End in sight for Special Session?
Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, told reporters Saturday night that legislative leaders, Governor Gibbons and administrative officials have come to a tentative agreement on how to plug a nearly one billion dollar hole in the state budget. And part of that plug does not take any more money away from state workers than they’ve already been hit with.
However, Buckley added that “there is something in the negotiated budget bill that everyone hates. But that’s the way democracy works.”
The settlement is said to involve easing class size reductions in grades 1 through 3, as well as dropping mandatory textbook upgrades for the immediate future.
On the revenue side, mining is expected to come up with a heftier contribution to the state budget, but only until the next regular session of the legislature figures out a long term funding solution. Gaming’s contribution to the solution remains unclear, although gaming lobbyists were quoted as saying that “gaming is all out,” because they’re already under enough financial strain due to the recession.
Legislative staff was crunching the numbers Saturday night, with a possible vote on the final bill sometime on Sunday and then a signature from Governor Gibbons to make it law.
This latest band-aid solution may make it possible for the state budget to last until the next regular session of the legislature. Many lawmakers were predicting, when the next session convenes next February, the budget shortfall will be more than twice as bad as it is today. Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford, D-Las Vegas, shook his finger at gaming, mining and corporations, saying if they want a state of Nevada to operate in, they are going to have to stop asking residents to subsidize their businesses through the taxes they don’t pay.