The Republican contrast behind big tax vote

CARSON CITY

In the end, the contrast could not have been more stark.

On the one hand, you had conservative Republicans who opposed the Nevada Revenue Plan to fund education, starting long before the 2015 Legislature even began.

Some opposed because of a promise, otherwise known as the tax pledge.

Some opposed because of process: They said they didn’t have time to read the 77-page amendment, or to meet in a Republican caucus to discuss it. (The tax, however, had been discussed at length in an all-Assembly committee meeting on Saturday.)

Some opposed because of pretend facts, claiming taxes would keep businesses from moving to Nevada or drive existing businesses out. (Nearly all other states have business taxes, and the top economic development leaders in the state said the tax wouldn’t interfere with business recruitment.)

Oh, and then there was principle: Taxes are bad.

In the end, 10 Assembly Republicans cast votes against the plan Sunday, which increases the business license fees for corporations, increases the payroll tax and imposes a new commerce tax on business revenue of more than $4 million per year. Three more voted no in the Senate on Monday.

Contrast their objections, however, to the thoughtful, intelligent speech given by Las Vegas Republican Assemblyman Erv Nelson.

“It’s easy to sit at home and spout the party line, and I did it,” said Nelson. He came to Carson City opposing tax increases and the governor’s proposed budget.

But as the 2015 Legislature unfolded, and various tax plans were presented, debated and passed, Nelson began to learn things. He said he talked with lobbyists on both sides of the issue, studied the plans and looked at budget cuts made by the state during the recession.

“I gradually changed my mind, and now genuinely feel that Gov. [Brian] Sandoval’s plan … is right for our state,” Nelson said.

Not only that, but Nelson objected to insults hurled by anti-tax conservatives, alleging that Republicans who’d changed their minds on taxes somehow lacked character, as opposed to an open mind.

“We should not lower ourselves to personal attacks and questioning each other’s integrity,” he said. “I was uninformed. I made a mistake.”

Nelson acknowledged that he’d offended some of his friends with his change of heart. “It’s funny, before I came here, I was a right-wing extremist,” he said. “Now I’m a RINO [Republican in Name Only].”

What finally convinced him? Nelson said it was hearing from economic development professionals that businesses were abjuring Nevada because of its poor education performance, despite the state’s lack of a business tax.

Remember, this contrast was entirely intramural — Republicans arguing amongst each other. It’s a matter of historical irony that the long-sought Democratic goal of a revenue tax on business only came about after a red tide swept members of the GOP into every constitutional office and majorities in both houses for the first time in decades.

Some of those Republicans committed — before even getting elected — to vote against all taxes. As a result, they eliminated themselves from the debate in Carson City, and gave up on the possibility of winning concessions or even modifying the final tax plan in a manner that would have been more acceptable to their side. The all-or-nothing approach more often leaves its adherents with more of the latter rather than the former.

But ironically, those same conservatives accused their persuadable colleagues of a lack of integrity and character. But fealty to a principle is only virtuous if the underlying principle is worthwhile. Are the voters better served by an elected official who knows the answer before the problem is even presented, or one who is willing to do what he or she determines in the best course for the state based on the facts and evidence?

It’s easy to sit at home and spout the party line, and many will continue. (Let’s hope we all recall their predictions of doom when they fail to materialize.) But because there were people such as Erv Nelson and Derek Armstrong and James Oscarson and Philip P.K. O’Neill, instead of gridlock, Nevada took a huge step forward. The state is better for their service.

Steve Sebelius is a Las Vegas Review-Journal political columnist who blogs at SlashPolitics.com. Follow him on Twitter (@SteveSebelius) or reach him at 702-387-5276 or ssebelius@reviewjournal.com.