Governor brings budget battle to Carson Valley

Gov. Jim Gibbons came to Minden to defend his budget proposal before about four dozen people on Wednesday.

During his first stop on his Nevada Recovery Tour, he stressed the dire financial status the state finds itself in and defended his opposition to raising taxes.

Gibbons said the state is actually $3 billion short of where it would be if the budget remains steady.

"Protecting public safety is our No. 1 priority," he said. "But as inescapable as that is, we have to shift money to health and human services to deal with the increase in unemployment."

He said that every 1 percent increase in unemployment meant 16,000 new cases. With the statewide jump in unemployment, from 3 to 10.5 percent, those workers would be the equivalent of the fourth largest city in Nevada.

Gibbons told the crowd that the Nevada constitution requires that he fund K-12 education, but nothing in the constitution guarantees residents a college degree.

"My budget reduces K-12 2.6 percent of a budget that's seen a 40 percent decrease in revenue," he said. "K-12 can't raise its own revenue. You have to look at it with a different glass. Higher education has the ability to raise revenue. They can sell patents, raise endowments and tuition to raise money."

Gibbons said his entire 3,000-page budget is online and urged people to read it.

"It's difficult for me to hear people on the street corner that complain about what's being cut without providing a solution," he said. "Hopefully we can build our way out of this economy. We are in extraordinary times in our state and will have to work together to get out of this."

One woman brought a sign to the session, that urged the governor to protect school funding.

When the governor asked what she thought should be done, she said she felt a state income tax would be in order, drawing a reaction from the room.

Gibbons hushed the participants and said that he opposes a state income tax, which is also banned in the Nevada Constitution.

"I won't create a Nevada IRS," he said.

Under the law it would take a minimum of four years and two votes by state residents to alter the Constitution.