IMPORTANT NOTICE -- IT'S OKAY TO GO POSTAL AGAIN

Until at least July 31, we can circulate Sen. Neal's People's Petition at U.S. post offices. A recently filed lawsuit has resulted in a waiver of a ban imposed in 1998. The interim rule allows solicitation of signatures on "petitions, polls and surveys."

In an attempt to negotiate a prompt settlement, USPS has agreed not to enforce prohibitions thru the end of July. Please spread the word.

SIGNATURE SIGNS: For those who can utilize them, Sen. Neal has produced signs which describe the petition's main provisions. The posters also feature a blow-up of a filled-out petition signature box, as some people make mistakes. We also have (or had) brochures. The first printing is about gone but more are in the pipeline. Anyone needing a stock, please let us know. They are very handy in getting signatures and new circulators. If you need something immediately, we can fax a copy for you to reproduce. Anyone needing additional petitions, please let us know.

JOE STEPS INTO THE LION'S DEN AGAIN.

RENO (Wednesday, June 21) -- Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, will once again step into the lion's den at 12 noon this Wednesday, June 21, at the Atlantis Hotel-Casino in Reno.

He will address a luncheon hosted by Citizens for Private Enterprise, the political action committee of the Reno-Sparks Chamber of Commerce. His subject will be (surprise) his initiative petition to raise the world's lowest gross gaming tax. The event is sold out.

Sen. Neal has recently been buffeted from all sides by a well-funded, statewide gambling industry fearmongering disinformation campaign. They have also placed two candidates into the North Las Vegas Democratic primary against him. One admitted to the Las Vegas Business Press that if he defeats Sen. Neal, he will never have to work again.

You will find details about the latest happenings at the Barbwire Archive at NevadaLabor.com. Click on "State cooks the books, media freeze-dry the facts" and "With friends like these, who needs enemies?"

The latter will prove especially enjoyable to Nealophiles. At the bottom, you will find a link to the Las Vegas Review-Journal poll which shows that the gambling industry campaign has been an expensive and total failure. Public support for a gross gaming tax increase remains at landslide levels, 63% of Nevadans in favor with just 26% against. In contrast, the teachers' union business income tax petition has been termed "dead on arrival" by the Review-Journal pollster.

If you still don't have your petitions, fill out the volunteer form at the front page of this site and join the majority supporting Sen. Neal's People's Petition.

FEAR & RUMOR-MONGERING IN LAS VEGAS AND LV MAYOR OSCAR GOODMAN'S BULWORTH MOMENT

(LAS VEGAS) Wednesday, March 29 -- Sen. Joe Neal's initiative petition to raise the world's lowest gross gaming tax has apparently scared the bejabbers out of the gambling-industrial complex. University of Nevada polls for years have shown that about seven in 10 Nevadans support the idea.

The gambling moguls know they must keep the decision away from the voters at all costs. Their strategy of trying to poison the well in rural Nevada is not going well. Nevada Resort Association President Bill Bible recently went to Lyon County newspapers with the area's local legislator, Assembly Speaker and casino owner Joe Dini, D-Yerington.

Speaker Dini misrepresented the facts to his hometown paper, asserting that Sen. Neal's petition will eventually trickle down to the small casino level. Actually, Neal's petition would only affect the largest clubs in the largest counties. Smaller operations such as Dini's Lucky Club in Yerington would not pay a penny more. (See the first FAQ at the home page of this site.)

"They will not stop. They will get all the casinos before they are done," Mr. Dini said. (Mason Valley News, 2-25-2K).

A detailed response from one D. Dallas appeared in the Mason Valley News' sister paper, the Dayton Courier, on March 1: "Who in the heck are they? The only 'they' I can think of is the legislature. You can bet your sweet you-know-what those people will have to be drug screaming and yelling before 'they' increase any casino tax...If someone approaches you to sign Sen. Neal's petition, I suggest careful consideration. If they don't pay more, you will."

Dallas' letter went on to note all the "hidden" taxes which have been increased on average Nevadans since the gambling tax was last raised in 1987.

