Just a little ‘fee’

Nevada is not a "home rule" state. This means the Las Vegas City Council can't vote to raise the sales tax rate, property taxes or other levies within city limits, as many American municipalities can. The power to raise those taxes lies solely with the Nevada Legislature.

And that's a good thing for city residents and businesses. If afforded that authority, the council almost certainly would consider taking those taxes to levels that would make New York, Los Angeles and Chicago politicians blush.

How else is a struggling taxpayer supposed to view the council's plan to jack up all the taxes it does control? Today the council will discuss squeezing at least $1 million more per year out of employers, primarily to cover the costs of generous pay raises already given to city workers -- pay raises companies currently can't afford to give their own employees, and certainly won't be able to afford should the tax hikes win approval.

Don't be fooled by the fact that you probably won't hear the word "tax" used even once today. This revenue grab will be classified as "fee" increases. Among the punishments businesses should be prepared to absorb:

-- A slight increase in the license tax rate and a big bump in the number of companies that would have to pay it. Currently, businesses that gross at least $1.2 million every six months pay a rate of .00056 percent. The council might boost the rate to .0006 percent, but apply it to businesses that gross just $180,000 every six months.

-- A $100 minimum initial tax for licenses based on gross sales.

-- A requirement that anyone who leases out commercial space get a business license with a variable tax based on the area of the leased building, ranging from $100 to $500.

-- A $90 tax on licensing violations not corrected by the first reinspection, and a $120 tax for additional reinspections, plus a 10 percent administrative tax on those taxes.

-- An increase in the tax on new business licenses and changes of ownership, corporate officers, business name or location from $30 to $50.

-- A $50 reinstatement tax for business licenses renewals more than 30 days late.

-- A new temporary license tax, costing $250 or $500, and a $100 processing tax for privileged license applicants.

-- A new $200 environmental impact tax on any business whose employees breathe air or drink water.

OK, we made that last one up. But it's not a stretch considering the council's meticulous approach to increasing the cost of doing business in Las Vegas amid rising unemployment.

How much more can employers take? The Legislature has already boosted the payroll, sales, business license and vehicle registration taxes. Power bills are about to go up again. The Obama administration is agitating to make energy and health care even more expensive for businesses.

And the members of the City Council want to draw even more blood from a hemorrhaging economy? Are they completely insane, or have they simply endured one too many floggings from their masters in the city's public employee unions?

These proposed increases have no nexus to legitimate regulation. They have been proposed solely to increase the city's bottom line and spare the council from making budget cuts -- and being held accountable for years of unsustainable spending.

The city has somehow avoided slipping into anarchy even though commercial landlords have never needed a business license. Now, all of a sudden, they impose burdens on the public by providing space to other taxpaying businesses? Talk about a solution in search of a problem.

A "no" vote on this suicide pact isn't good enough. The council needs to take this plan outside its chambers and burn it.