Create the Nevada Job Bonds Support Fund
Require State and Local Governments to Dedicate Annual Appropriations / Authorizations 
Eliminate Tax Rate Sunsets Dedicated to Capital Projects
Provide a Streamlined Permitting Process and Permit and Planning Fee Abatements
Index the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax
2Require State and Local Governments to Dedicate Annual Appropriations / Authorizations...
... Sufficient to Properly Maintain Core Infrastructure Assets
Only in recent years has government begun to account for depreciation of assets in its financial statements, and it is becoming clear that the state and local governments are not keeping up with major maintenance of core infrastructure. Regardless of the idea that depreciation is a non-cash expense and not always representative of the cost of actual maintenance required during the period, it is fiscally unsound to construct physical projects without specific plans to fund their upkeep and/or eventual replacement. Highlighting this issue in the current biennium based on a cursory review of financial statements reveals the following examples.
| Estimated Impact | ||
| Jobs | Wages & Salaries | Economic Activity |
| 3,823 | $224,528,248 | $518,301,928 |
In 2009 alone, the State and the Nevada System of Higher Education together incurred $180 million in depreciation of assets, of which $76 million was in buildings. Yet the 2009 Legislature only provided $43 million in capital projects for major maintenance. At this pace, the state has fallen behind $109 million in deterioration of its buildings this biennium.
In a second example, the City of Henderson incurs depreciation on its streets and roads at a rate of $107 million every two years, yet its planned expenditure for replacement is only $57 for this biennium, a shortfall of $50 million. The City’s planned expenditures for water projects is also $10 million short of depreciation for the same period.
Clark County attempts to fund as much of its major maintenance from its general fund as possible, but its revenues have dwindled. Over the next two years, the County’s capital plan allocates only $76 million to cover an estimated $132 million in depreciation for its governmental operations alone, a shortfall of $56 million, not including streets, roads, University Medical Center, McCarran International Airport, the Las Vegas Valley Water District and Clark County Water Reclamation District.
City of North Las Vegas financial statements reflect depreciation of $5 million per year, or $10 million over two years, in buildings and improvements to land for governmental purposes, yet their capital plan allocates no general funds to any building renovation. The only money dedicated to municipal projects is allocated to a new city hall, which arguably, represents replacement of an asset declining in usefulness. Nevertheless, North Las Vegas, like other governments, does not have a capital replacement plan which keeps up with depreciation over time.
The above examples alone total $235 million over the current two-year biennium. While accounting methods and estimates may be debated, the fact that the largest government entities in Nevada appear to consistently underfund major maintenance is a significant issue and a disservice to taxpayers. We should not consider expanding public services or enhancing revenues without first assuring that the assets put in place for the public good are kept in serviceable condition without undue reliance on debt or robbing Peter to pay Paul.
This strategy could be effectuated by amending NRS 341 and NRS 353 to require the State Public Works Board and the Governor to submit with the Executive Budget a depreciation schedule for all existing state facilities, a list of projects recommended in the budget for the refurbishment and replacement of such facilities, and an analysis demonstrating that the projects recommended are substantially sufficient to maintain state facilities in a serviceable condition on a continuing basis for the forthcoming biennium and in the future. Also, amend NRS 354.5947 and related statues to add the same requirement for local government capital project plans.