Monday, May 04, 2009

Our latest take on Nevada's budget crisis

We still love it here, but we're concerned about Nevada's future (see here for yesterday's op-ed in the Las Vegas Sun).

Of course, not everyone thinks that we should wait until retirement to leave. My University email inbox had this, um, testy response from a Mr. Ed Chapman (ed_chapman2002@yahoo.com):

.......don't you just love the Review-Journal and the Sun when they frequently print pieces by people who whine and compalin [sic] about the"system", [sic] but offer no solutions. If Houston is so wonderful, why don't you move there. Move now, we do not want you here. Just another academic with a law degree. Too many attorneys in Las Vegas anyway, just like there are too many dentists. Go away. No one has asked you to stay here.

Bye!

Dear Mr. Chapman: It's nice to know that you read the Sun and the Review-Journal. I have actually suggested solutions to the crisis--cut some expenses and add some taxes. Reasonable minds can disagree as to whether a combination of cutting and raising revenue can work. But Jeff and I haven't given up on Nevada yet.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Nevada's unofficial state motto:

WELCOME TO NEVADA, NOW SPEND YOUR MONEY AND GET THE HELL OUT.

david said...

there is something to attract me, how you arrange the article to be interesting to follow

Anonymous said...

One local government financial issue in Colorado is privately owned buildings that aren't on the property tax rolls. Steamboat Springs CO is one example. I used to live there and I complained when my neighbor, City Council President Kevin Bennett, built two detached buildings that violated the zoning. One was a guest house and one was a two story 2009 square foot building that included parking for two cars. The local court ruled that only the city could enforce its own zoning laws. See

http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2000/jul/27/case_against_council/

Because I complained I was criminally prosecuted See
http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2001/jan/25/woman_in_harassment/

If you look at the Routt County property tax rolls for Kevin Bennett you will see that the square feet of building area at 701 Princeton Ave did not change between 1999 and 2009. Those two detached buildings and another built the same year were not added to the rolls. The actual square feet of building area is more than twice what is listed on the property tax rolls for 701 Princeton.

6 blocks away a David Engle burned to death last summer in a dwelling unit on Pine St. that had only one exit, violated the zoning, and was not on the property tax rolls. Almost a year later the only explanation by the Routt County assessor Mike Kerrigan is that there are many illegal buildings and enforcement of the regulation is "lax".
http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2008/jun/17/fire_death_questions_linger/

The City and County officials knew then and know now about the buildings that are exempted from regulation and property taxes. The one Engle burned to death in was painted purple and is one block from the county assessor's office. It's all a matter of who you know and who you pay.

In Colorado if you persist in complaining about invisible buildings and illegal retaliation is what may happen is what happened to me:
Mr. Lettunich reported his work on the following: 1. The Federal District Court held a contempt hearing regarding Kay Sieverding. She refused to dismiss the cases that she filed and was arrested. Mr. Sieverding dismissed the cases but later reneged and said He will not dismiss the cases; so he may be arrested as well.”
(See http://steamboatsprings.net/sites/default/files/2005/09/06/ccmn0906.pdf)

Kay Sieverding, 641 Basswood Ave. Verona, WI 53593 http://www.rightscase.com/