CASINO SHILLS LICKING STAMPS

The campaign of casino industry-planted letters to the editor continues. The latest appeared in the March 28 Reno Gazette-Journal. The form letters are easy to recognize, as they all harp on the same three issues and use pretty much the same language.

As evidenced by the D. Dallas letter in Lyon County, the voters will not be fooled. The casinos are merely provoking a backlash. Read Ellen Nelson's letter to the Carson City Nevada Appeal and George P. Dix's letter in the Las Vegas Sun.

RUMOR MILL OPENS ON THE LAS VEGAS STRIP

We are still in the early stages of this petition campaign. The kinds of rumors we've recently seen usually don't circulate until the month before a general election. Sen. Neal's gaming tax increase proposal cannot see the ballot until November, 2002. Nonetheless, desperate rumor-mongering has already begun. Those phony letters to the editor hysterically warn of casino closings and job losses. The facts are ridiculously otherwise.

Tongue firmly in cheek, the Las Vegas City Life weekly newspaper put matters into proper perspective on March 16: "Nevada casinos posted record-breaking revenues in January. Now, clearly, is no time to raise the gaming tax," the editors quipped.

Things are getting meaner out on the street. Sen. Neal just received this e-mail from the Las Vegas Strip:

The petition is alive and well

"I heard from two different people today that Senator Neal's petition to raise the gaming tax to 11 and a quarter percent had been withdrawn. The first one was a customer where I work, a Republican who is running for office on a platform that would raise the gaming tax by 2 per cent, which he assured me was his idea. (I didn't tell him that Joe ran for governor on a proposal of two per cent.) I just dismissed him as hot air, and not too bright.

"The next person disturbed me, however, because it was from a loyal Democrat who said her neighbors had heard it on the news. I called the senator, and asked him if the petition had been withdrawn, and he confirmed that the petition is alive and well and gathering signatures at a steady pace. I suspected as much.

"It's time to regulate the gaming industry, if for no other reason than to prune its branches and keep it healthy," the letter concluded.

NEVADA TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION STUDY UNDERCUTS GAMBLING INDUSTRY ANTI-TAX POSITION

Earlier this week, the long-established Nevada Taxpayers Association published a study on Silver State taxation and economic diversification. It echoes and reinforces the 1999 Nevada Commission on Economic Development study, which the NTA research even uses as a reference in one passage.

The only news about it so far appeared in the Las Vegas Sun on Monday, March 27: "Taxpayers Association, gamers at odds over taxes and subsidies" by Richard N. Velotta.

Those interested may contact NTA Executive Director Carol Vilardo for the material. We will activate a link when they post the study at their website.

Both reports reinforce Sen. Neal's point that the gambling industry does not pay a fair share for the growth it causes. No less than freshman Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman seems to be figuring that out for himself.

OSCAR'S BULWORTH MOMENT

In the Las Vegas Sun on March 22, veteran political columnist Jon Ralston asked "Who would have the audacity to describe the gaming industry as avaricious, parasitic and selfish? Who would have the temerity to accuse the casinos of not giving enough to the community? Who would dare publicly fume, 'They put the money in their pocket and walk away from it.'"

Hizzoner sounds like Sen. Neal.

TEACHERS PLAYING HOOKY?

The Nevada State Education Association is still absent from the game. Awhile back, the teachers' union announced that it would file on March 21 its long-promised initiative petition for a business income tax. Nothing yet. They have apparently found out that the Nevada Constitution requires that all taxes be applied uniformly and equally, thus raising serious legal questions about their much-discussed gambling industry exemption.

Making common cause with Sen. Neal might prove a smarter political strategy than angering every business in the state, large or small.

EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT!
EXCLUSIVE BARBWIRE SPECIAL EDITION
Et tu, Kenny? Gaming's governor stabs at Neal on the Ides of March

LAS VEGAS (March 15 Y2K) -- On the same day the gambling-industrial complex released a study stating (surprise) that casinos pay their fair share but other businesses should be taxed, Gov. Kenny Guinn called upon Sen. Joe Neal and the teachers union to unilaterally fold their respective tax increase petition campaigns.

