Vol. 1, No. 18
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July 15, 2004
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CRIMINAL DEFENSE |
COPYWRITING
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EPA Standards Need Revision Possibly Stopping Yucca Dead
Nuclear Repository Issue May Have Been Killed By "Sound Science"
by Johnny Gunn
For years the standards for which nuclear waste can be stored have depended on EPA figures a court in Washington, D.C. says are not stringent enough to keep future residents of the area safe. Casks and storage vaults have been designed to keep radioactivity contained for 10,000 years, but "Sound Science" has been saying the waste will be at its most dangerous level in 200,000 to 300,000 years.
The longer figures are from the National Academy of Sciences, not from a politically motivated government agency, according to a press release from Nevada Attorney General Brian Sandoval. According to Sandoval, "In order to move forward, the EPA will have to promulgate a new rule." He said that process "would take years to achieve." Sandoval considers the Circuit Court of Appeals ruling to be "a fatal blow to the repository."
However, mostly unnoticed following the Appeals Court ruling, was one paragraph that will apparently allow work on the Yucca Project to continue. It simply says, the key regulation will not be enforced for seven days following any appeal. DOE has not indicated whether an appeal will be filed, so in the words of many, work on getting the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Repository licensed will continue. And of course, the entire debate continues.
Most have based their opinions on where they stand in the debate that started about 25 years ago when the federal government decided that Nevada should be home to all nuclear waste generated by power plants and weapons manufacturing. Those who have voiced their opinions in favor of the repository are saying, the issue may not be dead, while those against the Yucca plan are saying, it is dead.
According to the court ruling, EPA failed to follow a 1995 recommendation by the National Academy of Sciences. They had said the safety standards should include the period of time in which the nuclear material would be most dangerous. The court said EPA failed to do that.
Scientists have complained for years that the geology of the Yucca Mountain area will not isolate the nuclear waste. It's also been known the casks to be used to hold the waste are not secure after the 10,000-year figure. Many scientists are saying that a period of one million years would not be out of line for complete protection.
Neither the Department of Energy (DOE) nor the EPA has indicated whether they will attempt to appeal the findings, or what might be in their future. Over the years, well over $8 billion has been spent on the project, most of that money coming from the federal treasury and from rate payers of nuclear power plants. According to DOE figures, expenditures in excess of $50 billion are expected over the next many years. That of course includes building that 300-mile railroad across and around Nevada.
In the recent past, EPA, DOE, and the Nuclear energy Institute have sought to diminish the 10,000-year safe time established by EPA. The court now is calling for the higher standard of "reasonable assurance of safety." New standards now must be established, and most say that will take many years. Along with the new standards for safety, new storage casks and vaults will have to be engineered to meet those new standards.
The argument used was relatively simple in its form. The EPA says they are only interested in keeping the casks and vaults from leading the deadly radiation for a period of 10,000 years while the National Academy of Sciences says the radiation is at its deadliest after 200,000 years. Whether there will even be a Nevada or anyone living within striking distance of a radiation leak in 10,000 or 200,000 years wasn't considered a part of the equation.
Sandoval said following the ruling, "We wouldn't trade places with the opposition." A Virginia law firm represented Nevada before the Appeals Court. Joe Egan of Egan and Associates said, "While DOE may attempt to tinker with cadaver, wasting taxpayer and utility ratepayer money, the futility of such action will soon become evident to them."
Sandoval also said the Nuclear Regulatory Commission "will have to promulgate a new rule" regarding repository licensing. He said because of the court action, "there is currently no rule against which to license the project." The existing Environment Impact Statement from DOE is probably defective as well, based on the court ruling, and that will have to be redone if DOE plans to continue with the project.
The nation has developed around 77,000 tons of nuclear waste, some of it extremely hazardous from nuclear energy plants around the country. In Europe, Russia, and Asia, most of the nuclear energy companies and plants are required to maintain their own waste repositories. The remains of nuclear weapons that have been demobilized over the last several years are, by treaty, are to be shipped to this country for "safe" storage.
