The Foreclosure, Unemployment and Bankruptcy Figures of Nevada are the Highest in the Nation

The leaders of Nevada gave a sobering picture of the health of the state covering a wide range of topics from education to budget problems. The Great Recession’s impact on the state was discussed during a testimony lasting 7 hours in front of an investigating panel of the feds probing into the financial crisis.

The Federal Crisis Inquiry Commission is bipartisan by nature. It is not expected that the reports will be submitted to the Congress and the President till 15th December. The commissioners pressed upo
Nevadan leaders the urgency of boldly fixing the widely spread out problems.

One of the commissioners John Thompson said that picture painted by them was bleak. He added, “While it's hard to say that you'd ever want to invoke an income tax or invoke things that have been heretofore considered taboo, arguably in a time of crisis – that’s when you have the best opportunity to capture the hearts and minds of the citizens”.

The foreclosure and unemployment figures of Nevada are the highest in the nation; so too are bankruptcy numbers. The state had nursed unrealistic expectations in growth prior to the financial crisis.

But the downturn has played havoc with the tourist sector and wiped out billions of equity from the property market. This was stated by economist Jeremy Aguero of Applied Analysis to the members of the commission comprising of ten members. Nevada State had indulged in overbuilding. But consumer spending and 100,000 jobs vanished nearly overnight.

Bank executives, public officials and analysts were questioned by the commission during the hearings that were held inside University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Bill Thomas (vice chairperson) previously congressman from a California, and a Republican opined that the commission set up by the Congress was trying to find out facts and figures to be presented to the bankers of Wall Street and to others “who have no real on-the ground knowledge of the suffering that goes on in a number of areas”. He said collecting and presenting records are very significant.

The hearing was led by Heather Murren and Byron Georgiou (commissioners) because they were residents of Las Vegas. The panel is continuing to discuss the causes of the meltdown and is noting down testimony coming in from Las Vegas as well as Bakersfield and Sacramento of California and Miami of Florida.