Gov. Guinn made no offer in his speech before the Nevada Taxpayers Association at the Mandalay Bay Resort on the Las Vegas Strip. He just appealed to the opposition's fairness and railed against government by initiative petition, which he said he would travel the entire state to defeat. (The former educator has apparently lost sight of the fact that the right to petition one's government is embedded in both the Nevada and U.S. Constitutions.)

Neal, D-North Las Vegas, upped the ante with a sensational counter-proposal sure to be rejected. The teachers also refused. The gamblers' own study has inadvertently proven Neal's assertion that gaming does not pay its fair share of taxes for the growth it causes. Guinn made threats of recrimination against the senate's senior Democrat and the Nevada State Education Association which the governor can't possibly keep.

Details in a special Ides of March edition of Barbwire by Barbano at NevadaLabor.com.

Be well. Raise hell.

CASINO SPAWNED LETTERS TO THE EDITOR INFECT RENO PAPER

RENO (March 14) -- Neal supporters throughout northern Nevada have expressed outrage at gambling industry-orchestrated letters to the editor published in the March 14 Reno Gazette-Journal. Read one letter to Sen. Neal's campaign and the response.

JOE NEAL VS. JAN JONES, ROUND 2

Populist senator and casino industry spokeswoman schedule second debate on casino taxes Tuesday, March 7, 8:00 p.m. PST in Las Vegas

(LAS VEGAS) Tuesday, March 7 -- Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, and his 1998 Nevada gubernatorial opponent, former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Laverty Jones, have their second television face off Tuesday evening on KTVY-TV in Las Vegas. Jones is now Senior Vice-President of Communications for Harrah's Resorts.

The once and future political opponents take to the airwaves and cable wires live at 8:00 p.m., PST, on "Law for the Layman," hosted by attorney Dean Hardy and Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Nancy Oesterle.

Anyone may ask a question by calling the live program at (702) 765-6000. KTVY is available over the air at channel 63 on the Las Vegas UHF. Cox Cable carries the station on channel 61.

In his column of Feb. 21, 2000, Las Vegas Business Press Editor and Publisher Rod Smith called the first encounter a "good debate, but it would have played even better in the gubernatorial campaign...Jones came out swinging, sweating bullets over an alleged 80 percent tax increase on Nevada's largest casinos. Neal, leading a statewide initiative campaign to raise the gross gaming tax, countered by noting that elsewhere, Harrah's pays taxes up to 460 percent higher than Nevada's lowest-in-the-world top rate of 6.25 percent."

Jones refused to debate Neal in the 1998 Nevada Democratic gubernatorial primary. She was defeated by Republican Kenny Guinn in the general election. Details of February's meeting between Neal and Jones may be accessed at http://www.nevadalabor.com/barbwire/barb00/barbjones.html

This item is being posted just after 10:00 p.m. PST on March 6. If you are not on our mailing lists, please sign up at the "Join the Campaign" button at this site.

JAN JONES FINALLY DEBATES SEN. JOE NEAL TWO YEARS LATE

Casino heavyweights Bible, Sloan and Feldman refuse to face veteran North Las Vegas lawmaker

(LAS VEGAS) Friday, Feb. 11 -- After breaking her campaign manager's promise to debate Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, in the 1998 Nevada gubernatorial campaign, former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Laverty Jones finally faced off with him today.

The once and future political opponents taped a segment of Las Vegas One's "POV" this afternoon. The program was hosted by veteran Las Vegas Sun investigative reporter Jeff German

Las Vegas One will cablecast the confrontation at 4:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. (PST) today (Feb. 11, Y2K) on either Cox Cable channel 1 or 39, depending on the southern Nevada viewer's cable configuration. The gambling industry originally committed to send either Nevada Resort Association President Bill Bible, Mandalay Bay (Circus Circus) Vice-President Mike Sloan, or Mirage Resorts executive Alan Feldman. None would appear against Sen. Neal despite several weeks of requests.

