By:  Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President

In one of the early Nevada Legislative sessions of my career in Nevada an ashtray was circulated with this truth printed on it..."Lobbyists are the people we hire to protect us from the people we elect."

From what I've read in this Sunday e-news article, the protection that local governments require comes with a pretty hefty price tag.

Along with fire, police and other essential costs, local taxpayers are also needing to foot the bill to try and keep state legislators from raiding funds or revenue sources that local governments were or are counting on to pay for their operations.

During the December 2008 Special Session, Nevada legislators passed one bill that redirected royalty payments from local governments to state coffers.

Governor Gibbons, has included in his budget proposal, a grab for property tax revenues from Washoe and Clark Counties.

Once upon a time the biggest worry for local Nevada governments came in the form of state legislators giving them a job to do, with no resources to carry out the assignment. 

Recent events suggest that unfunded mandates might not be the worst that can happen to local government entities.