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August 3, 2005
Public Works ain't working so good in Pahrump
Whether its the $9 billion shortfall in municipal retirement programs in California or the $2.3 billion recent discovery in southern Nevada of a shortfall in funding for emergency services health benefits, the vast expanse of unfunded mandates now being exposed are presenting a clear and present danger for all to see. So why do people continue to ignore or make excuses for public policies and behavior they should now know will only cause grief and hardship in the future? One only has to look at the recent near bankruptcy of Lyon County in north central Nevada and the recently announced department of taxation mandatory oversight of White Pine County affairs. In each case the cost of government grew far beyond the ability of the local economies to pay the bills and no manner of tax increase was available or prudent to solve the problem. Nye County has been very lucky over the past decade because Payments Equal to Taxes (PETT) funds provided by the federal government, supposedly for its use of Yucca Mountain to eventually store the nation's high-level radioactive waste, has kept them from the fate of Lyon and White Pine. But this "tax" being paid is in all reality nothing more than an entitlement bestowed by the feds that can be just as easily ended. And if those who oppose Yucca Mountain are successful, it will be. Over the last four or five years, these funds have been used to augment schools, parks and fire services said to be in vital need of funds. They were also misused to the benefit of a few with the Calvada sales office purchase. One of the largest single beneficiaries has been the Department of public works in pursuing the chip-seal program of road surfacing. On the surface, this program is very difficult to argue with. In a few short years, many gravel roads were replaced by ones with a smooth hard surface that did reduce the amount of dust in the air. But a great many infrastructure issues were not met and, now that the money has been spent, will never be unless residents pony up big. When and if the county budget is released for public review, it will be shown that nearly 50 percent of all tax revenues received for construction and maintenance of roads is spent on salaries and benefits in the public works department. As several of the laws passed by the Legislature specifically prohibit spending the funds generated on salaries, one can only assume these salaries are paid for out of general revenues. The problem is that outside the Vineyards subdivision not one full road has been constructed with the necessary curbs, gutters and hopefully sidewalks. The result is bar ditches and county-owned frontage easements over which property owners have no control. Weeds, wild shrubs and even mesquite trees grow within these boundaries that cause flooding during most rains, and the road department is hapless. Of course, if you own property, want to develop your lot and have a driveway constructed through this dead zone you must pay for the privilege of a road access permit. In more instances than should be allowed, the fee is paid but no inspection prior to or during construction is made, leaving the owner with total liability in spite of the fees paid. When asked about such issues the standard government reply is received, lack of staffing to do the job. This may or may not be the case as the payroll for public works was nearly $3 million annually. With that kind of funding, perhaps an in-depth cost benefit review might be needed. Especially since the county wants to have public works assume the inspection of homes under the building permit system. One of the best things Nye County did when adopting the building permit system was to go outside government and hire a professional inspection company to handle that function. Granting a few early mistakes, over the last six years the building inspection program has produced tremendous results - and money as well. The greed of the public sector is now ready to step up to the plate and assume responsibility for construction inspection. Regardless of any of the potential arguments to the contrary, money is the one and only issue. But the consequence of giving this function to those who cannot perform driveway installation inspections is ludicrous. It will not benefit the general population but will provide the county a perceived need to hire more employees and create a long-term tax implication they obviously do not understand. Once the build-out of Pahrump is complete, and please don't let anyone fool you into believing we can ever become the next Las Vegas, all of the current revenue streams being set up and used will disappear. All that will be left is the unfunded liability of employees and their benefit packages and a larger government monopoly. Little writes from Pahrump. |
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