This past Monday, they notified Las Vegas One that Ms. Jones would substitute. The maneuver is a textbook public relations power play employed by major corporate entities such as the Tobacco Institute. It involves using a female spokesperson to present a soft, motherly face when an exploitive industry comes under fire.

See the rest of this story at the front page of this website. This item is being posted just before 6:30 p.m. PST. If you are not on our mailing lists, please sign up at the "Join the Campaign" button. "

SEN. NEAL UNVEILS FINAL PETITION TEXT STATEWIDE TOMORROW

NORTH LAS VEGAS (Jan. 24) -- Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, will kick off his initiative petition campaign on Tuesday, 1-25-2000, at 9:30 a.m. at the West Las Vegas Library, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd, conference room "A."

Immediately thereafter, he will travel to northern Nevada for a 2:00 p.m. press conference in Sparks at the Northern Nevada Labor Temple, 1819 Hymer Ave. He will then drive from Sparks to Carson City to file the petition at the office of the Nevada secretary of state at the capitol.

Petitions will be available for those wishing to circulate them at all three events.

The press and the public -- especially petition volunteers -- are invited.

SPECIAL NOTICE TO PETITION COORDINATORS AND VOLUNTEERS:

It is important that you coordinate with your county chairs.

As we get underway, keep these things in mind: (1) Follow the printed instructions you will receive with your petitions. (2) Recruit other volunteers as you circulate. If you give them one of your petitions, instruct them on the rules. Keep records of how many documents you gave them, as you have just become their supervisor. Get their full names, addresses, phone numbers and, especially, E-MAIL BOXES. (3) Keep an eye on this website, particularly this bull'board, anytime of the day or night. Be sure to keep us posted on what people are saying to you.

For the latest update on frequently asked questions, please go to The Barbwire Archive and read the 1-16-Y2K installment entitled "Proof that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing."

Let's go to work!

AB

TOMORROW'S NEWS TODAY: HELLER CALLS PETITION RULE HEARINGS ONE YEAR LATE (RENO) -- This week, Nevada Secretary of State Dean Heller is holding rulemaking hearings on initiative petitions a full year later than he should have. The first comes this Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in Carson City in the old supreme court chambers in the capitol building. On Friday, also at 1:30 p.m., he will hold a session in the Grant Sawyer Bldg. in Las Vegas.

Anyone interested may contact Pamela Crowell, head of Heller's elections division, for relevant documents. She tells me they intend to post them at the SOS website, but they are not yet up as of this writing.

You will find complete information at the front page of JoeNeal.org among the recent news clips.

For the most detailed description, see my column from last Sunday's Daily Sparks Tribune.

On the bright side, the publicity is picking up lots of new volunteers.

PETITION CIRCULATORS: Tell everyone to watch this website and this bull'board for updates and marching orders at any hour of the day or night as conditions warrant.

Be well. Raise hell.

Andrew Barbano

NevadaLabor.com

STRANGE TAXATION PROPOSALS FLYING HOT AND HEAVY

RENO " Two Nevada political leaders recently called attention to Nevada's increasing troubles paying its bills. Peter Ernaut, former Reno Republican assemblyman and retiring chief of staff to Gov. Kenny Guinn, said that the demands of Medicaid and the Clark County School District by themselves will require more than $700 million in new revenue per year.

"This means our state budget will double in eight years from those two programs alone," he said. "Nevada is on the precipice of some very, very difficult decisions," Ernaut added. "There are going to be some very, very difficult days ahead."

See "Ernaut predicts huge increase in state needs and huge budget shortfall" in the Dec. 9 Las Vegas Sun. Maybe now we know why he quit.

Mark Alden, longtime University and Community College System of Nevada regent representing Las Vegas, called upon municipalities to help fund community colleges and the proposed Henderson State Teachers College. The Nevada Association of Counties quickly disagreed, as did the Reno Gazette-Journal in an editorial on Sunday, Dec. 12.

