14 minute read
News
from Dec. 13, 2012
Voter photo plan defended
Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller, speaking before a luncheon meeting of the Nevada Women’s Lobby, denied that a program he has proposed was a “voter ID” program as it has been portrayed by the press.
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Miller said no one would be required to present identification at a polling place. Rather, election officials would obtain photos from the Department of Motor Vehicles of drivers and others holding state identification cards and use them to match with faces of people attempting to vote at polling places. While not all Nevadans have driver licenses or other state identification cards, most do. One political activist at the luncheon, Elisa Cafferata, urged support for the Miller plan, saying it was the best way to head off MILLER legislation requiring all voters to present identification in order to vote.
But American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada representative Vanessa Spinazola objected to that stance, urging against any unnecessary impediments to voters.
Miller acknowledged that voter fraud committed through individual voters is virtually nonexistent but said he was convinced that if the voter photo plan was not offered, enactment of a full fledged voter ID plan by the Nevada Legislature would be unstoppable.
One person at the luncheon asked a seatmate what good are Democratic majorities in both state legislative houses if they cave in to conservatives on such an issue.
Voter identification bills have been introduced at the Nevada Legislature but have always been defeated. At the 2011 Legislature, bills sponsored or cosponsored by Republicans John Hambrick, Ira Hansen, Lynn Stewart, Melissa Woodbury and Michael Roberson were all defeated.
Voting fraud committed on the voter side—as opposed to the vote-counting side—is extremely rate. Nevada election officials say they can count instances with single digits, and that when it does occur, it is often innocent (“The fraud of voter fraud,” RN&R, Oct. 25), but conservatives encourage the notion that it is rampant in order to win enactment of voter identification laws whose burden falls heavily on low-income voters without driver licenses.
Miller said about 15 percent of Nevadans do not have driver licenses, a relatively high number among states.
Citizens without identification tend to be low-income people such as senior citizens. They also include many Latinos. Republicans dismayed by the low Latino vote for the GOP in last month’s election are trying to avoid issues that further alienate that group of voters.
Asked about the privacy implications of public agencies swapping information on members of the public, Miller said reassuring the public of the security of elections was worth the breach of privacy.
Voter identification laws are a high priority of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative organization created under section 501(3)(c) of the Internal Revenue code. It is funded by right-wing millionaires and corporations such as R.J. Reynolds, State Farm and Koch Industries.
Prepaid tuition opens
The current open enrollment period for the Nevada Prepaid Tuition program began on Dec. 1 and will end on Feb 28. The program allows parents and others to start paying tuition at today’s tuition payment levels for use when a child reaches college.
Information is available at NVPrepaid.gov.
—Dennis Myers
Welfare rolls published
Nevada scrutiny of state corporate aid challenged
Published studies say Nevada state government is providing millions in subsidies and by incentives to businesses—and that Dennis Myers the state does not do follow-up assessments on whether those subsidies work in improving the state’s economy. Over a period of 10 months, the New York Times compiled and analyzed a searchable database of individual business incentives granted
Pew Center on the States
The New York Times report on state subsidies of business can be read at http://tinyurl.com/ bmogd52 The Pew Center report on follow-up study of state subsidies can be read at http://tinyurl.com/ agvufvo by all state governments, listing 150,000 grants and awards providing more than $80 billion in various subsidies to companies. In Nevada’s case, it found each state resident paying $12 to support incentives to corporations. Times reporter Louise Story also found states often not getting value for the incentives they offered.
Afew days after the Times report ran, the newspaper then editorialized on its findings:
“Many governments don’t know the full value of the subsidies they hand out in the form of tax refunds, rebates, loans, grants and more. And they don’t know if the jobs created would have been created anyway. The fact is, numerous studies show that such incentives result in only a small increase in jobs and that any gains usually come at the expense of other cities and states. Local governments would be much better off investing tax dollars in education and public works that would deliver long-term benefits to both businesses and workers.
