Lawmakers kill tax breaks for Nevada border gas stations

A Senate panel has killed a proposed tax break for service stations located near Nevada's borders.

The Senate Taxation Committee shelved SB343, which would have allowed Nevada stations within three miles of bordering states to get fuel tax rebates if they had a "competitive disadvantage" compared with gas stations on the other side of the border.

The measure by Taxation Chairman Mike McGinness, R-Fallon, would have cost the state about $1.6 billion in yearly revenues, according to Department of Motor Vehicles estimates.

Arizona and California have lower fuel taxes than Nevada. Oregon, Utah and Idaho all have higher rates.

The vote to reject the fuel tax break came after the Senate panel reviewed Sen. Joe Neal's plan to strip away all sales and property tax exemptions not considered "essential to the health, safety and welfare" of Nevadans.

Neal, D-North Las Vegas, said the over 40 exemptions cause Nevada to lose out on over $700 million a year. But in presenting his bill, SB293, Neal backed away and told lawmakers they should keep over a dozen of them.

Opponents of the bill told lawmakers they needed the exemptions to keep everything from farms to fraternities going. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce was the lone outside supporter voicing support Thursday for an exemption rollback.

Several Republican and Democratic lawmakers have voiced support for close review of the exemptions, which were criticized as excessive in a recent Governing Magazine review of Nevada's tax base.

The committee took no action on Neal's bill.