Nevada State Education Association

Nevada Senate Minority Leader Steven Horsford (D-Las Vegas).: Horsford said Friday that the governor's call for a special session was an unnecessary 'political maneuver.'LAS VEGAS - Following Republican Gov. Jim Gibbons' surprise announcement Friday that he would call for a special session of the state legislature to address Nevada's budget crisis, state Republicans swung into line behind the governor in arguing that choices are limited between either deferring state employees' cost-of-living allowance increases or laying off workers.

Nevada Democrats and labor unions condemned the call, however, saying a special session is not necessary and disputing the need for a COLA deferment.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio (R-Reno) led the way in supporting the governor, first suggesting the COLA deferment in the governor's release Friday morning.

LAS VEGAS - Responding to the governor's call for a special session Friday to look at cutting increases to teachers' and state employees' cost-of-living allowance, among other possible solutions, Nevada State Education Association President Lynn Warne said the call was "outrageous" and cast doubt on the effect such a session would have on teacher pay.

"It's outrageous that he's calling a special session and it's even more outrageous that he's thinking that he's going to withhold the COLA increase for our hardworking educators in this state as well as their families," Warne said.

Warne said that the COLA increases were negotiated as part of teachers' contracts with individual school districts, so while the legislature can cut the districts' budgets by the amount of the 4 percent COLA increase, it would be up to districts to find cuts in their budgets.  That gap, Warne insisted, would not be filled by stopping the COLA increases.

From left, SD-5 candidate Shirley Breeden, Greg Esposito, and AD-21 candidate Ellen Spiegel in Henderson last week.: Although most of the Democratic establishment is staying positive about Breeden's candidacy, the NSEA's endorsment of her opponent last week is a troubling sign. Politicker Photo.LAS VEGAS-Months ago, intent on retaking the state senate, Nevada Democrats cast their sights on Senate District 5 as one of two key targets. But hopes of capturing the seat may be fading as their candidate, a self-described "political unknown," has failed to win the endorsement of one of the pillars of the state Democratic establishment, the Nevada State Education Association.

And the endorsement of incumbent state Sen. Joe Heck (R-Henderson) by the state's teachers' union is just the latest in a series of missed opportunities for state Democrats that have led some Democratic operatives to believe their candidate, Shirley Breeden, is unlikely to defeat Heck.

LAS VEGAS-A deal between the Nevada State Education Association and Station Casino, Harrah's and Wynn may have been reached in an attempt to kill a ballot initiative that would have raised the  gaming tax, but the state's political leaders haven't thrown their full support behind it yet. The Democratic leadership in the Assembly doesn't "anticipate any problems," but Republicans say they are waiting to see the details of the agreement before deciding whether to support any compromise to raise the room tax.

The deal, reached Monday right before a deadline to turn in petition signatures, reportedly kept a Teachers Union-supported 3 percent gaming tax increase initiative off the November ballot in return for gaming support of an up to 3 percent room tax increase instead, capped at 13 percent.

Although the compromise was reached with the help of the governor's office and Republican legislators, the governor's office and Republican leadership are holding off on supporting it until final details are released.