"The cities and counties of Nevada have their own responsibilities and those do not include higher education," the Gannett-owned paper stated.

"They are already having trouble finding the money to meet those responsibilities. There simply is no money that can be 'redirected' to the community colleges...Alden is correct to ask where the money to support the colleges will come from in the future. But he's wrong to think that raiding local government coffers is the answer to that difficult question," the Gazette-Journal concluded.

The fastest growing state in the nation has a fiscal crisis brewing and neither of the gentlemen above nor the news media mentioned the logical solution: Sen. Neal's proposal to raise the gross gaming tax.

Stating the problem is easy. Only Sen. Neal has proposed a definitive solution.

SEN. NEAL SAYS THANKS for the many suggestions regarding the text of the initiative petition which he received by the deadline. Be ready to go to work on January 1.

FINALLY, we thought you might enjoy this bit of levity.

On 12-3-99, the Neal campaign received a memo from Charles Muth of the ultra-conservative Nevada Republican Liberty Caucus.

It concluded thus: "P.S. As an added bonus - and this is a BIG one - participants in the Campaign 2000 War College will be allowed to sign on as co-sponsors of one of the hottest ballot initiatives Nevada has ever seen. This new, taxpayer-friendly petition will make you a hero in the eyes of every taxpaying voter you come in contact with between now and next November - regardless of party affiliation.

"But we're not releasing the details here. Only participants in this special program will be allowed to be a sponsoring member of this hot, hot, HOT ballot initiative."

This was our response:

Dear Chuck:

Regarding your memo of 12-3-99:

Glad you've seen the light.

Please let me know when you'd like to do a joint press conference with Sen. Neal endorsing his petition to raise the gross gaming tax.

Be well. Raise hell.

Andrew Barbano, www.joeneal.org

COMMENT PERIOD ON NEAL PETITION CLOSES TODAY

Last minute response heavy

North Las Vegas " Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, has announced that the public comment period for his petition to increase the gross gaming tax on the state's largest, most profitable casinos, closes today. He will continue to take comments through Wednesday, Dec. 1, by phone or fax at (702) 399-2114 or by e-mail at senator@joeneal.org.

The deadline for comment has brought a last-minute rush of volunteers and some very constructive comments. No petition in recent memory, and perhaps not in Nevada history, has been open for public inputs before circulation.

By law, the petition cannot be circulated until January 1, Y2K. Just over 44,000 signatures will be required of registered voters spanning at least 13 of Nevada's 17 counties. The petition must be presented to the secretary of state by the end of the year 2000. If enough valid signatures are submitted, the issue goes to the 2001 Nevada Legislature.

Lawmakers will then have 40 calendar days to pass it as submitted or the measure automatically advances to the November, 2002, general election ballot.

A new feature at the Neal website is an analysis of the gambling industry's lack of support for Nevada education. The item was developed in response to letters received by Sen. Neal on the subject.

"Nevada Casinos Fail to Support Education" may be accessed at http://www.joeneal.org/education.html

Sen. Neal thanks everyone in Nevada, across the nation and in other lands for providing inputs, promising support and wishing him well. He offers greetings and happy holidays to everyone.

ADVANCE NOTICE FROM SEN. NEAL

NORTH LAS VEGAS -- Next week, I will announce that the public comment period for the People's Petition will close on December 1, 1999. If you have some inputs, please act soon.

You may access the text from the front page of this site, where you will also find the button for our "Get Involved" campaign volunteer form. Thanks to all who have commented, volunteered or sent encouragement. Please pass the word and get ready to go to work starting January 1, Y2K.

MESSAGE FROM SEN. NEAL:

Thanks for all the volunteer forms which have been returned since we published the People's Petition text and started gathering our forces. Your comments on the proposal have been most constructive.

The expressions of support have been heartening. I suggest that you review "Organizing on the WorldWideWeb" at this site and begin work accordingly.

Keep spreading the word. The campaign will be in touch soon.

