Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

SUN EDITORIAL:

Avoiding the problem

Sandoval, other governors push off problems onto local governments

To close a budget shortfall estimated at more than $2 billion, Gov. Brian Sandoval has proposed a series of cuts and gimmicks that don’t address the underlying problems facing Nevada.

In addition to slashing education and other services, Sandoval has proposed taking money from local governments and mandating they take over some state responsibilities. In return, Sandoval has suggested that he might support some form of home rule, which would give local governments more power and possibly even the ability to raise taxes.

But no one is foolish enough to think the state will actually abdicate much, if any, of its power. Instead, local governments are likely going to bear the brunt of the state budget cuts.

Sandoval’s idea isn’t novel. As The New York Times reported Thursday, several other states are pursuing similar plans. For example, Ohio Gov. John Kasich wants to cut more than $500 million from local governments over the next two years, and Nebraska passed a law eliminating all direct aid to local governments.

A report from Moody’s Investors Service, a rating agency, noted the trend, saying that states are “increasingly pushing down their problems.” Moody’s added that this would be the “toughest year for local governments since the economic downturn began.”

In a recent speech, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that state aid accounted for about 30 percent of local government revenue in 2008. Across the country, cities and counties are bracing for the effects of massive cuts like these, and officials are talking about layoffs and services being either slashed or eliminated.

Massive cuts are in vogue, particularly in Republican circles, but what the budget cutters aren’t talking about are the consequences of what will happen if billions of dollars are taken out of the nation’s economy. Jobs will certainly be lost, meaning a ripple of economic problems to come.

New York Times columnist and Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman last week noted that a few years ago several European countries adopted austerity programs to fight debt and spark their economies. The European austerity programs, which were championed by conservatives here, are failing. In fact, several countries have seen things get worse.

Nevada, which has the highest unemployment rate in the nation, can’t allow that to happen. Although many elected officials, including Sandoval, have talked about hard choices and making sacrifices, they’re not leading the way. They want to avoid any talk of taxes, and instead they push problems off on others and ignore the real issues.

For years, government services have been underfunded and the state’s quality of life has suffered, impacting a variety of services from infrastructure to schools. It’s unquestionable that the tax system here is broken and inequitable, but Sandoval clings to his foolish tax pledge and won’t raise the issue.

Nevada can’t follow other states in a rush to gut the budget and avoid real problems. Instead of harming the state’s future, Sandoval and the Legislature should be looking for innovative ways to invest in Nevada and put it back on the right track.

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