Owners of nuclear reactors in New England are the first to sue DOE over their failure to have a repository in place. A contract between nuclear energy producers and others using radioactive materials is the basis for the suit, and experts are saying it might cost taxpayers billions of dollars in damages. The first three suits are being held now in a court in Washington, D.C. There may be as many as 60 claims all together.
The current suit was filed by the Yankee group, which has reactors in Maine, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, and the trial might last about seven weeks.
Train loads and truck loads of weapons grade nuclear waste has traveled to the nuclear weapons site in southern Nevada where it sits today. This is a different repository than Yucca Mountain and is operated under different rules and regulations. Weapons grade waste has come through both Reno and Las Vegas, and luckily, some say, without incident.
Gaming Resorts Reap Resounding Success
Report Indicates Gaming Economy Weak Up North
Gambling tables and games took in record amounts of money for May compared to a year ago according to figures released by the Nevada Gaming Commission. Statewide, $908.2 million went into the gaming coffers during that period, compared to $805.8 million in May of 2003. That is an increase of 12.7 percent, an indication of a strong national and regional economy, according to some gaming "experts."
Clark County showed a 15.5 percent increase in gaming revenue, a total figure of $650.9 million. It was only in the north that the figures were down from the previous year. In Washoe County, the total gaming win was $90.4 million, off by 3.38 percent from last year.
Reno proper was down almost five percent, but Sparks was up slightly less than two percent and North Lake Tahoe was up 25.3 percent. The capital area of Carson City, Minden, and Gardnerville showed an increase in gaming revenue of 10.8 percent while Elko County came in with a strong increase of 5.3 percent, mostly due to increased gaming activity in Wendover, on the border with Utah.
Casinos on The Strip took in a whopping $404.2 million, an increase of 16.1 percent from last May. Downtown Las Vegas showed an increase of 7.5 percent while the Boulder Strip was up 34.1 percent. Laughlin was up 1.4 percent.
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From The Exciting World Of Money and Taxation
The Nevada Commission on Economic Development has expanded some of its "Made in Nevada" program in its assistance to Nevada based businesses. The chairman of the commission, Lieutenant Governor Lorraine Hunt says the program "is designed to work with existing businesses to make them more profitable." She went on to say, "This will make them more efficient and more competitive," as well. See http://www.expand2nevada.com for more on this and other commission news.
The department of taxation website is http://www.tax.state.nv.us. They have some new additions to the site, such as "Ask the Advisor," a basic tax training workshop for businesses, and "Overview of Department Audits."
We're now in the new quarter, and the rate for the Modified Business Tax has been reduced to 0.65 percent. A part of the regulation is a waiver of interest and penalties for the Modified Business Tax, which began as an emergency regulation, and has now been adopted as a permanent regulation by the Tax Commission.
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Let's Not Leave Out Public Utility Rates
Hearings before the Public Utilities Commission will continue through July 23 on an application to raise rates filed by Southwest Gas. The utility is asking to increase rates and charges, including revised depreciation rates, and changes in other tariff provisions. The rate increases would include both the southern and northern Nevada divisions of the company.
The decision on the general rate case should be handed down on September 4, according to the Commission.
On August 16, a general consumer's session is scheduled for Elko. The session is open to the public and will be held at the Elko Convention City, beginning at 6:00 p.m.
Some Petitions Having Trouble Making The Cut
Education Petitions Will Be On The Ballot In November
Secretary of State Dean Heller has requested an opinion from Attorney General Brian Sandoval regarding several initiative petitions that have been turned in. Among them are the marijuana legalization petition and the insurance rates/attorney fees initiative. Those issues may become a part of a court case that will be heard in Carson City dealing with the Minimum Wage petition. (See Below)
The Education First petition qualified with no problem according to Heller, as did the call for public school funding in Nevada to be at or above the national average.
For an initiative petition to qualify for the state ballot this year, it must have at least 51,000 verified signatures of registered voters as well as have at least ten percent of the registered voters in 13 of Nevada's 17 counties.
