Partying away as taxpayers pay and pay

By Tony Cook, Joe Schoenmann

Sunday, Jan. 27, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Proving that Las Vegas knows how to throw a party, City Council members spent more than $190,000 on special events during the past 18 months.

In exchange, taxpayers got hula dancers, a group of carolers, Willy Wonka-themed candy bars, balloon artists, a Santa Claus, a mechanical calf roper, finger painting kits, disc jockeys, dog treats and much more.

City Council members say this is the work of good government, part of the important tradition of familiarizing residents with their elected officials and giving to those in need. Others, however, call it extravagant and, in some cases, closer to political campaigning than governing.

Until July 1, special events spending was handled by the city’s Leisure Services Department. In July, however, the city changed how it tracks those expenses. Now each council member gets $35,000 a year to spend on special events.

From July 2006 through October 2007, the most recent month for which figures were available, council members Steve Ross, Gary Reese and Lois Tarkanian led the pack, spending $59,312, $50,968 and $47,327, respectively. Others, including Mayor Oscar Goodman, spent $1,935 to $18,190.

Before the $35,000-per-year cap was put into place, some council members spent far more than that. In the fiscal year that ended last July 1, for example, Reese, Ross and Tarkanian spent $48,100, $44,500 and $40,150, respectively.

Reese spent more than $22,000 on two events at the East Las Vegas Community Center — a holiday dinner and a seniors Thanksgiving luncheon.

Reese said he will probably cut back on that spending given the city is expecting a $20 million shortfall.

But he was unapologetic about his spending.

“Nobody’s ever raised an eyebrow about it,” he said. “I’ve gotten many, many thank-you letters, telephone calls from people who are tickled to death. They say if it wasn’t for the city, they would have nothing.”

But Reese’s comments about the thank-you notes and telephone calls point to another aspect of this city spending: It helps promote incumbent politicians. Some see it as campaigning on the taxpayers’ dime.

“Those expenditures can be perceived as political rather than governmental,” said Carole Vilardo, president of the Nevada Taxpayers Association. “That is the perception it creates.”

Indeed, some of the expenses seem intended to promote individual council members.

At the grand opening of the Centennial Hills Community Center, for example, beach balls emblazoned with Ross’ name were handed out. The balls cost nearly $1,000.

In another case, then-Councilman Lawrence Weekly handed out custom candy bars with wrappers reading, “Weekly Wonka.”

And Councilman Steve Wolfson distributed pencils and water bottles with his name on them at several events. They cost about $1,200.

Julie Tousa of the Nevada Center for Public Ethics questioned the propriety of such expenses, noting that state law prohibits a public official in most cases from using government time, property or equipment “to benefit his personal or financial interest.”

“The money that funds these events is taxpayer dollars,” Tousa said. “This appears to be of personal benefit to these council members as they are using taxpayer money to promote themselves and could even be interpreted as early reelection campaigning on city time at an event sponsored by the city of Las Vegas.”

She called for the city to review the spending to make sure it complies with state law.

Last fall, Tarkanian was so concerned about how the money was being spent that she asked the city attorney’s office to draft a resolution reinforcing the city’s adherence to the Public Purpose Doctrine. As one City Hall insider put it: “Giving a (taxpayer-funded) present to make someone happy is not a part of the Public Purpose Doctrine.”

“Even though it’s already the law, I just wanted to bring it forward and emphasize it,” Tarkanian said. “Because it’s a complicated thing and we should be aware that we check to be sure we’re in compliance in everything that we do.”

The resolution has not yet been sent to the City Council for review.

Other council members say the money was well spent.

“We want our constituents to recognize who their elected officials are,” Wolfson said. “We want people to be able to say, ‘I met my councilman. If I need something, I know who to get in touch with.’ ”

Reese said he doesn’t think of the spending as something akin to campaigning.

“I do it because it’s the right thing to do,” he said. “I don’t know of anyone who’s jealous of what a senior citizen receives. There are many, many kids who, if they didn’t get backpacks, they didn’t get anything.”

