Governor seeks waiver to receive higher education dollars

CARSON CITY — Gov. Jim Gibbons asked Wednesday for a waiver of a federal rule that requires a big increase in higher education funds in his proposed budget to qualify for part of the state’s nearly $1.5 billion in expected federal stimulus funds.

To get $396 million for K-12 and higher education, the federal stimulus law requires the state to spend as much on K-12 and higher education as it did in 2006. Under Gibbons’ budget, the K-12 requirement is met but without the waiver the state must restore $268 million in cuts to higher education.

Gibbons said that the waiver is needed because otherwise the state would have to appropriate “several hundred million dollars” to higher education and that would block Nevada from using the stimulus funds for other items such as health care funding.

In his letter to U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Gibbons said the state is in a severe economic slump and the $396 million in stimulus funds for education could help in eliminating his proposed 6 percent cuts in teacher pay and other education-related cutback plans.

“All I want to tell you is time is of the essence here,” Gibbons told reporters. “We have a Legislature in session. We are coming to a point where we have to make these critical decisions” on the state budget for the next two fiscal years.

“We understand there are several preconditions that have not been explained nor have they been defined by the federal government and the Department of Education,” Gibbons said, adding that once those terms are made clear he will submit any additional information that’s needed.

“But having been in the federal government, understanding what takes place, understanding the length of time the bureaucracy operates in Washington, D.C., it was imperative that we move forward now,” Gibbons added.

“The real problem with this whole bill is it’s so arcane in the way it is drafted,” Gibbons said. “The language in there is unclear. The end result focuses primarily on usurpation of states’ rights by the federal government.”

“Many of these things become unfunded mandates in the long run, and an unfunded mandate is something that no one ... wants to accept.”

Assembly Democrats said they back the waiver request because it could give the state more flexibility. However, Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, has expressed concern that the waiver request could take too long to process.