EDITOR:
In a recent letter, Mr. Deyo questioned why Lynn Hettrick would run for the office of Douglas County clerk-treasurer. In particular Mr. Deyo commented on a statement Hettrick made regarding lobbying for Douglas County in the legislative sessions.
The fact is that the previous clerk-treasurer, Barbara Griffin's efforts at the Legislature resulted in Douglas County selling marriage licenses at Lake Tahoe - a service that has made the county a lot of money. In addition, her efforts to reform election laws have saved money for every county in the state and provided a better process.
Finally, Hettrick's full statement was that he would help lobby "at the county commissioner's direction" in an effort to minimize the Legislature's continuing grab of county revenues. Sounds like a good thing to me.
Hettrick has been a successful businessman for more than 30 years. He was Douglas County's assemblyman for 14 years. During that time he was the co-speaker in 1995 and the Republican minority leader for 12 years. In his present position as deputy chief of staff for the governor, he has oversight responsibility for 12 state agencies. Hettrick is a proven leader and administrator. He has great experience with elections, having been both a participant in elections and a legislator who worked on improving election law. He served 12 years dealing with state and local budgets on the Ways & Means Committee of the Nevada Legislature.
Mr. Deyo asks, "Do we want a county clerk-treasurer or a lobbyist?" My answer is, we want the most qualified person for the job - whatever it entails. I will be voting for Lynn Hettrick.
James Baushke
Gardnerville
