Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Nevada’s new mining tax has sparked controversy after the tax commission adjusted its rules in response to industry pressure. Progressivists, including Christine Saunders, policy director of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, voiced dissatisfaction with the commission’s decision to make changes at the request of the Nevada Mining Association.
Progressives Push Back on Mining Tax Changes
Saunders argues the commission should preserve what voters approved with bipartisan support and in plain public view. She believes officials should stop rewriting legislative language throughout the regulatory process.
The state proposed a new mining tax on gold and silver production. In response, the Nevada Mining Association asked officials to change the title and make the tax non-retroactive. Association president Tyre Gray wants tax collection limited to mid-2021 onward, rather than covering the entire 2021 calendar year as the draft rules specified. Gray said the state never intended to collect this tax before the bill’s effective date, and that early collection “really never came up” during legislative talks.
“We ask you to return back to the basic document given by the tax department without the revisions,” Saunders said. Her group has long criticized mining companies for not paying sufficient taxes. Chris Daly, a lobbyist for the Nevada State Education Association teachers union, agreed with Saunders. He said the mining industry should support the earlier start date and help fund public schools, which face an unprecedented funding crisis.
Related Mining Industry Stories
- Exclusive: U.S. investigators were told to take ‘no further action’ on Caterpillar, ex-client of Barr
- Anglo-American failed to implement rudimentary health measures
- Demand for essential minerals continues to grow, which poses a problem for Nevada’s mining workforce
- Interview with Mr. Bruce Cosgrove
- Another Mining Giant awakens.
Where the Mining Tax Confusion Comes From
The uncertainty stems from differing interpretations of AB495. Legislators approved this statute last year as part of a deal to send more money to education while responding to calls for higher taxes on the mining sector. Estimates suggest the tax will generate roughly $83.3 million in revenue during fiscal year 2022 and $81.3 million in fiscal year 2023. The bill itself contains conflicting language: one provision points to retroactive application, while another states the law only applies as of July 1st.
Mining association president Tyre Gray argues that a statute must clearly express the legislature’s intent for retroactive application to apply. He doesn’t believe AB495 meets that standard. Tax Commissioner Sharon Byram agreed with Gray. She noted that more than 15 days have passed since the vote, raising a due process concern because taxpayers received no prior notice of the decision.
Commission Vote and Next Steps for the Mining Tax
When asked whether her membership in the Nevada Mining Association influenced her decision, Byram said she’d belonged to the group for most of the past 30 years but insisted it had no bearing on her vote. Commissioners then convened to determine whether their positions had shifted since their previous meeting on January 24th. Commissioners James Devolld and Francine Lipman were the only two who declined to confirm the validity of the prior meeting’s results; the rest abstained.
More Read
Now that officials have approved the regulation wording, the Department of Taxation will speed up delivery of forms and instructions. This will let mining companies pay their mining tax bills by April 1st, 2022.