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Raise The Minimum Wage Might Make November Ballot Yet
Secretary of State Dean Heller announced that based on the advice rendered to him by the Attorney General’s Office, the Raise the Minimum Wage initiative petition does not qualify for the 2004 General Election ballot. Although the Raise the Minimum Wage petition did receive enough valid signatures in at least 13 of 17 Nevada counties the total number of valid signatures statewide fell short of the minimum of 51,337 by 2,618 qualified signatures. However, those behind the ballot measure have gone to court and have won a temporary order to halt Heller's actions.
The decision was granted by Carson City District Judge Bill Maddox. A restraining order is warranted, he said, and he will set a court date for a hearing. It's possible that other initiatives suffering from the same flaws Heller claimed for the Wage issue might join the court battle. (See Above)
Several documents turned in to Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax’s office did not include a valid affidavit signed by a registered voter who had signed that particular document, as required by the Nevada Constitution and subsequently confirmed by the Nevada Supreme Court. Accordingly, the 13,994 signatures on the petition documents submitted in Clark County that did not meet the constitutional requirement were not counted. By discounting those signatures, the Raise the Minimum Wage initiative petition did not receive enough valid signatures to meet the statewide minimum requirement. The petition failed to qualify in Carson City, Douglas County and Clark County, and no petition was turned in to the Esmeralda County Clerk’s office.
Heller sent a letter to Attorney General Brian Sandoval on July 7 asking his office to render legal advice as to whether the deficiency surrounding the Affidavit of Document Signer should invalidate the signatures at issue. In the letter, Heller noted possibly conflicting Nevada and U.S. Supreme Court decisions.
Sandoval’s office delivered its opinion on the matter, authored by Senior Deputy Attorney General Victoria Oldenburg, which stated in part, “it is the recommendation of this Office that the Secretary adhere to the requirements of the Nevada Constitution, Article 19, Section 3(1), when rendering a determination on whether a petition is sufficient.”
The Carson City Court indicates those seeking to put the petition on the November ballot are likely to prevail on the merits of the case, or, in Judge Maddox's words, "at least have raised very serious questions."
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Lawmakers Qualifications To Be Determined By Lawmakers
Using the separation of powers clause to Nevada's constitution as a basis for its decision, the state's highest court said it isn't the jurisdiction of the Secretary of State or the Supreme Court to determine who should or should not serve in the legislature; it is the legislature's rules of eligibility that will determine who sits in that august body. The ruling was unanimous.
There is a "however" to the decision. There is still the possibility that challenges based on an individual, rather than the entire class of government workers, could be filed in district court. Whether or not a government worker can serve will be based on individual cases.
The legislature's rules of eligibility do not address the question at this time. There is a federal law however that says bluntly, any state government worker involved in the maintenance or distribution of federal funds will not hold public office. Most federal employees are also banned from holding public office.
Attorney General Brian Sandoval said at the time of the decision he has no plans to appeal the decision, as did Secretary of State Dean Heller.
There is a petition making the rounds at this time to keep all government employees out of public office, and the supporters of that petition have been saying they will have enough signatures to make the November ballot. The group backing the initiative were given an extra 60 days to get the necessary 51,000 signatures following the disruption of their attempts by government workers at various locations around the state including the main bus station in Reno, DMV offices, and college campuses in southern Nevada.
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Nader Petition Makes The Grade
He Had Some Republican Help
A petition with more than 11,000 signatures was filed with Secretary of State Dean Heller on behalf of the candidacy of Ralph Nader for President. Only 5,000 signatures need to be verified for Nader to appear on the ballot as an independent candidate. Peter Camejo is listed as his choice for vice president.
Some are saying the tactics used to get the petition signed are more than unfair, they are "dirty." Republican consultant Steve Wark apparently was behind the drive, getting petitions out for signatures and getting money enough to run the petition drive. There are many who believe it was Nader's candidacy in 2000 that kept Democrat Al Gore from becoming president, and there are many in Nevada who feel Nader will affect the Kerry campaign this year.