NEAL CRITICIZES UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA MEDICAL SCHOOL FOR GRADUATING ONLY 11 AFRICAN-AMERICANS IN 1,000 SINCE 1980

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 21) " Almost 1,000 medical students have graduated from the University of Nevada School of Medicine since the first four-year class accepted their diplomas in 1980.

Only 11 of them have been black.

Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, blames "cultural bias" for the low number of minority medical students.

"The school can find very good excuses why they can't find minority applicants," Neal told members of the Regents' Academic, Research and Student Affairs Committee.

"But mostly, once you adopt a culture where you don't think minority students qualify, you discard them.

"Ninety percent of the medical schools in this country have more blacks in their first year of class than we've had in the past 15 years."

No blacks have been accepted out of the 15 who applied in the past three years.

"Minorities don't bother trying to get into medical school in Nevada because they aren't going to be accepted anyway," Neal said.

Steve Sisolak, chairman of the committee, said he was extremely concerned about the lack of minorities in the medical school.

"My peers can compete with anyone, if given the chance," Neal told the Board of Regents.

"You have to spread the word that black students are welcome."

When asked by Regent Howard Rosenberg whether minority student should be given preferences in the admissions process. Neal replied, "All applicants should be judged at the same level and by the same standards."

Read more about it:

Jerry Fink's story in the Las Vegas Sun.

Natalie Patton's story in the Las Vegas Review Journal.

NEAL OPENS UNPRECEDENTED PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD ON GAMING TAX INITIATIVE

NORTH LAS VEGAS -- State Sen. Joseph M. Neal, Jr., D-North Las Vegas, today announced the opening of an unprecedented public comment period on his "People's Petition" to increase the gross gaming tax on Nevada's largest, most profitable casinos.

Where initiatives are usually finalized by teams of lawyers and managers, Neal's will be fine-tuned by the Nevadans who will circulate it and live under it.

"We cannot legally begin circulating the petition until January, 2000. I want to take advantage of the interim period to give the public the fullest opportunity to review the petition and make suggestions. All constructive comments, pro and con, are welcome," the senate's senior Democrat noted.

The petition draft has been posted at Sen. Neal's new web address, http://www.joeneal.org. Nevadans may forward comments to Sen. Neal in the following ways:

--> Via e-mail to senator@joeneal.org --> By U.S. Mail to --> 304 Lance Avenue, North Las Vegas, NV 89030 --> Via voice mail or fax to (702) 399-2114

The website contains complete information on the need for the gaming tax increase, including the now-suppressed Nevada Commission on Economic Development Study which confirms Neal's longtime contention that the gambling industry does not pay a fair share to mitigate the impacts of growth it causes.

Nevada gambling enterprises pay the lowest taxes in the world. Neal proposes to raise the levy on casino income over $1 million per month. All revenue below that figure, regardless of a casino's size, would remain taxed at 1987 levels.

"This progressivity protects smaller operators," Neal noted.

SEN. NEAL AND TEACHERS' UNION PRESENT PETITIONS THURSDAY MORNING

LAS VEGAS (Sept. 15) " Sen. Joe. Neal, D-North Las Vegas, addresses the Nevada Taxpayers Association this Thursday morning, 9-16-99, at the Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas. He will present the case for his initiative petition to add a higher tier to the gross gaming tax for casinos grossing more than $1 million per month. It would be the first increase in the tax since 1987. Nevada casinos pay the lowest gaming levies in the world. Neal's new tier would affect just over 100 major clubs by adding a five percentage point increase. It would still leave Nevada's taxation among the lowest.

The Nevada teachers union will present its business income tax petition. Executive Director Ken Lange is scheduled to speak for the Nevada State Education Association. The representative of a northern Nevada group desiring a new version of California's 1976 property tax-slashing Prop. 13 has canceled.

The Nevada Taxpayers Association and Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn, R, are currently trial-ballooning a sales tax on services. (See this week's Las Vegas Business Press, "Expansion of sales tax floated," by Larry Wills, 9-13-99.

