Two bills to survive this week as vehicles for tax reform

Senate Taxation Chairman Mike McGinness, R-Fallon, said Thursday only two general revenue bills are expected to survive today's deadline for committee approval of legislation.

In McGinness' committee alone, that means 10 major tax proposals will die with no action.

The ideas behind those bills, however, may still emerge as the session continues, he said.

Bills that won't make the deadline include Sen. Joe Neal's increase in the gaming tax and Sen. Bill Raggio's plan for the state to take half the growth in property tax revenues from local governments.

Also falling by the wayside will be a plan by Sens. Mark Amodei, R-Carson City, and Terry Care, D-Las Vegas, which was presented as an alternative to Gov. Kenny Guinn's tax reforms; and bills repealing exemptions from taxes and boosting utility and real estate transfer taxes.

More revenue proposals will die in the Assembly Taxation Committee.

McGinness said Guinn's proposed tax plan -- SB238 -- will get a waiver, as will a similar package mirroring the Tax Task Force proposals in the Assembly.

"Those two will be the vehicles for the tax plan," said McGinness. "We're told by staff these are broad enough that we can put just about any of those other ideas in there."

He told his committee earlier this week that the deadline may kill individual bills, but "no ideas will die Friday."

McGinness said Thursday the final bills presented to the Legislature could be similar to original proposals by the Task Force on Tax Policy and Guinn's office -- or very different.

He said any proposals made by lawmakers this session can be amended into one of those two bills.

Any legislation that doesn't win committee approval or an exemption from leadership before the close of legislative business today is dead for the session, under legislative rules. Bills granted exemptions normally have a significant budgetary impact, which are then referred to either the Senate Finance or Assembly Ways and Means committees.

In the case of the two major tax proposals, McGinness said they will be exempted by leadership.