For the record, Wark created the group Choices for America specifically to help Ralph Nader. He is currently working on the campaigns of U.S. Senate candidate Richard Ziser, and his mother-in-law is Nevada Republican Chair, Earlene Forsyth.
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Registration Fraud Rears Its Ugly Head
Although it's not rampant, it appears that some have found a means of obtaining voter registration names illegally, according to Clark County Registrar of Voters, Larry Lomax.
Some believe it's out of state money behind the fraud and it has to do with paid workers hired to get people registered. According to state law, a worker can be paid by the hour to collect voter registrations, but cannot be paid "piece work," that is, by the page or by the registration. According to Lomax, this is happening. The practice also is against federal election law.
According to a representative in the Washoe County Registrar's office, the problem has not surfaced in the north. Registrar Dan Burk has about 30 field registrars operating in the county, but the representative who wishes to remain anonymous, says their are no outside organizations working to register voters in Washoe County.
"I have no knowledge of fraud here," he said.
Lomax says some groups are illegally paying for each registration form submitted instead of paying workers by the hour. According to Lomax, at least one fraudulent group of registration forms was discovered when a worker accidentally left his paycheck stub in with the forms.
Registration efforts have been increased significantly this year because of what some want to call Nevada's swing vote position in the national election.
Lomax feels there have probably been at least several hundred fraudulent registration forms turned in and the number might be much higher since his office receives at least 5,000 registrations weekly.
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Giunchigliani Takes The High Road Again
Assemblywoman Chris Giunchigliani isn't waiting for the court to look at Attorney General Brian Sandoval's opinion dealing with state workers not eligible for service in the legislature. Giunchigliani has resigned her position with Community College of Southern Nevada (CCSN), opting to continue campaigning for reelection and serving.
Since 2001, the legislator has worked in the community relations department at the two-year facility and before that taught in classrooms. Known for her diligence toward ethical conduct, Giunchigliani's name became part of the upheaval at CCSN during the Regents/Wendell Williams/Topazia Jones brouhaha.
Giunchigliani tipped college administrators to trips Jones, a college employee, was taking to Carson City during the last legislative session. It became known that she was also working for Assemblyman Wendell Williams. Jones was on the college dime but wore a jacket indicating she was an assistant for Williams.
During the ruckus, members of the college and the System Board of Regents attempted to fire Giunchigliani, but that failed. According to the Assemblywoman, since then she has been totally ignored by those who should be supervising her activities at the school. Thus, the resignation.
She indicated that if she is reelected she plans to continue looking at the operation of CCSN, other schools within the university system, and the board of regents.
There is a current ongoing federal investigation of both the board of regents and the CCSN administration. Federal grand jury proceedings are continuing in southern Nevada.
It's not known at this time when or even if the state Supreme Court plans to hand down a decision on whether government employees can also serve in the legislature. Attorney General Brian Sandoval's opinion on the matter is before the court now.
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The Continuing Struggle To Find Ethics In Silver State
Several Clark County Commissioners and former commissioners are under indictment for taking bribes, a federal grand jury is investigating some of the activities surrounding Community College of Southern Nevada (CCSN), the University of Nevada System Board of Regents have been found guilty of breaking the state's Open Meeting Law, a Carson City Supervisor is being investigated for breaking the Open Meeting Law, and now we find out a decades-old program delving into the study of political ethics is being abandoned at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
When the legislature convenes following the elections, one of the hotly debated issues will be ethics in government including the Open Meeting Law. At this time, according to officials in Carson City, at least seven bills will be brought before the legislature dealing with the Open Meeting Law. At least one of those measures comes from Attorney General Brian Sandoval.
Sandoval says, despite the screaming headlines lately, only 37 complaints have been filed this year dealing with that law. This compares to 49 for all of last year. Well, there's still hope.
The university board of regents have filed an appeal with the Nevada Supreme Court to overturn the decision finding them guilty of violating that law during closed hearings that culminated in the firing of CCSN President Ron Remington and his college lobbyist, John Cummings. The decision was made by District Judge Jackie Glass.
