Progressive group lays out agenda ahead of governor’s state-of-state

Two days before GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval gives his “state of the state” address, a progressive group on Tuesday delivered its own version, calling for tax reform and a boost in education spending.

It’s two big priorities that Sandoval himself is expected to propose Thursday in Carson City in addressing Nevada lawmakers, who begin their 120-day biennial legislative session on Feb. 2.

But former Assemblyman Jason Frierson, who gave the progressive speech at an SEIU union hall in Las Vegas, came out in opposition to school choice and requiring voters to present photo IDs to cast ballots, two things the governor supports.

Speaking for the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, the Las Vegas Democrat also promoted providing workers with a “living wage,” protecting public lands and reforming crime to emphasize rehabilitating non-violent offenders, a liberal wish list after President Barack Obama himself called for raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.

Frierson, who lost his seat in a GOP wave election that gave Republicans control of the Nevada Legislature and state government, lamented the result of the low-turnout affair. He said the very people who didn’t vote are the ones who could be hurt by a voter ID program, which could prevent some from casting ballots, and by tax reform that doesn’t protect the working class. Instead, Frierson called for expanded early voting and same-day registration, which the GOP doesn’t accept.

“The greatest impact we can have on moving Nevada forward is by exercising our right to vote,” Frierson said in his prepared remarks. “Yet, the very people who stayed home in November are now targets of ideologues who would make it even harder to vote. With no indication of fraud in Nevada, requiring government-issued IDs to vote is a solution in search of a problem further decreasing an already abysmal turnout rate.”

Frierson’s speech was translated and delivered in Spanish by Astrid Silva, a PLAN worker and immigration advocate. It was the third time the progressive organization had delivered its own prescriptions for legislative action. About 80 people attended the speech, including Democratic Assembly members Richard Carrillo and Ellen Spiegel.

The address didn’t offer detailed proposals, but emphasized the need to improve schools to provide better education and jobs for Nevada’s future generations of workers as a way to have a more successful state and society.

Frierson, in fact, praised Sandoval, a moderate who easily won re-election, for his emphasis on education and the need to find new revenue sources as the state’s gaming- and tourism- dependent economy becomes more diversified.

“I am enthusiastic about Gov. Brian Sandoval’s interest in revisiting how we fund state services, and in particular, K-12 education funding,” Frierson said. “All of us — the Senate and the Assembly, Democrats and Republicans, the Executive branch, progressives and the business community — must come together to build a prosperous state where our kids have the opportunity to achieve their full potential. Research shows that a high-quality education increases the earnings of individuals and the economic health of their communities.”

But the former lawmaker also expressed fear that a conservative contingent of Republicans who just won election could stand in the way of progress, opposing tax reform and new revenue in the name of smaller government.

“Sadly, the prospect of accomplishing this (raising new revenue) drastically changed on November 4th when less than half of us showed up to vote and the result was electing a new wave of legislators who repeat empty rhetoric saying ‘more money isn’t the ‘answer,’” Frierson said. “We cannot continue to proclaim that throwing money at the problem isn’t the answer when all we’ve done is continue to cut funding, taking money away from our kids.”

“This point is clear,” he added. “We must invest more in our children. But that will require raising additional revenues by revamping our broken revenue structure, which is teetering on a 2-legged stool of gaming and sales taxes. We must add the third leg so that everyone, including big corporations, pay their fair share like they do in 46 other states.”

Contact Laura Myers at lmyers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919. Follow @lmyerslvrj on Twitter.