Top News

Clark County School Board members approved a tentative $2.1 billion budget for 2009-10 amid questions about how much state and federal money the district can expect.

The state is in line for about $324 million in federal stimulus money to stabilize education, but it has not yet arrived.

Also, legislators are still working on the state budget.

The school district expects to receive $74 million less in state funding for 2009-10 than it received in 2008-09.

The district also plans $120 million in cuts to existing programs because of increased costs in areas such as employee contracts and benefits.

And district officials are preparing for a $19.9 million shortfall in anticipated property tax revenue.

MONDAY

LAKE MEAD LEVEL TO SHRINK EVEN MORE

Another below-average year on the Colorado River will soon shrink Lake Mead to a level not seen in 44 years.

According to the latest federal projections, the surface of the lake is about a month away from sinking below 1,100 feet above sea level for the first time since May 1965.

By July, the reservoir is projected to be 13 feet lower than it is now.

The news has water managers and marina operators scrambling to deal with the immediate impacts and bracing for what could come next if drought conditions don't improve along the Colorado River.

TUESDAY

DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIP BILL FACES VETO

Gov. Jim Gibbons promised to veto a same-sex domestic partnership bill if it passed the Legislature.

"I just don't believe in it," the governor said.

The bill is modeled after a California law and would give same-sex partners the same legal rights as married couples.

Same-sex marriage is unconstitutional in Nevada under an amendment approved by voters in 2002.

The Legislature did not act further on the bill last week. If the bill is not approved by Tuesday, it will be dead, even without the threatened gubernatorial veto.

WEDNESDAY

DESAI TOO SICK

TO DEFEND HIMSELF

Dr. Dipak Desai, whose endoscopy centers are linked to a hepatitis outbreak, is too debilitated following a stroke to assist in his defense against malpractice charges, according to a report filed with the Nevada Board of Medical Examiners.

The doctor underwent a battery of tests ordered by hearing officer Patrick Dolan in response to medical records submitted by Desai's attorneys. The findings conflict with those of an earlier report.

Local and federal agencies have investigations under way into Desai.

THURSDAY

MORATORIUM ENDS; FORECLOSURES SOAR

A voluntary moratorium on foreclosures ended in March, which meant this: 7,447 new foreclosures in the month locally, more than double those in February and four times the number in March 2008.

Nationally, more than 175,000 homes were lost to foreclosure in March, also a record.

Nevada ranks eighth in the nation in foreclosures over the last six months.

Foreclosures now account for about 80 percent of home sales in Las Vegas.

Experts say the backlog of bank-owned homes will take months to work itself through the system.

FRIDAY UNION LOSES CASE

Two ballot measures challenging the way Las Vegas handles redevelopment should not be part of the June 2 city elections, a judge ruled.

The decision was welcomed by city leaders who worried that the measures would destroy the city's push to invigorate downtown.

The decision will be appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court.

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said after the ruling: "As far as I'm concerned, I have no relationship with the Culinary leadership, the way they've acted. They're not good citizens."