In Carson City recently, Supervisor Robin Williamson sent e-mails to the rest of the Board of Supervisors in which she may have broken the law that forbids "the use of electronic communication to discuss or act on public matters."
Williamson says the effort wasn't to influence the board, just make them aware of a possible board action. One capital curmudgeon commented, "isn't that what agendas are for?"
For A Simple Six-Letter Word Ethics Are Sure Hard To Learn
Another Silver State Official Being Investigated: State Controller
by Johnny Gunn
It seems that with each issue of The Nevada Observer, we bring you another case of a government worker having trouble with understanding exactly what the concept of "The Public Trust" really means. A complaint of violations of Nevada Ethics Law has been filed by Attorney General Brian Sandoval against the State Controller, Kathy Augustine. They are both Republicans.
Sandoval says he has been investigating charges of these violations for more than six-months. Sandoval says Augustine used members of her state staff for reelection chores on the state's dime. Augustine says, through an attorney that she will admit to willful violations of the law, but that she will not resign her position.
Admitting these wrong-doings could lead to impeachment by the legislature. Criminal charges have been written by the AG but not filed as yet. The charges could be filed with District Court in Carson City. No elected representative at the constitutional level in Nevada has ever been impeached.
The procedure that will be followed includes presentation of charges before the State Ethics Commission, and if they find the Controller guilty, the case must be turned over to the legislature for possible impeachment proceedings. Augustine has been served with the complaint.
Augustine has been State Controller since 1998 and before that served in the legislature for six years. She makes $108,000 a year, and serves on the Board of Finance and the Board of Transportation as well.
The charges against the Controller include having at least five members of her office staff work on her reelection campaign during the 2002 election period. They were doing the election work on state time, and according to sources, were required to do this by Augustine.
There are calls for the officer to resign her office, but she has said she won't do that. She indicated that she has never faced an ethics complaint in all her years of public service.
There have questions in the past about abuse of travel expenditures by her, but no charges were filed. She was told she would require better financial documentation in the future.
She is not up for election this year.
The Buzz Around the Silver State
From our Correspondents
Carson City
(Carson City) --- These are the dog days of summer, we're in the Summer Doldrums, and if you've looked at a thermometer, regardless of where in the Silver State you live, you know it's just plain old fashioned hot. According to Linda Mercer, Energy Assistance Program Manager with the Nevada Welfare Division, "Intense heat is the most dangerous extreme weather condition facing low-income Americans."
In a report from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), some 400 people die each year from the effects of heat. That figure is more than double all other natural disasters put together. You know, disasters -- tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, floods -- More than double.
Most at risk according to Mercer are the elderly, young children, and individuals suffering from certain medical conditions, and, she says, "the dry heat of Nevada is particularly a problem due to the quick evaporation of sweat." One tends to lose the cooling effect of the perspiration. The CDC says, "air conditioning is the number one protective factor against heat related illness and death."
Mercer says many low-income people don't have air conditioning because of the cost factor, and says the state does have a program that can help with those high utility bills. To find out if you are eligible, contact the Nevada Fund for Energy Assistance and Conservation. By telephone, 866-846-2009, or go to http://www.nevadaenergyconnection.nv.gov.
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Clark County
(Las Vegas) --- It's taken a long time, there have been missed deadlines, some still say it won't happen, but if you're near The Strip, either this morning (July 15) or maybe tomorrow morning, you will get a chance to see the Las Vegas Monorail in operation. The cost factor sits at $645 million, but it will carry paying customers along the length of The Strip.
The monorail has to be the biggest infrastructure project in years, if not, all time, "a huge undertaking" in the words of one official. There will a period at the beginning for shakedown projects, to make sure all the computers are really functioning, but it will be carrying paying passengers.
Eventually, the project will operate 20-hours daily, and monorail representatives expect to serve some 50,000 passengers daily.
