Gibbons questions stimulus money

Gov. Jim Gibbons on Wednesday put Nevada in line to receive aid from the federal economic stimulus bill, sending the required certification letter to President Barack Obama, but at the same time warning that he might reject some of the money.

Much of the two-page letter was devoted to rehashing Gibbons' previously expressed reservations about the bill, which he said puts too many requirements on the state and doesn't give Nevada enough money relative to other states.

The letter notes "that there may be portions of the Stimulus package that Nevada will reject, due to the constraints and current matching or future funding expectations that the funding would require."

Gibbons, a Republican, previously has said he doesn't like the conditions, or "chains," attached to some of the federal funding provided to states under the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act enacted last month.

Federal money to provide enhanced unemployment benefits would require a change in state law, and would run out in 2011, after which the state would have to either pay for the benefits itself or scale them back.

Some education dollars provided by the bill also might require the state to chip in funding at a certain level above what had been planned in the budget proposal Gibbons submitted in January. The Legislature now is considering the governor's budget.

Gibbons pressed members of Nevada's congressional delegation to pass the stimulus bill and help the state patch a $2.3 billion budget hole.

However, in his letter, Gibbons writes that he is worried the size of the legislation creates debt for future generations to pay: "As a firm believer that our citizens are best served by a smaller, more efficient, government I have my concerns about the magnitude of the stimulus package."

At the same time, Gibbons writes that the requirements placed on some of the money could result in "institutionalizing programmatic expansions which the federal government will not fund beyond this stimulus action."

And "of significant further concern," he wrote, the funds Nevada would get out of the stimulus are low in proportion to the federal taxes the state contributes. "This 'donor status' is indefensible, considering Nevada finds itself one of the hardest hit states during this economic downturn," the letter states.

The Nevada Democratic Party criticized Gibbons' statement Wednesday, calling his simultaneous demand for smaller government and more government money hypocritical. In a news release, the party said Gibbons' possible rejection of funds was "a shortsighted move that will deny help to those Nevadans who need it most."

Contact reporter Molly Ball at mball@ reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919.