Nevada: Henderson Voters Reject Tax Hike For Libraries

UPDATED (11/12/2012): Ballot initiative’s defeat prompts closing of two Henderson library branches by month’s end (via Las Vegas Sun)
Henderson, NV is located about 15 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
From The Las Vegas Review-Journal:

A 2-cent tax-rate increase proposed by Henderson Libraries was defeated Tuesday evening.
Returns showed library district voters defeated the proposed increase by nearly 10 percentage points.
“It doesn’t look like it’s going our way,” Tom Fay, the executive director of the Henderson District Public Libraries, said early Tuesday night. “The residents are deciding and it looks like they are OK with two less libraries and reduced services.”
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In recent years, Henderson Libraries has lost more than $2.5 million in tax revenues. This year’s budget is $6.7 million.
Before the recession, it received about 65 percent of its revenue from assessed property value, Fay said. The remainder came from consolidated taxes. Since the economic downturn, property taxes make up about 75 percent of the budget.
Henderson Libraries receives 5.75 cents per $100 in assessed property value, which is lower than other Clark County library districts. North Las Vegas receives 6.32 cents, Boulder City receives 8.55 cents and Las Vegas-Clark County receives 9.42 cents per $100 in assessed property value.

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CORRECTION: We’re correcting an earlier post that used an incorrect story from The Henderson Press.

Filed under: Libraries, News, Public Libraries