(Jeff Church) – Nobody likes being lied to.
Call it spin. Call it semantics.
But when a government agency skews the numbers, hides the good news and plays up the bad, that’s deception. Plain and simple.
That’s exactly what’s happening in Washoe County right now.
Meet Question 1
Washoe voters will see Question 1 on their ballots this year.
It asks if you support an annual “road use fee” on every electric and hybrid passenger vehicle registered in the county.
The fee would rise with inflation every year.
The question is advisory. It doesn’t create a fee by itself. Only the Legislature can do that, and the 2027 session is the first chance.
But don’t let “advisory” fool you.
RTC has said that if it passes, its lobbyists will take the results to Carson City along with a bill.
And once the Legislature opens that door for Washoe, how long before every EV and hybrid in Nevada gets the bill?
“Neutral”? Really?
Nevada law (NRS 281A.520) says public officers and employees can’t make a government agency spend money to support or oppose a ballot question.
So agencies don’t “campaign.” They “educate.”
RTC told KOLO 8 this summer that it doesn’t support or oppose the question. Yet RTC’s own board voted unanimously to put it on the ballot.
RTC paid for two polls, in December 2025 and June 2026, to test the idea. And the Nevada Current reported that RTC is hoping voters say yes.
That’s not neutral.
That’s a campaign paid for with your tax dollars.
The Sky Is Falling. Or Is It?
Search “RTC WC1 EV tax” and you’ll come away thinking there’s a crisis.
EVs are wrecking gas tax revenue. Roads will crumble.
RTC’s PIO has put the Washoe gas tax at 58 cents a gallon.
Not even close. It’s 73 cents.
Add every tax at the pump and Washoe drivers pay about $1.14 a gallon.
That’s the highest in the nation. Sorry, Vegas.
Then there’s the chart.
It’s drawn to make a 2.5% dip from the post-COVID high look like a cliff.
Mark Twain popularized the line about “lies, damned lies and statistics.” This chart is Exhibit A.
What the Chart Leaves Out
First, timing. That 2.5% dip happened under Biden, when gas shot from about $2.39 a gallon to over $5.
People drove less. Of course sales dropped.
Second, the border run. Reno drivers fill up in Carson City and Fernley on purpose.
On Oct. 21, Costco in Carson sold regular for $4.69. Reno was $5.29. That’s 60 cents a gallon, or $18 on a 30-gallon fill-up.
Those gallons get counted somewhere else.
Third, the rebound. Numbers you won’t find in RTC’s sales pitch show those dips came back up 3% in 2025.
I added them to RTC’s own chart.
The RTC Director had that number, but at his July 2026 presentation to the County Commission was the increase included?
Of course not.
The Number Buried in the Budget
Here’s the big one.
RTC’s annual budget projects Washoe fuel tax revenue jumping 16.34% from 2025 to FY2027.
That’s about $18 million more.
Up. Not down.
For scale, fuel tax brought in about $110 million in 2025. RTC’s own estimate says EVs and hybrids would’ve paid about $15.5 million over five years.
That’s roughly $3 million a year. And EVs and hybrids were just 5.3% of registrations as of mid-2024.
Meanwhile, RTC’s total budget keeps growing.
FY2027 comes in at $442.5 million. The year before, it was $345.5 million.
That’s a jump of nearly $97 million, or about 28%, in one year.
But it’s never enough.
Why Aren’t We Hearing This?
Why doesn’t the media report it? Why doesn’t RTC put all the numbers on the table?
We know why.
Stakeholders asked RTC to sit down at a roundtable. RTC said no.
Opponents point out that a flat fee charges the same whether you drive one mile or 30,000. Hybrid owners already pay at the pump.
Supporters say it’s about fairness. Fine. Then be fair with the numbers too.
The lesson goes beyond Washoe.
Nobody in government is looking out for your wallet.
Treat their claims with suspicion. There’s no penalty for spinning the facts, and the drive-by media mostly shrugs.
So read the fine print. Then vote.
Jeff Church runs RenoTaxRevolt.com. He’s a retired U.S. Air Force Reserve Lieutenant Colonel and a retired Reno Police sergeant. He served a term as an elected trustee on the Washoe County School Board. A federal judge nicknamed him “Watchdog,” and he’s seen how local government works from the inside. The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. Digital technology may have been used in the research, writing, or production of this article. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
