Governor Gibbons stands tall to keep his promise of no new taxes.

Tax consumers (employees of, and those dependent on, Nevada’s state and local governments) are painting Governor Gibbons as the Grinch Who Stole Christmas because of his demand that government spending be reduced to balance the budget. Taxpayers (all the rest of us) are applauding Gibbons as Santa Claus, not because the governor is handing out free goodies but because of his keeping a promise made in the fury of a political campaign (“No New Taxes”) at a time when he’s taking enormous abuse. That’s a rare gift indeed to those of us who pay governments’ bills.

The media are full of quotes of folks ranging from music teachers to university officials calling on Gibbons to raise taxes, spend the state’s “rainy day fund”, just do anything to spare these tax consumers the pain of having to limit spending to the funds available.

Too bad we taxpayers aren’t organized and newsworthy . . . we’d have something to say too.

For starters we’d point out that the tax revenue shortfall is due to a mini-recession affecting real estate and construction. Bankers, realtors, builders, escrow companies, building material dealers and would-be home sellers are all feeling the pinch while the rest of the economy (including tax consumers) is getting along just fine.

We’d also say that this year the legislature approved a biennial budget with a 20 percent increase in spending. The unexpected housing turndown reduced tax revenues attributable to housing activity so Governor Gibbons did the math and concluded that the spending increase would have to be decreased . . . by something like 4.5%.

By the way Carson City activist Chuck Muth points out for those of us who support a constitutional restraint on government spending increases to a rate equal to population growth plus inflation this whole budget cut flap is very instructive. The two indices added up to 13% last year. Had the spending increase been 13% there would be no budget cuts. In fact, Nevada’s general fund spending has increased more than the combined increase in population and inflation for nine of the past eleven years. (see Chuck Muth’s Muthings about the budget crisis below)

We taxpayers would also tell those howling for new taxes instead of budget cuts that the housing mini-recession is self-correcting. As soon as the excess inventory gets wrung out of the economy and home prices stabilize the housing industry will start humming again. Economists currently predict normalization within a year to eighteen months. If we enact new taxes what would happen to that revenue after the economy is fully functioning again? Wasn’t it just last year that they repealed the tax imposed on long distance phone calls to pay for the Spanish-American War?

Finally, these budget cuts always spawn poignant, tearful vigils and protests by tax consumers (as if they had nothing better to do) which make the front pages of the newspapers. An eighth grader said: “I think it’s wrong that the governor is taking more money out of the schools because we don’t have enough money as it is.” Child, schools just got a huge increase from the legislature; the revenue shortfall just cut that increase back a little. Ask your math teacher to explain it to you.

And at that bastion of political correctness, the University of Nevada, an even more bazaar scene played out. It seems as though they have a “chalking area” where members of campus organizations can write out political exhortations. Not surprisingly students supporting tax consumers were “chalking” all manner of expletives about Gibbons’ proposed budget cuts. College Republicans got together and “chalked” statements supporting Gibbons. They were officially reprimanded by UNR authorities for failure to obtain a “chalking permit” and threatened with a lawsuit because their artwork did not hose off completely.

* And speaking of “cuts,” the governor’s proposed “cuts” of 4.5 percent aren’t really “cuts” at all. In reality - as my good friend, the lovely and talented Randi Thompson points out - it’s really just a decrease in the increase. After the “cuts” are implemented, spending this biennium will still increase some 15 percent over the last biennium. It just won’t increase by 20 percent. You have to be using Eugene Paslov’s public school fuzzy math to call a 15 percent increase a “cut.”

* After initially being exempted from a little belt-tightening, K-12 will now be getting a 4.5 percent decrease in its increase, leading Linda Brown, a music teacher in Washoe County, to whine to the Reno Gazette-Journal this morning, “What are we going to do, cut an eraser? There’s not 4.5 percent to cut.”

Really? Considering how poorly Nevada’s K-12 education monopoly teaches reading, writing and ‘rithmetic, I’d have to wonder just how crucial music teachers are, Ms. Brown. I mean, when was the last time the ability to play chopsticks on a piano came in handy at anyone’s job? Other than your own, of course. Perhaps music lessons are something we should turn back over to the private sector?

* Nevada PTA prez Mo Denis whines that the 4.5 percent decrease in the K-12 increase means “We’re going to lose ground on the things we have been succeeding at.”

Um, Mo. Considering our kids’ test scores, especially when compared to students in other countries, would you please ‘splain exactly what those things are the public schools are supposedly “succeeding at.” Obviously it’s not in teaching kids how to not end a sentence with a preposition.

* On Tuesday, every “Gimme-Gimme” liberal drawing a breath within a hundred miles of Carson City seemed to show up at Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie’s (D-Reno) legislative committee hearing/dog-and-pony-show to lament the proposed 4.5 percent decrease Health & Human Services’ increase. Oh, the humanity! In the immortal words of Robin Williams, Joan of Arc did less whining at the stake.

Jan Gilbert of the Liberal Leadership Alliance of Nevada kicked of the moan-and-groan session by stating flatly, “We’re opposed to all cuts.” Which is fine. Because there aren’t any cuts, Jan! We’re only decreasing the increase. Didn’t you get the memo?

Geoff Dornan of the Nevada Appeal reported that Sean Griffin, representing Community Chest of Southern Nevada, said it’s not fair that “the people most vulnerable will suffer the brunt of these cuts.” First, Sean, there are no cuts. Just a decrease in the increase. Secondly…waaahhhhhhh! Life ISN’T fair. Get used to it.

* “The lone voice on the other side was Sen. Maurice Washington, R-Sparks,” Dornan reported. Washington said there was a “silent majority” of taxpayers out there “who want government to tighten its belt and run more efficiently.”

Um, why was Sen. Washington “the lone voice on the other side” at this hearing? Aren’t there any other fiscally conservative Republicans in the Legislature? Even if they don’t serve on this committee, couldn’t they have shown up and testified in support of the governor’s decision to decrease the increase in this year’s budget by 4.5 percent? And why weren’t any Republican Party officials at the hearing? Or at least a press release or a statement or SOMETHING? Do Nevada Republicans need a written invitation to engage on this issue? I mean, come on. Now’s no time to go AWOL.

OK, it’s snowing here in Carson City this morning and the governor is convening a special meeting with the 17 school superintendents at 9 am to discuss the proposed 4.5 percent decrease in their increase. I suspect by the time the meeting is over, the supers will all be on board and supporting the governor’s fiscally responsible belt tightening.

Not!

Hey, I said it was snowing in Carson, not hell.