Nevada Attorney General Still Analyzing County Refund Requests Totaling $123 Million
Submitted by Nevada News Bureau on Tue, 08/16/2011 - 2:23pm
Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto. / Nevada News Bureau file photo
CARSON CITY – Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto said today it will probably be another month before she can publicly report the results of her staff’s legal conclusions regarding requests for refunds from the state by Clark and Washoe counties totaling $123 million.
Masto said her office is still “moving through the process” to determine if any refunds are owed the two local governments. Once that analysis is completed, Masto said her legal findings will be shared privately with Gov. Brian Sandoval.
Following that discussion, the Board of Examiners, made up of Sandoval, Masto and Secretary of State Ross Miller, will be briefed on the findings at a public meeting. It would be up to this board to approve any refund requests.
“We’re moving through the process and within a month or so the public will have more information,” Masto said.
Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto. / Nevada News Bureau file photoMasto made her comments during an interview on the Nevada NewsMakers television program. Her comments closely mirrored those reported Monday by the Las Vegas Sun.
If it is determined the money should be returned, then a special session of the Legislature is one option to implementing a refund, Masto said.
“We’re working through that now and we’re looking at the various options that are out there if we are required to return the money,” she said. “Now, the mechanism for moving through that process we’re still working through. But that’s obviously an option. We’re not there yet. Right now we’re looking at the legal analysis to determine whether we even owe the money to the counties.”
The refunds were requested based on the Nevada Supreme Court ruling in May on the Clean Water Coalition case that found the Nevada Legislature improperly took $62 million in 2010 from the local government fund to balance the state budget.
The ruling threw into question several other revenue sources Sandoval had proposed using for his 2011-13 budget, and led to a compromise with Democrats in the Legislature that included the extension of several tax increases that had been set to expire June 30.
But as a result of the Supreme Court ruling, both Clark and Washoe counties have submitted claims to the Board of Examiners requesting refunds of property taxes taken in the 2007 and 2009 legislative sessions to help balance the state budget.
Washoe County is seeking $21.5 million. Clark County is seeking $102 million.
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Audio clips:
Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto says her office is still analyzing if the state owes the counties any refunds:
081611Masto1 :25 to the counties.”
Masto says the public should soon know more about the potential for a refund:
081611Masto2 :18 secretary of state.”
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