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Nevadans are not as anxious to bid adieu to 2009, not knowing what the new year will usher in.
Unemployment remains in double digits in most counties, while taxable sales took a big hit in both October and for the first quarter of Nevada's 2010 fiscal year that began July 1.
Already, the state's taxable sales show a $72 million hole, while Churchill County (including the city) is looking at a $340,000 loss.
Local governments and the state have been monitoring their respective budgets, ready to make belt-tightening adjustments as the year progresses.
Some recovery signs from the worst recession since the Great Depression show some glimmer, but the figures tend to parallel a roller coaster track.
One month, auto sales are up … next month they're down. Housing sales for existing homes are up one month … faltering the next. Unemployment showed a slight drop in November, but the worst months for unemployment are January and February. Housing values keep dropping, which, in the long run, could cause a drop in property taxes, thus resulting in a decline of money for city and county services.
Within the home, the budget process is just as tight. Many people are living from paycheck to paycheck more so than in previous years.
It is a vicious cycle.
We wish we had a clearer crystal ball to look at 2010.
• Will something trigger the job market where more firms begin to add employees?
• Will the housing market — and the construction trades — pick up in 2010 and record solid gains?
• Will people in Churchill and Lyon counties spend more money on big ticket items like appliances and automobiles.
• Will Churchill County and others see Congress restore geothermal lease and rental monies back to local governments?
• What will happen later in the year with local and national elections?
The new year — the new decade — offers many questions but provides very few answers. Time will tell if 2010 provides us with a ray of hope or with more storm clouds that never quite disappeared from 2009.
Editorials are written by the LVN Editorial Board and appear on Wednesdays.
Unemployment remains in double digits in most counties, while taxable sales took a big hit in both October and for the first quarter of Nevada's 2010 fiscal year that began July 1.
Already, the state's taxable sales show a $72 million hole, while Churchill County (including the city) is looking at a $340,000 loss.
Local governments and the state have been monitoring their respective budgets, ready to make belt-tightening adjustments as the year progresses.
Some recovery signs from the worst recession since the Great Depression show some glimmer, but the figures tend to parallel a roller coaster track.
One month, auto sales are up … next month they're down. Housing sales for existing homes are up one month … faltering the next. Unemployment showed a slight drop in November, but the worst months for unemployment are January and February. Housing values keep dropping, which, in the long run, could cause a drop in property taxes, thus resulting in a decline of money for city and county services.
Within the home, the budget process is just as tight. Many people are living from paycheck to paycheck more so than in previous years.
It is a vicious cycle.
We wish we had a clearer crystal ball to look at 2010.
• Will something trigger the job market where more firms begin to add employees?
• Will the housing market — and the construction trades — pick up in 2010 and record solid gains?
• Will people in Churchill and Lyon counties spend more money on big ticket items like appliances and automobiles.
• Will Churchill County and others see Congress restore geothermal lease and rental monies back to local governments?
• What will happen later in the year with local and national elections?
The new year — the new decade — offers many questions but provides very few answers. Time will tell if 2010 provides us with a ray of hope or with more storm clouds that never quite disappeared from 2009.
Editorials are written by the LVN Editorial Board and appear on Wednesdays.