Vilardo and others, however, wonder whether many of the events couldn’t be funded with campaign cash rather than taxpayer money. Critics question why tax money should be spent on dinners when government-funded social service programs are in place to do just that.

Some council members say they often spend campaign funds rather than city money on such events.

Councilman Ricki Barlow spent only about $1,900 on a back-to-school event, according to the city, though Barlow said this week he didn’t think he used any taxpayer money on it. Instead, he relies on donations and his campaign coffers, he said.

“In certain situations, I believe it’s best to do it that way,” he said, adding that there is a thin line between the roles of government official and politician.

“There are certain events that come up that may be perceived as more political,” he said. “You can utilize campaign dollars to do those. That way you stay as far away as possible from that negative perception.”

Lee Bernick, chairman of UNLV’s public administration department, agreed.

“I think it’s one of those very gray areas,” he said.

The key is to make it easy for the public to judge the appropriateness of the spending, he said.

The city moved in the right direction when it took the spending out of the Leisure Services Department and put it into individual council members’ accounts, he said. The information is now more accessible, making it easier to hold council members accountable, he said.

Still, Vilardo thinks the allocation of $35,000 per council member is “quite extreme.” Clark County commissioners, for example, are allocated $15,000 a year. Moreover, the city is facing a budget crunch that could require cuts.

“That’s one of the first places I’d be inclined to look,” Vilardo said.

The six council members did not spend anywhere near the $35,000 cap during the first four months of this fiscal year. In total, they spent $41,483 through October 2007, with $13,100 of that offset by donations.

But before the $35,000 cap was put into place, some council members spent at much higher rates.

Before July 2007, a little-known city entity called the Special Events Unit in the Leisure Services Department handled council members’ event spending.

As such, it spent more than $148,500 on items to cater luncheons, create plaques and pay for candy and food, flowers, tablecloths, decorative fabric, entertainment and helium balloons.

Information about the Special Events Unit spending provided to the Sun shows that taxpayer money was regularly spent on entertainment and other goodies.

Ross spent $327 on candy for Halloween bags. For his Centennial Hills Day Fest in October 2006, Ross spent $600 for two entertainers, $800 for a mechanical calf roper (children sit on a plastic horse and try to rope a mechanical calf), $2,500 for a performance by a ’70s party band Super Freak, $21 for hay bales and $4,076 to print fliers.

Tarkanian’s spending included $4,770 for four Presidents Day buffet-style luncheons and $7,600 for three Christmas dinners. For her back-to-school event, she spent $411 on snacks for a movie for kids, about $3,400 for backpacks, $1,950 for fingerprinting kits and more than $1,400 for pastries, beverages and dog dishes.

Reese went all out for luncheons at the East Las Vegas Community Center. For a November 2006 seniors Thanksgiving luncheon there, catering cost the city at least $10,492. Another holiday dinner at the same center in December cost $11,815. Expenses for the event included $2,100 for photos with holiday frames, $700 for entertainment and about $1,250 for decorative fabric. At the Thanksgiving luncheon, $1,272 was spent on decorative fabric.

Reese also spent a sizable amount on back-to-school events. A disc jockey cost $399; water, food and drink cost $1,400; and backpacks cost roughly $1,000.

While in city office, Weekly spent public money on an event dubbed the Weekly Wonka Wonderland Celebration in December 2006. Expenses for that event included $475 for Santa Claus and other holiday costumes, $425 for a performance by the Lamplight Carolers, $330 for hot chocolate and $795 for custom candy bars. Shipping for the candy bars cost $119 more. He also spent $2,250 on hula dancers for a seniors luau.

The other three current council members spent a total of $23,179 from the Leisure Services Department.

As for Mayor Oscar Goodman, he was relatively tightfisted with his Leisure Services Department spending. In fiscal 2007, he spent $4,189, mostly on the November 2006 Mayor’s Senior Breakfast at the East Las Vegas Community/Senior Center. For the fiscal year that began in July, he hadn’t touched his $35,000 account as of October.

Joe Schoenmann can be reached at 229-6436 or at [email protected]. Tony Cook can be reached at 259-2320 or at [email protected].