Wednesday, April 30, 2003 | 11:11 a.m.
CARSON CITY -- The president of Citibank in Nevada wrote to Gov. Kenny Guinn on Tuesday to pledge support for the gross receipts tax, provided his bank can be a part of discussions on proposed changes to the levy.
Steven J. Garofalo, president and CEO of Citibank Nevada, sent a letter to Guinn dated April 29 in which he states that his company is currently drafting proposed language for possible incorporation to a gross receipts tax plan.
"We think, with the proper definitions and clarifying language, a gross receipts type of tax bill could be workable for our business," Garofalo wrote.
Bankers have previously expressed staunch opposition to the gross receipts tax, saying the proposed 0.25 percent levy on business receipts over $450,000 cannot fairly be applied to the unique services financial institutions offer given the regulations those companies work under.
Assembly Bill 517, which would have imposed a 14 percent tax on financial institutions, never passed the Commerce and Labor Committee, but it did result in several bank officials pledging that a refined gross receipts would be more fair than a specific tax that targets their industry.
In his letter, Garofalo said he is preparing to offer drafting expertise and resources to amend or formulate other types of broad-based business taxes should other proposals come forward.
Guinn was pleased to receive the letter, his spokesman, Greg Bortolin, said.
"The governor has been very open and clear about expecting the banking industry to work with him to get a tax package passed," Bortolin said this morning.
Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, who has pledged any tax plan that clears his house must contain a broad-based business tax, said he is beginning to see an evolution of those working on the gross receipts.
"Everybody has said they want to see a broad-based business tax, but gosh, gross receipts is a bad deal," Perkins said. "But when they see everything that's compared to the gross receipts, they don't like those either.
"Now we're starting to see some movement back to the gross receipts."
Perkins on Tuesday met with a group of builders and developers on tax issues and said those representatives also began discussing potential with the gross receipts after airing concerns about how a net profits tax would impact their industry.
"There's a trickling of folks coming out because everything else is worse," Perkins said.
The Assembly Taxation Committee will hold a hearing on the gross receipts tax Thursday at 1:30 p.m. The meeting will be teleconferenced to the Grant Sawyer State Building in Las Vegas and will be broadcast live on the Internet at ww.leg.state.nv.us, the Legislature's website.
archive
