We've no problem with government workers bringing home a living wage. Douglas County and the Douglas County School District are among the largest employers here. There are parts of Nevada where if it weren't for government workers, there wouldn't be any workers at all.
And we're glad that our government workers love Douglas County so much that they stay through the decades.
But one of the dangers of having a longterm veteran workforce is that they start to consume larger portions of the budget.
Right now, personnel are costing Douglas taxpayers, which include Douglas government workers, about 80 percent of the budget. That's true at most levels of government, and it's not going to go down very soon.
It's a question of mathematics. It doesn't take much of a raise each year for an employee to double their salary over two decades. Add to that the increasing cost of health care, and the cost of government rises incrementally.
Without any source for ready revenue, that means there are going to be a lot of folks statewide either losing their jobs or having their pay cut.
We know we would prefer to see pay rolled back over having to increase the number of people on the unemployment rolls. But since some cuts are subject to negotiation with employee associations, we understand that sometimes that's not an option.
The future looks anything but bright for government finances, but with determination and discipline we can move forward despite the obstacles.
