creation and economic revitalization to the ailing west shore Sierra community.
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, which oversees development and environmental protection at Lake Tahoe, was told it was being sued on Thursday because of its recent approval of the Homewood Mountain Resort Ski Area Master Plan project.
EarthJustice, on behalf of the Sierra Club and Friends of the West Shore, lists both TRPA and Placer County as defendants in the lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court of Eastern California. Absent from the suit is the League to Save Lake Tahoe, which implied that it likely wouldn't sue when the project was unanimously approved last month by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency's Governing Board.

CARSON CITY – The September jobs report released today contained some hints of economic life in recession-battered Nevada, even though the unemployment rate held steady at a double-digit 13.4 percent rate from August.
While still tops in the nation in unemployment, Nevada saw a decline in the jobless rate in the Las Vegas area, to 13.6 percent from 14.3 percent in August. The Reno-Sparks and Carson City areas also saw declines.

CARSON CITY – A report from the Tax Foundation on unemployment insurance taxes says 34 states have had to borrow $37 billion from the federal government to pay jobless benefits, and employers around the country face the prospect of higher tax rates as a result.

CARSON CITY – State Treasurer Kate Marshall today announced the appointees to the board of the Nevada Capital Investment Corporation (NCIC), a new group charged with overseeing the investment of school funds to improve returns while promoting economic development statewide.

CARSON CITY – Last week it was a dispute about the Small Business Jobs Act and whether it will create any jobs in Nevada that generated controversy between the two major party candidates for the U.S. Senate.

CARSON CITY – Despite the need to borrow $773 million from the federal government to pay jobless benefits so far in the current economic downturn, an advisory panel today recommended that the average tax rate levied on Nevada employers to pay claims remain unchanged at 2 percent for 2012.
The unanimous vote of the nine-member Nevada Employment Security Council came despite the recommendation from one employer representative for an increase in the rate to 2.5 percent or even 2.75 percent so Nevada could pay off its federal loans more quickly.

CARSON CITY – Brian Sandoval has made it clear in his first eight months on the job that he is going to be a “hands on” chief executive, as evidenced by decisions he has made to be personally involved on issues ranging from economic development to homeland security.

Governor Brian Sandoval this morning sent a letter to President Obama asking for assistance in making changes at the federal level that could clear the way for new jobs in Nevada.
“This is my first request of President Obama since becoming Governor,” Sandoval noted in a press release. “I need his help to get Nevadans working again, and we have identified a very specific step he can take to spur job creation in our mining industry.”

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval and legislative leaders today announced their appointments to the new Economic Development Board, which will focus on job creation and economic diversification.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval has named Frank Woodbeck as director of the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. Woodbeck will begin his new job Oct. 3
“Mr. Woodbeck is somebody that I came to know given his activities with economic development,” Sandoval said. “I believe that it is very important going forward that there be an alignment between DETR, the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, and economic development, and he has a unique skill set in that regard.”

CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval said today he is making big strides in his top priority of improving the Nevada economy and growing jobs.
Sandoval said he has been making calls to businesses interested in relocating to the state and is getting ready to launch a newly revised economic development board to help the state turn the economic corner.

NORTH LAS VEGAS — Gov. Mitt Romney on Tuesday presented a detailed economic plan he said would generate 11.5 million new jobs, lead to 4 percent annual growth, and turn America into a “job machine.”
Romney made a point of saying he would be speaking without a teleprompter before addressing a crowd of over 300 at McCandless International Trucks in North Las Vegas, a city struggling due to high unemployment rates and municipal budget troubles.

Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley ventured into Republican Dean Heller's backyard Tuesday to say the big issue for next year's U.S. Senate campaign is job creation."For me there isn't a bigger issue,...

CARSON CITY – Assembly Speaker and announced candidate for Congress John Oceguera acknowledged today that a number of Democrats are seeking seats in the House of Representatives in the 2012 election, and that hopefully any costly primary battles can be avoided.

CARSON CITY – A federal agency that sought comment on rules that would have applied commercial motor vehicle regulations to farm vehicles on public roadways has decided not to go forward with any changes, bringing a sigh of relief to Nevada farmers and ranchers.
The U.S. Department of Transportation said in a statement that it has determined “that most states have already adopted common sense enforcement practices that allow farmers to safely move equipment to and from their fields.”

CARSON CITY – If a $490,000 grant to plant trees in Clark County public places as part of a federal job-creating stimulus project should be measured by the “greening” of Southern Nevada, then the effort might be considered a modest success.
Thirteen different government and nonprofit entities applied for 1,814 trees for planting at 35 different public areas in Southern Nevada through the grant. A total of 1,541 trees have been provided to the agencies and groups for planting, mostly at schools and parks around the Vegas valley.

Nevada is the fastest growing state in export value as a share of its total economy, according to a new report by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The value of the state’s manufactured exports has more than tripled since 2002. Its primary exports are mineral deposits, coin-operated games and electronics.
Other states rated highly for exporting are Louisiana, Utah, South Carolina, Mississippi, Delaware, and Texas.
High performing states were evaluated based upon:

By Sean Whaley
CARSON CITY – Legislative Democrats unveiled the elements of their highly anticipated tax plan today, saying they will work every day until the end of the session to craft a proposal that restores many of the cuts in Gov. Brian Sandoval’s budget without choking off a nascent economic recovery.

My fellow Nevadans, good evening.

Three months ago, I delivered a State of the State Address against the backdrop of record unemployment and sharply reduced state revenue. I believed then, as I do now, that by controlling state spending and changing the way we do business, we could bring about a sustained economic recovery that would get Nevada working again. And so tonight, I’m pleased to come before you with a second and more positive report on the state of Nevada’s economy.

By Sean Whaley
CARSON CITY – Legislative Democrats went ahead today with their own funding plan for public education, establishing a level of spending that puts the budget at significant odds with GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval and his opposition to new taxes.
The votes by Democrats have upped the ante in the budget dispute with Republicans, creating a hole estimated at $700 million by state Budget Director Andrew Clinger.

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.

CARSON CITY – The days are lengthening, but lawmakers are still finding good reason to be inside the Legislature from dawn till dusk.
This Friday is a deadline for bills to pass out of committee, leaving many legislators scurrying from committee room to committee room to keep their bills alive.

Press Release — A leading national economic development executive who represents companies looking to relocate or expand throughout the United States, today told a group of more than 100 Reno and Tahoe businesses, community leaders and residents not to abandon current economic development initiatives, but to re-evaluate strategies and continue to fund them for future success.

CARSON CITY – Nevada and Georgia tied as the two states with the highest entrepreneurial activity rates in the country, according to the “Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity,” a leading indicator of new business creation in the United States.
The annual index shows that Nevada and Georgia both had 510 per 100,000 adults creating businesses each month. They were followed by California at 470 per 100,000, Louisiana at 460 and Colorado at 450.