The monorail system was built by Bombardier Transportation of Montreal and Granite Construction from their California headquarters in Watsonville. Each faces penalties of more than $11 million for being late with the product.
Worse, now the monorail is not the first rapid transit (high-speed?) system in the Las Vegas Valley. That honor goes to Metropolitan Area Express, a system of really fast buses called MAX that began operating on June 30.
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Washoe County
(Reno) – The Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN) reports a total of 1,470 new primary jobs have been created in fiscal year 2003-04 thanks to the 20 new companies and retention and expansion projects in the region.
The 2003-04 statistics represent a $240 million economic impact to Northern Nevada in terms of new jobs and capital investment - an 82 percent increase over 2002 in which EDAWN reported $132 million in economic impact and 392 jobs. Additionally, retention and expansion projects totaled $115 million and 720 jobs in 2003 over the $36 million and 288 jobs generated in 2002.
EDAWN’s 2003-04 business report showed manufacturing led the types of industry that relocated to Northern Nevada with 12 companies, followed by distribution (four), service companies (two) and corporate headquarters (two). Geographically, the majority of businesses relocated from California for a total of seven companies, followed by Florida representing two companies.
“A series of factors contributed to 2003-04 being a banner year for new and existing business activity in Northern Nevada,” said Chuck Alvey, president and CEO of EDAWN. “The national economy, low interest rates, available capital, proximity to Calif., combined with Nevada’s statewide targeted marketing campaign to Calif., companies all contributed to the region’s steady business growth.”
Alvey also credited EDAWN’s reorganized staff and business strategy, as well as ramped up business retention and expansion efforts through the Business Builders program as key to retaining quality businesses and jobs locally. “The value of retaining jobs versus creating new jobs is essential in creating a vibrant business climate that supports companies that decide to do business here.”
For more information of EDAWN, go to http://www.edawn.org.
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Churchill County
(Fallon) --- a petition circulating in Churchill County to ban prostitution has come under fire from owners of bordellos in other parts of the state. A lawsuit has been filed by a group calling itself Nevadans for Freedom of Choice, asking the court to bar the county from placing the measure on the ballot.
The group claims the petition process was not followed properly and asks the court to not allow County Clerk Gloria Venturacci to place the measure on the ballot. Churchill County will be represented by the District Attorney.
The petition held 1,337 signatures when it was turned in and at least 742 were proven valid. The Churchill County Commission validated the petition and called for it to be placed on the November ballot.
A date for a hearing has not been set.
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Nye County
(Pahrump) --- While we're on the subject ... Nye County will not eliminate prostitution from its list of legal businesses, but will change some of the rules under which the bordellos must operate. At this time, the Nye County District Attorney is drawing up a new ordinance to control many aspects of the businesses, including the one that has seemed to offend the most people in Pahrump, outdoor billboard advertising. He has 90 days to come up with the rules.
The ordinance will include more than just the houses of prostitution, but nude dancing clubs, and possibly other sex-related businesses. "Sometimes, these places just get too public," according to a Pahrump sage who wished to remain anonymous. "It's the signs."
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White Pine County
(Ely) --- The idea of pumping White Pine County water to population bloated Clark County led to attempts to recall three county officials, but the petition drive fell short. In order to get the recall measure on the ballot, 766 signatures were needed against District Attorney Richard Sears, 899 against both County Commissioners David Provost and Jack Norcross.
According to figures released by Secretary of State Dean Heller, less than half the number needed were turned in for counting. White Pine County Clerk Donna Bath was notified that the attempt would not appear on the eastern Nevada county ballots. If the petition drive had been successful, she said, she would have placed the measure on the September primary ballot.
Water starved Clark County has begun negotiations with officials in Lincoln County and has been rebuffed by Nye County.
Both Provost and Norcross are up for reelection and could still lose their seats. Provost faces a primary battle while Norcross moves to the general without primary interference.
Water is the next big battle, not just in the west. For another look at water issues and growth, go to the Opinion Pages of this edition of The Nevada Observer. (Click Here)