Casino Connection Nevada

Don't Sign the Petition

President of the Nevada Resort Association

by Bill Bible

The teachers' union is continuing its push to raise gaming taxes 44 percent. The Nevada Resort Association will take the issue to the Nevada Supreme Court where the justices will review the validity of the initiative. The court date has been set for July 1, but as an industry we cannot rely upon the courts alone to protect the public's interest.

To fight the harmful effects of this initiative, former Republican Congresswoman Barbara Vucanovich and former Democratic Speaker of the Nevada State Assembly Joe Dini are chairing a bipartisan effort to stop this “tax grab” by creating a group named Nevadans Against the Tax Grab. Congresswoman Vucanovich and Speaker Dini are urging opposition to the initiative, pointing out that we all have the power to protect ourselves by not signing the teachers’ union petition.

"It's designed by one special interest group to benefit its own members at the expense of our state economy,” said Vucanovich. The“extreme proposal” would“funnel hundred of millions of tax dollars into teachers’ pockets without any proof that it's improving the education of Nevada children,”she added.

Dini said he could not think of a“worse idea.”

What does this petition mean to you? Independent and respected Deutsche Bank gaming analyst Bill Lerner sums it up best: “Ultimately, we think the end result… would be to enrich teachers at the expense of ordinary workers throughout the state, as casinos would begin to layoff employees and lower overall compensation expenses in order to manage through the likely changes.”

You may have already seen paid political operatives collecting signatures at libraries and public buildings around the state. Most of these paid signature gatherers have no idea what they are asking people to sign and cannot explain how it could damage your employer and your job.

Nevadans Against the Tax Grab wants to inform everyone about what the constitutional amendment will actually mean for Nevada. They want people to know that this is not a 3 percent increase as claimed by the teachers’ union, but a 44 percent increase in the revenue tax the gaming industry pays. And they point out that the resort industry already pays for nearly $1 billion in education funding each year and is responsible for nearly 50 percent of the state's budget.

If you want to learn more about how the teachers union petition will threaten you and your family and would like to help Congresswoman Vucanovich and Speaker Dini in their effort to stop the tax grab, please go to www.notaxgrab.com and sign up.