Nevada senate passes $750m (or more) Raiders stadium subsidy, ball could move to NFL’s court

[JonLP24]

That didn’t take long: After a whole one day of testimony, the Nevada state senate voted 16-5 to approve raising hotel taxes to give Sands casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis $750 million (at least) for building a new stadium in Las Vegas and moving the Raiders there. The measure now goes to the state assembly, which could vote as soon as tomorrow.

The debate, such as it was, went along predictable lines: Major local power brokers, including other casino owners, lined up in favor of the subsidy deal on the grounds that it would be an economic boon; opponents said, wait, are you serious — Stanford economist Roger Noll testifying that the proposed deal was the “worst I’ve ever seen” and called the Raiders’ economic study “deeply flawed” for assuming that one-third of ticket buyers would be tourists who’d spend more than three nights in Las Vegas just to see football, which has never happened anywhere ever; and then the senate went ahead and voted for the bill, because JOBS!!!!1!!.

Sen. Aaron Ford, D-Las Vegas, said he could not face a laborer in need of work knowing “I had a chance to give you a job and I voted no.”

If that’s the bar, then no government expense for anything ever would be rejected, since it’s hard to spend money on anything without creating at least some jobs. Apparently Ford can sleep perfectly well when he considers facing laborers who could be employed by doing something else with that $750 million that might have a better bang for its buck than a football stadium — as the Reno Gazette-Journal’s Jon Ralston notes, Nevada is about to face a $400 million budget deficit that could lead to cuts in mental health, education, and other services. Even if you limited the use of hotel tax dollars to tourism spending (which the legislature doesn’t have to), it would be easy enough to use that to free up other money to spend on education — but then, you wouldn’t have a football stadium, just more schoolteachers, and those aren’t shiny.
http://www.fieldofschemes.com/2016/10/12/11683/nevada-senate-passes-750m-or-more-raiders-stadium-subsidy-ball-could-move-to-nfls-court/

[Auggie]

1. Don't be fooled by anything Davis and the Raiders' ownership group says about staying in Oakland ...

they've wanted out for years. They knew the public would never fall sucker to another bad deal. I have to hand it to Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and her predecessors for not buckling under to pressure. She/they will be blamed undeservedly for losing the team. But they should be lauded for saving the city and Alameda County millions of dollars. Now they can move foward to building a better East Bay ...

[4lbs]

2. LOL. Raider fans will stay in Vegas for 3 days on "home" games? Have you seen Raider fans?

They can barely afford the price of parking and tickets to the game.

Yet, they are expected to shell out an additional $300 for a 3 day stay as well as hundreds more to fly or drive round trip?

[KamaAina]

3. Has the football equivalent of DimSon thought this through AT ALL?

for assuming that one-third of ticket buyers would be tourists who’d spend more than three nights in Las Vegas just to see football

Ticket buyers? What about the tens of thousands of non-ticket-holding Raider fans who would descend on Vegas along with them on game weekends?!

[El Supremo]

4. David G. Elmore (San Antionio Repuke) just can't compete against...

bigger assholes Sheldon Adelson and Mark Davis.

[joeybee12]

6. OMG! You're right!

Adelson and Davis are two of the more disgusting people on this planet.

[El Supremo]

7. Actually I meant Red McCombs.

That other San Antonio billionaire who owned the Spurs, Nuggets, Vikings and Clear Channel.

[joeybee12]

5. Does that include the cost of new prisons for the criminal element they attract?

Not the least of which is the Davis family.