“The senseless race to give away billions in subsidies is, of course, hard to stop when elected leaders think a pledge of potential jobs might help in their next election. But even when attracting businesses is a legitimate goal, it has to be done in ways that are fair and transparent. The trouble with targeted incentives is that they are little more than transfers of wealth to a handful of powerful corporations from all other taxpayers, including other businesses. If the problem is excessive tax burdens on businesses in general, then the solution is broad tax reform that also benefits small business owners, who are more likely to stick around if the regional economy weakens and who are unlikely to hopscotch around the country in search of a bigger tax break.”
Among the corporate beneficiaries of Nevada officials’generosity in the Times list: Apple Inc., Starbucks, Georgia Pacific, Sherwin Williams, R.R. Donnelly, Ford, General Motors, INTUIT, Harley Davidson, TRW Vehicle Safety, Basalite Concrete, Ocean Spray, Overhead Door and
Apple Inc., with the help of tax breaks, is reportedly planning to build a new assembly facility at this site near downtown Reno.
dozens of smaller enterprises.
The Times list is likely to provide useful information to Nevada activists who have been critical of governments subsidizing businesses. State and local government websites do not currently provide such logs of Nevada officials’generosity to corporations.
The Times estimated that incentives account for a cent of every Nevada budget dollar, which means the state is no more generous with corporate welfare than welfare for the poor. This is not necessarily due to restraint by state officials, but by limitations in the state constitution on the incentives that can be offered. Most Nevada incentives are in the form of abatements—taxes that are not collected.
The second study, a report by the Pew Center on the States, found that about half the states have not done the work “to produce and connect policy makers with good evidence of whether these tools deliver a strong return on taxpayer dollars.” Nevada is among those states. The report said Nevada did not measure the economic impact of incentives or draw clear conclusions about their impact.
Pew found that 13 states are doing a good job “in generating muchneeded answers about tax incentives’ effectiveness. Twelve states have mixed results. Half the states have not taken the basic steps needed to know whether their incentives are effective.”
Further, the Pew study reported, “Sixteen states ... and the District of Columbia did not publish a document between 2007 and 2011 that evaluated the effectiveness of a tax incentive.”
Pew also reported that incentives are often offered not because they serve a state’s interest but because they keep a state competitive with other states.
It praised some states.
Nevada incentives are not sunsetted.
The Pew report went on, “In Connecticut, a study of the Job Creation Tax Credit provided evidence that the investment had benefited the state. … Louisiana’s
economic development agency discovered that one tax incentive it previously credited with creating more than 9,000 jobs had produced a third of that number.”
Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki, a member of the state Board of Economic Development, said the state does do follow-up work on making sure that incentives are used as intended.
“Those companies that receive tax abatements are subject to audit procedures and actually claw-back procedures if they do not fulfill the terms under which they were approved,” he said.
He said the state also looks beyond individual abatements and uses economic modeling for a broader look at incentives to make sure they are effective. He acknowledged that the incentives the state offers are driven by the fact that other states are offering incentives, and said that process has to be watched carefully.
“We’re in competition with just about every other state and certainly those in the Western United States because, you know, a company’s decision often entails geographic positioning and then distance to customers and providers, often in a regional standpoint,” he said. “But ... there’s absolutely a break point when incentives outweigh the benefits and I’m not sure if that clear line is apparent to some in this business.”
State economic development director Steve Hill said of the Pew study, “They’re kind of partially correct, and we are changing that. Some of their findings were based on 2010 information. Some of that analysis is done, but it has not been published. So if you want to go look to see if any analysis is performed, you can’t find it. That will be changed.”
He said that traditionally, the state has not measured its abatements against effectiveness goals, and that too will be changing. In addition, a log of all abatements awarded by the state will be created where they can be found by the public.
Chuck Alvey, now a consultant who previously headed Economic Development of Western Nevada, which tries to lure businesses to the state, said his experience has been that incentives are closely watched.
“If you give someone an abatement, it means that they’re going to be watched based on how fast you generate new tax money, that you have a certain pay level and a certain number of employees,” he said.
There were instances when, if a business did not reach those thresholds, they would have to “pay that abatement back.” Nor is it all that easy to qualify.
