13 May Nevada Supreme Court Puts Nevada’s Budget in Jeopardy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 13, 2021
CONTACT: Will Pregman, wpregman@battlebornprogress.org, 702.752.0656

CARSON CITY, NV – Today, the Nevada Supreme Court upheld a lower court decision which decided that the Nevada Legislature’s Democratic Majority violated the Constitution by passing a measure to extend the payroll tax and Department of Motor Vehicles Transaction Fee, rather than letting it sunset, with a simple majority, rather than a 2/3rd’s majority. This decision puts Nevada’s budget in a precarious position, as the payroll tax extension alone would have generated $98 million in revenue over the next two years.

Annette Magnus, Executive Director of Battle Born Progress, said:

“This decision by the Nevada Supreme Court is a disaster for the state and a major setback for our state’s already underfunded public education system. We hope that Senate Minority Leader Settelmeyer and his caucus are proud of themselves for stripping away tens of millions of dollars in funding to pay educators, increase school safety, and improve student outcomes. Parents, educators, and students will have Mr. Settelmeyer and Nevada GOP legislative caucuses to thank for making an already frustrating situation worse due to the surprise budget cut this imposes on public education just before the next school year.”

“For a group of lawmakers who never miss an opportunity to criticize the public school system for failing many students, Settelmeyer and his caucus never seem interested to start the conversation about adequate funding for our schools, or join the table when that conversation is being had, as it was last session. Despite members of this caucus voting to extend taxes in the past, things were different for them in the 2019 session. Since they just couldn’t live down the fact that they had left educators, parents, and students out to dry, Settelmeyer brought this lawsuit, ultimately harming the state and those who live in it. We’ll continue working this session to urge a dialogue on raising revenue in Nevada, especially to compensate for the mess Senator Settelmeyer has now left us with. Now would be the time for him and his caucus to join the discussion about taxing mining to fill this budget hole, rather than repeating this irresponsible behavior.”

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