Breakfast begins at 7:30 a.m. in the Stardust convention area, with speakers scheduled to start at 8:15.

Material from Sen. Neal's remarks will be posted at this website. Petition circulation cannot begin until January, Y2K. To volunteer or contribute, please e-mail Sen. Neal.

DETAILS ON ATTENDING THE SEPT. 16 TAX PETITION TRIPLEHEADER

Carole Vilardo at the Nevada Taxpayers Association has been the prime mover in putting the breakfast forum together and NTA is the lead organization. I inadvertently omitted them from the list of sponsoring organizations in the previous item and regret the oversight.

The NTA office in Las Vegas may be reached at (702) 457-8442; fax (702) 457-6361. The NTA Carson City office may be reached at (775) 882-2697. Admission to the Stardust Hotel event is $25 per person at the door, $20 in advance. We have been advised that space at the breakfast is limited, so those interested should make reservations without delay. (More details in the next item, below.) AB

SEN. NEAL TO PRESENT GAMING TAX PETITION BEFORE MAJOR BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS

All three of Nevada's major newspapers run Neal guest editorials in August

LAS VEGAS " The three (so far) proposed Nevada initiative petitions on tax matters will get their first side-by-side scrutiny on Thursday, Sept. 16, at the Stardust Hotel-Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.

State Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, will present his arguments for raising the gross gaming tax on the state's largest, most profitable casinos. Neal recently revealed details of his petition (see links, below), for which signature gathering will begin in January, 2000, the earliest time allowed under state law.

Randi Thompson, Executive Director of Nevadans for Fair Taxation, will present her Incline Village-based organization's proposal for a latter day Proposition 13 (aka the 1976 California Jarvis-Gann Initiative). While their petition to slash property taxes has not been published, it will probably closely follow the language of Assembly Joint Resolution 17, introduced by Assemblyman Don Gustavson, R-Reno/Sparks North Valleys, during the 1999 Nevada legislative session.

When their texts become available, the Neal and Thompson group petitions may be viewed as two symptoms of the same ailment. As Sen. Neal stated in his August 26, 1999, Reno-Gazette Journal guest editorial, casino-caused "financial misdirection has squeezed municipalities which have had nowhere to turn but property taxes for necessities such as parks. This explains why such levies have consistently outpaced inflation in many parts of Nevada."

Finally, an as yet unnamed representative of the Nevada State Education Association will present the teachers union proposal for a 5% corporate profits tax on all businesses save gambling casinos and mining. (Taxation on mining was fixed to net proceeds by a 1989 state constitutional amendment.)

The Sept. 16 event in the Stardust Hotel convention area begins with breakfast at 7:30 a.m. with the program beginning at 8:15. Sponsoring organizations include the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the (southern) Nevada Development Authority, the Nevada Manufacturers Association, the Nevada Mining Association, the Nevada Retail Association and the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association.

Read more about it:

Sen. Neal's commentary in the 8-26-99 Reno Gazette-Journal is not available at the newspaper's homepage, but will soon post at the front page of this website. If you are not currently included on our list-serve and would like a copy by e-mail, you may request it and/or future upload inclusion by contacting Andrew Barbano.

See also:

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL -- Senator argues for higher Nevada gaming tax

LAS VEGAS SUN -- Experts: Gaming, transiency make LV tough for child-raising

LAS VEGAS SUN -- Neal reveals details of gaming tax initiative

LAS VEGAS REVIEW- JOURNAL letter writer supports Neal

The 1999 legislative fight to get casinos to pay a fair share

BARBWIRE -- Fold democracy and let casinos rule by memo; teachers tax petition questioned

LAS VEGAS BUSINESS PRESS -- Proposed teachers' tax petition same as earlier gambling industry proposal

Carson City newspaper endorses Neal's gaming tax hike

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL -- Issues settled on Bellagio art tax break

RENO (Aug. 26) -- Sen. Neal's guest editorial entitled "Gaming must pay fair share of tax burden" appeared on page 9A of today's Reno Gazette-Journal. Therein, Sen. Neal uses the gambling industry's own conduct to prove the need for an increase in the gross gaming tax on the state's largest, most profitable casinos.

