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Carson City - So long, balanced budget. Hello, deficit spending. Legislators and Gov. Jim Gibbons announced on Tuesday a tentative agreement to bridge the state's $300 million budget shortfall by making $150 million in cuts and - to spare agencies even deeper cuts - borrowing $150 million from a local government investment account. If the plan is approved by the Legislature during a special session set for Dec. 8, it would be the first time since at least the Great Depression that Nevada has balanced its budget by borrowing money, according to state government observers.

Worried about a growing number of changes, miscalculations and a worsening economic forecast, Democratic lawmakers want Gov. Jim Gibbons to tell them how he plans to address the ever expanding budget deficit that has opened since he submitted his proposed budget.

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Jim Gibbons said Friday he has reached an agreement with legislative leaders on a bipartisan plan to handle state government's $341.7 million budget deficit without laying off workers or cutting essential services. "This will have a minimal impact on state services," Gibbons said about their plan designed to balance the budget in the fiscal year that ends June 30.

Legislative leaders and administration officials just finished a conference call and agreed on a "tentative framework" for cutting $331 million to $400 million from the state's budget, Speaker Barbara Buckley said Tuesday evening.

Legislative leaders emerged from a closed-door meeting with Gov. Jim Gibbons on Wednesday to insist that nothing more can be cut from the state budget, though a shortfall of $2.4 billion could prompt them to increase taxes when the Legislature next goes into session in 2011.

There might be a silver lining in the economic crisis, at least for students tired of taking tests. State Superintendent Keith Rheault is proposing eliminating a state-mandated exam as a way of cutting $1 million from the state budget.

Draw no conclusions, we're told, over this coincidence: St. Patrick's Day is also unofficially "Vice Tax" day at the Legislature. The Assembly Taxation Committee is scheduled to hear proposals that would dramatically raise taxes on alcohol and tobacco. Members of the media - including the Sun - have pointed out the Democratic leadership's refusal to acknowledge taxes will have to be raised to balance the state budget. But these sin taxes are considered the most politically palatable - the low hanging fruit.

CARSON CITY -- Although the amount of money the Nevada Department of Transportation spends in Clark County is increasing, the state's most populated county still receives much less in transportation spending than its citizens pay in fuel taxes. During the past five years, the department has spent an annual average of $325 million on Clark County construction, maintenance and other types of highway projects. Share & Save Newsvine Digg Fark Technorati reddit StumbleUpon del.icio.us Slashdot Propeller Mixx Furl Twitter MySpace Facebook Google Bookmarks Yahoo! Bookmarks Windows Live Favorites Ask MyStuff myAOL Favorites What is this? Most Popular Stories # POLITICAL NOTEBOOK: Freedom's Watch effort winding down # THE FACES OF HARD TIMES: 'We put our trust in people' # NORM: Olympic medalist shows other skills # NORM: Gans closes out tonight at Mirage # NORM: New restaurant serves up Sinatra # NORM: Make room for new, bigger clubs # NORM: Britney-LV buzz hard to nail down # Beltway interchange opens # LV police find body, suspect homicide # 'Straw' buyers land loans That is 61 percent of the statewide average annual spending of $530 million. Nearly 73 percent of the state's 2.8 million residents are from Clark County. They contribute 70 percent of the state's motor fuel taxes.

RENO, Nev. (AP) -- A new report predicts "disastrous" economic consequences unless Nevada invests more in higher education to train skilled workers and attract new businesses and industries. The report released this month by the Institute for Higher Education Policy said that in 2006, only 28 percent of Nevadans between the ages of 18 and 24 were enrolled in college, compared with 41 percent in top states.

University Medical Center administrators are proposing to reduce or eliminate half a dozen hospital services to offset an estimated $8 million shortfall anticipated with the first wave of Medicaid cuts. The county's only public hospital already has dropped its outpatient oncology service, sending 400 people by year's end in search of other chemotherapy providers. Today, administrators will propose to Clark County commissioners making cuts to select programs and services...

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The Nevada Department of Transportation's board of directors will hold a special meeting March 12 to discuss economic stimulus projects, according to Gov. Jim Gibbons' spokesman. Includes story on higher education stimulus funding.

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At first, Nevada expected little revenue from gaming. Here's how that changed over time. When Nevada legalized gaming in 1931, it was almost an afterthought. The modest levies on card games and slots would be the garnish. The main course through tough economic times, state leaders believed, would be looser divorce laws adopted during the same legislative session to lure unhappy spouses to spend time - and money - in Nevada. The gaming bill's author, freshman legislator Phil Tobin, couldn't know that 78 years later the quality of Nevada's schools, public safety and services to the poor would depend on how much tourists drop in the slot machines and bet at the tables.

Yes, it has, but the economic meltdown in much of the country has been a boon to the county and its 5,000 residents, 4,000 of whom live in the Battle Mountain area.\n\nThe reason: They mine gold in Lander County, a mineral-rich area that is a major reason Nevada, nicknamed the Silver State, is also the world's fourth biggest producer of gold.

The Nevada Tax System: The Short-Run Dynamics and Long-Run\nDynamics of Nevada Taxes\nA Framework for Public Policy Analysis\n

Most legislative sessions don't start with a dress rehearsal. But last week's special session gave a sneak peek at what may lie ahead when the Nevada Legislature's regular session begins in February.