‘Don’t believe the hype’

Clark County Assessor Linda Franklin didn’t mention Peter Van Nortwick by name Wednesday when she was talking to the county commissioners about her budget.

She didn’t need to.

Van Nortwick, who is running for the seat that Franklin’s leaving at the end of the year, has been Franklin’s loudest critic among the four candidates and contends in his statement in the voter’s guide that her budget has increased by 25 percent over the past four years.

“It’s a sad state of affairs that the only way a person can get a job is to tear down the person doing the job,” Franklin told commissioners. “I’m asking you to not believe the hype.”

She said she has the same number of appraisers the office had in 1979, and, unlike other elected officials who have been meeting with commissioners, Franklin did not ask for money.

Budget director Jim Dickman said the budget for the assessment side of the office has not increased. He said the increase was for the office of Geographic Information Systems, which the assessor oversees, and reflects the commissioners’ desire to invest more heavily in that department, not out-of-control spending by Franklin.

The office of GIS maintains mapping data and produces the county’s road atlas.

Franklin endorses Janet Seekins, a senior residential appraiser who has worked for the office for nearly 30 years.

Businessmen David Horowitz and Daniel Weaver are also running. The top two finishers in the Aug. 17 primary will advance to the November general election.
— Stephanie Rice