The Reno paper has not posted the story at its web site, but we've found that sometimes they will add guest editorials when they move the paper to their archive. You can find details of Sen. Neal's initiative petition proposal at the front page of this site. We will be uploading today's installment soon.

Expect the evil empire to strike back shortly.

CORRECTION ON THE PREVIOUS ITEM "

Sen. Neal attended the National Conference of State Legislatures, July 24-28, in Indianapolis, Ind., not the NAACP national convention which was held earlier in the summer.

WELCOME BACK TO THE ARENA.

Sorry to have been away from this bulletin board for so long. If you haven't had a chance to keep up with Nevada newspapers on the web, you'll find legislative updates and a wide range of other public affairs commentary at Barbwire by Barbano, the weekly column from the Daily Sparks Tribune.

The Nevada Legislature, alas, went pretty much according to the most cynical script.

As master songwriter Leonard Cohen put it a few years back, "Everybody knows the dice are loaded. Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed. Everybody knows the war is over. Everybody knows the good guys lost. Everybody knows the fight was fixed.The poor stay poor, the rich get rich. That's how it goes. Everybody knows."

The poor and the weak suffered the worst in this legislature, as usual.

"Ask a lawmaker what the Nevada Legislature did for the middle class and it's like asking an actor about his reviews," veteran legislative reporter Dennis Myers wrote in the June 11 Daily Sparks Tribune.

"Ask lawmakers what they did for he state's businesses and rich folks and they'll get awfully quiet, though that gleam in their eyes will reveal they have a full array of goodies in mind, ranging from the $15 million (Steve) Wynn art tax dodge to the $200,000 subsidy supplied to a Minnesota company which owns a Clark County golf course," Myers continued.

"But ask them what they did for the state's low income residents and you get a lot of blank stares. Literally. I pointed a television camera (on which silence shows up real fast) and asked the question and I got a lot of blank stares...

"Sen. Joe Neal (says) that not only did the lawmakers do nothing for the poor, but actually damaged them by diverting federal money for dental care for the poor statewide to creation of a dental school in Las Vegas," Myers wrote.

"Neal (adds) that the lawmakers will never do anything for the poor as long as they are spending all their time on their bellies, 'not wanting to, you know, tap the big boys and make them pay their fair share. And as a result, you know, the little folks -- the little folks lose.'"

On August 19, Sen. Neal opened up the next front in his lifelong battle for equity and equality. In a guest editorial in the Las Vegas Sun, Sen. Neal revealed the first details of his initiative petition to raise the gross gaming tax on the state's largest, most profitable casinos.

Please read "Gambling must ante up," and tell your friends about it. By law, petition circulation cannot begin until January Y2K, but the next six months will be crucial for organization. Keep an eye on this website for announcements and instructions on how to get involved. He will need support from every county in Nevada.

There have been a few positive developments of late. The new Joseph M. Neal Elementary School opens this month, already over capacity like several other new ones in the fastest-growing city in the United States.

Designed for 650 students, Neal Elementary will open with 685.

The Steve Wynn art tax break takes millions of dollars annually away from school children. Sen. Neal's gaming tax increase proposal earmarks half its proceeds for school operations.

Sen. Neal attended the NAACP national convention a few weeks ago in his capacity as First Vice-President of the Las Vegas Chapter, a post to which he was elected earlier this year. He has long been active in NAACP affairs.

Sen. Neal's 1997 legislation to expand the Las Vegas City Council from four to six seats resulted in voter approval at the June municipal election. The redistricting plan is now being worked out with all the expected jockeying and gerrymandering.

Please stay tuned and be sure to stay in touch.

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For continuous campaign updates, go to http://www.joeneal.org and click on the bulletin update site. If you have a bulletin to post, forward it to Sen. Neal at senator@joeneal.org. Please feel free to copy and forward this information.

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