“It wasn’t just a matter of handing out abatements,” he said. “It was a very arduous process of qualifying.”Ω
Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki
CHRISTMAS WITH AARON NEVILLE
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 15
ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 22
MOSCOW BALLET’S GREAT RUSSIAN NUTCRACKER
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21
KARL DENSON’S TINY UNIVERSE / ROBERT RANDOLPH & THE FAMILY BAND
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 28
UPCOMING SHOWS
Hit parade
On a reviewing stand, announcers read a narrative script about the groups passing by in the Sparks Christmas parade. The parade was held Dec. 8 after being postponed from the previous week because of threatening floodwaters.
THE FAB FOUR
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29
Tickets available at Ticketmaster.com or SouthShoreRoom.com
1/05 – TAINTED LOVE 1/12 – JONNY LANG 1/19 – GREGG ALLMAN 2/02 – BEN FOLDS FIVE 3/09 – JOSE FELICIANO
See box office for details and age restrictions. Shows subject to change or cancellation. Must be 21 or older to gamble. Know When To Stop Before You Start.® Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-522-4700. ©2012, Caesars License Company, LLC.
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This Year,
Holiday Gift Card Sale fy Gy yGf f
Membership Gift Cards Gift certificates make great gifts! Visit www.newsreview.com
Run amok
Wild horse advocates held a protest last week to bring community awareness to concerns of wild horse abuse (“Running wild,” Green, Oct. 11). A small group of protesters held signs along Veteran’s Parkway, claiming that captured wild horses are sent to slaughter.
Two photos intended to capture abuse in action were taken by Reno residents and have been published on a popular horse advocacy blog. The blog, Straight from the Horse’s Mouth, is curated by Wild Horse Freedom Federation president R.T. Fitch
“Reno wild horse advocates are not only outraged by the Nevada Department of Agriculture’s war against the Virginia Range horses, but also the documented cruelty exhibited with the manhandling of these wild horses upon capture,” wrote Fitch.
One of the photos, of two men wrangling a foal, is blurry but the caption reads, “Three week [old] foal being pulled with bailing twine by hired security.” The other shows a foal being pulled by the head with a yellow rope. The blog encourages people to contact Gov. Brian Sandoval and the DOA’s Jim Barbee to voice complaints. View the blog post at http://bit.ly/HorseBlog.
Flutterby
The Mt. Charleston blue butterfly, endemic to Southern Nevada, is under consideration to be classified as an endangered species by the United States Fish &Wildlife Service. Other Nevada butterflies, including the lupine blue butterfly, Spring Mountains icarioides blue butterflies and Spring Mountains dark blue butterflies, are under consideration for “threatened” status because of their similar appearance to the Mt. Charleston. The butterflies’ wingspans often feature bold lines and spots on the outside, and a blue hue underneath.
Threatened or endangered status is determined by five factors, according to the proposed status document filed by the FWS in Sept., including “the present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range; overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific or educational purposes; disease or predation; the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; or other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued existence.” The report states that the Mt.Charleston blue butterfly is threatened by “habitat loss, collection, inadequate regulatory mechanisms and drought and extreme precipitation, which are predicted to increase as a result of climate change.” However, the report suggests that the habitat not be classified yet as a “critical habitat” because that status can increase threats for endangered species. “Publishing the exact locations of the butterfly’s habitat will further facilitate unauthorized collection and trade,” the report states. “Its rarity makes the Mt.Charleston blue butterfly extremely attractive to collectors.” Land designated as critical habitat can also be difficult to access and maintain.
—Ashley Hennefer
ashleyh@newsreview.com
ECO-EVENT
The opportunity to recycle phone books will be available from Jan. 1-20 throughout Washoe County. The event, organized in part by Keep Truckee Meadows Beautiful, will have drop off locations in Reno and Sparks, including Evelyn Mount Northeast Community Center, Neil Road Recreation Center, Sparks City Hall, Bartley Ranch Regional Park, and Rancho San Rafael Park, among others. For a full list of locations, visit www.ktmb.org, or call YP Real Yellow Pages Project ReDirectory information line at (800) 953-4000.
Got an eco-event? Contact ashleyh@newsreview.com. Visit www.facebook.com/RNRGreen for more.
