Silver Dollars & Wooden Nickels: Safe Grad tradition is worthy of our support

The Nevada Appeal’s Silver Dollars & Wooden Nickels feature recognizes achievements from the capital region and, when warranted, points out other acts that missed the mark.

SILVER DOLLAR: To the Carson High Safe Grad committee, which is preparing for Saturday’s safe and sober party. Safe Grad begins at the Carson City Community Center with activities including a casino, a jump house, a photo booth, swimming, rock climbing, food and raffles.

The party, which began in 1988 as a way to keep graduating seniors safe, goes all night long. It culminates with a bus trip to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, Calif.

While the Six Flags trip costs $40 per student, the party at the community center is free.

But the party is running short of funds. The fundraising goal is $40,000, and organizers have only a little more than $20,000 with less than a week to go. Donations can be sent to the Carson High Safe Grad Committee, P.O. Box 486, Carson City, NV 89702.

WOODEN NICKEL: When the Democratic leadership in the Nevada Assembly and Senate said this was the year to revamp the state’s tax structure, we were intrigued. Republicans in both chambers even seemed interested.

It appeared the state was primed for long-term solutions to its revenue problems.

Early in February, Senate Majority Leader Mo Denis and Assembly Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick said everything was on the table. That included the state’s consolidated tax on items such as liquor, cigarettes and some government services, the teachers’ margin tax initiative and an expansion of sales taxes to services.

So we waited for the plan to be unveiled. And waited.

As the final pages to the session’s 120-day calendar were ripped off and recycled, we learned that there wasn’t enough time to form a plan.

So now we will wait, another 20 months for the next session. As this session fades into our memories, we turn to 2015, and the next opportunity to bring long-term solutions. We hope there’s more action than talk during the 78th session.