Lanni tells employees not to sign “misleading tax grab” petition

Wednesday, April 23, 2008 | 1:39 p.m.

MGM MIRAGE CEO Terry Lanni today sent an email to company employees about the teachers gaming tax petition and urging them not to sign. Here is the text of the email:

A Message from Terry Lanni

I believe every Nevadan should express an opinion in the political process. However, I also strongly believe that we should each express an informed opinion.

I’m writing to you today to warn you that a group is currently in your neighborhoods seeking signatures on petitions for a deceptive ballot measure. These people are counting on you signing their petition before you learn the facts about how damaging it could be to our state and our industry.

The success of our state’s education system is a top priority for our company, the same as I’m sure it is for each of you. But the fact of the matter is gaming companies already pay taxes that make up 50% of Nevada’s budget. Much of this money goes toward paying for children’s educations.

Some time ago, the leadership of the teachers’ union decided to try and make the biggest tax grab in Nevada history. Their plan: Change our state Constitution and raise the gaming tax by 44%. In the eyes of the teachers’ union leadership, this money would be used to give huge raises to every one of their members, with no direct tie to performance evaluations or accountability measures.

Teachers’ union leaders would have us give them hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxes for teacher pay raises, but would have no limits on how raises are assigned, no teacher performance standards, and no accountability controls to prove these millions of new tax dollars actually improve our education system at all. This tax would pay for no new books for our students, no new equipment for our classrooms, no improvements for our campuses.

The teachers’ union wants the promise of higher pay with no promise that Nevada’s children would receive a better education.

While the teachers’ union proposal is full of uncertainties, one thing is certain; a 44% increase in the state gaming tax would have a terrible impact on our company.

Money that could build new developments to attract tourists to Las Vegas would be lost.

Money that could create jobs and opportunities for our family of employees would be lost.

Money that could provide the best possible health care to our employees and their families would be lost.

Let me be clear - We are not against improving education in Nevada. Far from it, but if we are going to provide more money for education, we all deserve to know that money is going to be spent wisely, that there will be accountability for every dollar spent, and that our children will actually benefit through a better education.

This teachers’ union tax grab gives us none of those assurances, and will have a devastating impact on our company and our state. None of us should support that; and none of us should sign this deceptive petition.

If you oppose this misleading tax grab amendment, the most important thing you can do is ask the hard questions and not sign their petition.

J Terrence Lanni

Chairman and CEO