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July 7, 2006
GROWTH CREATING NEED Pahrump board wants sales tax put before voters
By PHILLIP GOMEZ
The town's concern is an old one: keeping up with the costs of providing ambulance services and fire protection for the Pahrump Valley. The sales tax, at 6.75 cents on the dollar, countywide, would rise to 7.25 cents under the proposal. One-quarter cent of the proposed revenue enhancement would go toward improvements in all the various town fire departments and one-quarter cent to the sheriff's office, which serves the whole county. The increase would raise approximately $1 million annually for the sheriff's office and another $1 million for the county's volunteer fire departments in the first year after enactment. The average Nye County consumer is said to make approximately $10,000 in taxable purchases each year, and is projected to pay an extra $50 in sales tax for such purchases, according to an estimate made by Nye County Commissioner Patricia Cox. "The state would collect the tax, and then it would funnel down to the county and the towns," said Scott Lewis, Pahrump's fire chief. The 6.75-percent tax rate in Nye County is one of the state's lowest, according to officials at the meeting. "We are looking to jump-start some of our infrastructure needs here in Nye County," said Town Board Chairman Richard Billman. "The money (from property taxes) doesn't come to us right away to take care of necessary expenses," he explained. Meanwhile, new residents are present on the ground in Pahrump, needing new services. The advisory question justifies the tax increase "for the purpose of hiring and equipping more public safety and support personnel, improving and equipping existing public safety facilities and constructing and equipping new public safety facilities where needed," according to the county's draft. The revenue generated would go toward making fire and police improvements in Pahrump, Amargosa Valley, Beatty, Tonopah, Round Mountain, Manhattan, Gabbs and other areas of the county. Funds would not be used to provide raises for existing fire personnel. Cox, recalling a sales tax hike in Clark County, indicated she did not want the sales tax revenue to go for personnel raises, but Billman said there was the greater danger of the town not being able to sustain the added payroll costs for newly hired fire-rescue employees, if the new revenue could not be used for recurring personnel costs. "The problem is, we now have 24-hour coverage of Stations Nos. 3 and 5, due to the hospital being opened," said Billman. "We redeployed personnel to those stations," he said. And with Pahrump's population growth, personnel costs are necessarily on a rising curve. Cox wanted to fund new hires for just one year. "We need to trust the managers of those new hires," said Billman, "or else we can't function." The Nye County Sheriff's Office wants to add deputies in the northern part of the county for backup. But just adding a warm body is only half of it: That employee would need a patrol vehicle, radio and other equipment as well. Raising the sales tax is viewed by government officials as moving toward a more equitable approach to local taxation, whereby tourists pay more their fair share of policing costs, as opposed to property owners. "The strain of growth has changed the nature of providing police and fire services in Nye County," the argument for passage reads, "and current revenue sources cannot keep up with the need to provide these services." As growth continues in Pahrump, less populated areas in the county will feel increased pressure to find new funding sources for police and fire services, due to the strains placed on the county's budget by Pahrump. "In most communities essential services come from sales taxes," said Billman. Michael Sullivan, the town's finance manager, agreed. Arguments against passage include the fact that sales subject to the county's sales tax have increased by more than 29 percent in the past year. Property taxes, too, have continued to grow due to the growth in housing starts and higher valuations. Those taxes should be sufficient to pay for the additional needs, the nay-sayers insist. Growth should pay for itself, they say, without additional taxes. |
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