Pushback Network » NV

Investing in Nevada’s Working Families for a Secure Economy

Samiya Bashir — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 20:42:47 +0000

300-350 people who have been on the receiving end of the billion dollar cuts, including people with disabilities, teachers, state workers, and parents of autistic children, protested at Nevada’s state capitol building to tell the Governor and Legislators that further reductions in the state budget are unacceptable.

Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada (“PLAN”) presented a “Nevada Budget Planning Tool kit” comprised of band aids, bailing wire, duct tape and a beggers cup to the Governor, who speaker after speaker condemned for his lack of leadership in dealing with this crisis.

Everyone pulled together with signs, banners, rousing speeches and good spirits so they could hear us “a mile away”, as one reporter told said. PLAN, along with the hundreds of demonstrators, demanded the Governor and the Legislature invest in Nevada’s working families to bolster the state’s economy, an economy which depends on well-educated Nevadans, safe communities, a sound transportation infrastructure and affordable health care and housing.

Nevada’s political structure is deeply resistant to fixing Nevada’s dysfunctional tax structure. PLAN’s event at the Legislature–the largest since 2003–proved that citizens will fight harder to force state leaders to make the tax system more fair and more stable in order to adequately fund services. This is our fight; we’re in it to win. We look forward to working with you.

In January, PLAN will release a comprehensive report detailing its plans for investing in Nevada’s working families or a secure economic future. Sign on to their email list to stay informed!

Read more about this event, widely covered in the media, by clicking on the links below:

Nevada Fights to Restore the Right to Vote

Brigid Flaherty — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 19:52:40 +0000

People with histories of legal trouble can restore their right to vote in this year’s presidential election with assistance from the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada.

Under Nevada state law, men and women with a felony record can vote if they were honorably discharged before July 1, 2003, or have a single non-violent felony after that date. The law applies to people convicted in Nevada or any other state.

In order to prove these rights have been restored, people must provide documented proof of honorable discharge or completion of sentence from prison, probation, or parole. PLAN hired Voter Restoration Advocate Meredith McGhan to help men and women get copies of those documents from Nevada, the federal government or any other state and register to vote in the upcoming general election.

Many people in Clark County and statewide have received letters from local elections departments informing them that they cannot vote because of past legal trouble. McGhan said many, perhaps most, of them can restore their right to vote.

“We can help them through the process,” she said.

PLAN works to restore the right to vote because helping people participate in the civic life of our communities makes it much less likely that they will re-offend, McGhan noted.

“This is something that works for the people involved, for our communities and for the democratic system,” she said.

McGhan said there are thousands of people in Clark County alone who could restore their vote. PLAN registered 400 men and women in the 2004 election with a similar program.

PLAN is a coalition of three-dozen groups working for social, economic and environmental justice in the Silver State, with offices in Las Vegas, Reno and Carson City.

For assistance in restoring the right to call PLAN’s dedicated phone line for the program at (702)383-0079

Click Here to Download PLAN’s Voting Info Sheet.

Nevada leaders take anti-sprawl fight to November ballot

Samiya Bashir — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 08:23:28 +0000

One of PBN’s newest State Alliance partners has been shaking things up out west. On June 27th, Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada turned in petitions with more than 28,000 signatures — about 10,000 more than the 18,093 signatures needed — ensuring that all Nevadans get a vote to require consideration of available water resources for development and land-use planning.

PLAN’s Bob Fulkerson released this statement about the initiative for sustained growth:

“On March 11, the people asked the Washoe County Commissioners to please put a water planning advisory question on the ballot. The response from the Chairman? ‘Go home and watch Oprah.’

The people didn’t go home—you rolled up your sleeves and went to work. Hundreds of you worked tirelessly for the last 90 days to collect over 28,000 signatures—more than 10,000 names over the required number. This is a record for initiative petitions in Washoe County!

The City Council said you were just the same 200 people who always complained. 28,000 of you are not complaining. You’re working proactively to inject common sense into water planning.

A sleeping giant has been awakened. We know that local governments have approved land use plans for 1.2 million people when we have water for only 600,000. We know that water planning is too important to leave to them, and to the developers. It’s up to us to organize and fight for what we know is right.

This is a wake up call to local governments and developers. The people have spoken. You’ve worked your kiesters off, and will not rest until a law is passed that bases land use planning on sustainable water supply.

Our state is blessed with incredibly beautiful wild and natural areas. This initiative will go a long way to making sure our grandkids enjoy those areas as much as we have. We are also facing $5billion in unfunded liabilities in the next decade for schools, highways, roads and other infrastructure costs. This initiative will force local governments to approve reasonable and affordable growth plans.

The fight is just beginning. The moneyed interests, to whom short-term financial gain is everything, have us in their sights. We need volunteers, money and public support to win in November.

Thank you to all the volunteers, to all the people who signed the petitions, to everyone who spoke to their neighbors about signing the petitions, and to all of you who will continue to work until we achieve victory on November 8! ”

See for more News coverage of this exciting achievement.