Policy Priorities

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce monitors several areas of policy on the local, state and federal levels of government. Below are some of the priority issues that the Chamber is currently monitoring.

Fiscal Responsibility

Fiscal responsibility at every level of government is important to our economic health. It is important to address it now as the longer we wait, the more severe the solution will be in terms of taxes.

The long-range impact of fiscal responsibility is of vital importance to business. The Chamber is currently studying the potential benefits of expenditure reform and is proud to be driving this issue.

The Chamber believes that Nevada's public employee retirement program is in dire need of restructuring. With almost 40 percent of Nevada state employees eligible for retirement in the next 10 years, the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) and Public Employees' Benefits Program (PEBP) have a combined liability of more than $10 billion. As a defined benefit program and by subsidizing health care, PERS and PEBP both offer public employees generous plans generally unheard of in the private sector.

While the Chamber believes that public employees are a vital part of Nevada, we also believe taxpayers cannot afford to continue funding an overly generous system. The Chamber believes that reforming the system would greatly relieve the further liability that is sure to incur and better fund programs in critical need.

Click Here to view Chamber Government Spending Reports

Employee Free Choice Act

Labor unions have revamped their efforts in hopes of passing the Employee Free Choice Act in 2008, or "Card Check" - a fiercely anti-business bill that stalled in the U.S. Senate last year after passing the House of Representatives.

The bill would make organizing cheaper and easier than ever before, allowing unions to target even the smallest of businesses. The secret ballot election system that would essentially cease to exist under this act would most likely create an environment of employee intimidation and coercion. Because the new system would be open-ended in terms of campaign time, the odds would drastically and unfairly shift in favor of a union. This bill undermines the very principles upon which America is founded: free enterprise and individuals casting their vote in private.

The bill contains many onerous provisions including:

• Allowing unions to represent employees without first conducting a secret ballot election. Under this act, the secret ballot elections overseen by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) used by employees to vote for union representation will be replaced by a public majority sign-up system the unions will oversee themselves;
• Allowing unions as long as they need to collect signatures from a majority of employees at a workplace. Instead of an election date, unions would have an open-ended period of time to campaign for representation;
• Imposing fines up to $20,000 against employers who make "unilateral changes" such as a wage increase during a union's campaign, no matter how lengthy the organizing process;
• Mandating that a government-appointed arbitrator impose a contract on a newly-unionized employer if the union and company representatives cannot reach agreement within 120 days of unionization; and
• Requiring a secret ballot election should a workplace choose to decertify the union.

Transportation

While the transportation needs of Nevada are important to all residents, road improvements and highway funding are especially critical to commerce and the economy. Good roads are vital to the transportation of goods and services, getting employees to and from their jobs, helping customers access businesses, and bringing tourists into our state. The Chamber works on behalf of the business community to make sure that every effort is made to secure the valuable transportation funds needed by our community.

To that end, the Chamber SUPPORTS the reauthorization of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: a Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) to fund the federal highway program. The Chamber believes that the SAFETEA-LU legislation should be authorized with guaranteed funding levels intact in order to adequately meet the growing needs for improved and expanded infrastructure in Southern Nevada.

Education

Business has a vital interest in ensuring that our schools provide students with a quality education that will prepare them to be a productive member of our workforce. The Chamber believes that improving the performance of the state's K-12 educational system is necessary to provide a strong foundation for Nevada's competitive business climate. As one of the largest customers of the education system, Nevada's business community understands firsthand the need for a strong educational system.

Energy

A reliable energy supply is critical to strengthening, enhancing and protecting business while building a strong local economy. Increasing renewable energy development would create high-wage jobs in our community. In addition, increasing the use of energy efficiency and conservation measures in businesses could mean savings to the bottom line. Combined, they have the potential to stimulate our local economy and help ensure a stable future.

The Chamber SUPPORTS the extension of renewable energy tax incentives. Nevada leads the nation in geothermal and solar power production per capita, and we believe extending federal tax incentives will help further our local efforts to maintain that status. Moreover, the economic vitality of our community depends on reliable, cost-effective energy. Extending tax incentives for renewable energy projects has the potential to increase the level of investment in Nevada's abundant natural resources.

The Chamber encourages diversifying the sources of energy available to the community and does not rule out any specific approach, including coal-fired plants.

Health Care

The Chamber knows that providing health insurance to your employees is one of the most expensive outlays for your business, yet it's also a benefit that most employers try to offer their valued employees. The increasingly high cost of health insurance makes providing coverage a struggle, particularly for the self-employed and small business. As a result, many of Nevada's workers remain uninsured. The Chamber believes that reforming the system to ensure increased access without sacrificing quality is a health care priority for Nevada.

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce:

• Supports reform measures such as tort, insurance and malpractice reform resulting in balanced medical malpractice law;
• Supports streamlining and standardizing administrative forms and procedures;
• Supports tax equity for self-employed and small employers; 100 percent deductibility for the self-employed; and
• Supports incentives to involve consumers, such as Health Savings Accounts and wellness initiatives.

Immigration

As Nevada's job growth rate continues to be almost four times higher than the national average, businesses are continuously challenged to find qualified employees. Immigrant guest workers can help fill jobs that are integral to growing the economy. Immigration reform is vital to our economy, business and community and the Chamber will continue to support a comprehensive solution that allows undocumented workers who reach set benchmarks to contribute to the economy in a legal manner. While the Chamber adamantly opposes the hiring of undocumented workers, we do not agree with making the business community a primary enforcer for the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) program.

Land Use

Eminent Domain powers can be harmful if left unchecked and the Chamber is dedicated to protecting the rights of your business to ensure that government interference is kept to a minimum. If the government chooses to invoke its eminent domain powers to take land from a private property owner, it must be for public use (i.e. roads, water, sewer etc.). The Chamber advocates for protecting property owners from onerous legislation that negatively affects the community. Business should not be at the mercy of government action.

Yucca Mountain

The Chamber is vehemently OPPOSED to the Yucca Mountain Repository.

Allowing such a facility in Nevada would seriously mar the attractive qualities of our community with regard to tourism and business.