State Budget Battles

A lot of talk about budgets. You may have heard the Governor say in his State of the State address he will cut his own salary by 6 percent, if state worker salaries are also cut, as he has proposed. He also asked his Constitutional officers to match his voluntary cut.

I called representatives for the other 5 Constitutional officers. Lieutenant Governor Brian Krolicki will do whatever is necessary if the legislature deems it's necessary to cut state employee salaries.

Secretary of State Ross Miller will also take a cut if the legislature decides to go that route. But, Miller believes the pay cut for state workers is not the best way to deal with the budget situation.

Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto had this to say:
"A 6% cut to state employees is a short term solution to a long-term budget problem. It is shortsighted and fails to contribute to a sustainable fiscal policy for our state. If the legislature chooses to cut state employees salaries by 6% then I would be willing to stand in their shoes."

A representative for State Controller Kim Wallin said Wallin is on vacation and will provide a comment when she returns on Friday.

State Treasurer Kate Marshall says she will honor the 6% cut request if the legislature decides to cut state employee salaries.

If you are curious as to what these people make .. here you go:

As of January 2007, Governor's salary is $141,000.
As of January 2007, Lieutenant Governor's salary is $60,000.
As of January 2007, Secretary of State's salary is $97,000.
As of January 2007, State Treasurer's salary is $97,000.
As of January 2007, State Controller's salary is $97,000.
As of January 2007, Attorney General's salary is $133,000.

And for those of you curious about the salaries of Nevada Supreme Court Justices. Some of them are paid $140,000 and others are paid $170,000. Justices do not receive pay raises in the midst of their term. It kicks in when they are re-elected, or when a new person is elected to the position.

Lots of emails about our story on Rex Harris and his company Better Realty Deals.

Click here to see the story. Then click on "Better Realty Deals, Real or Not?" in the player.

Rex Harris told us he was the former sales manager of another company, Our Family First Realty, that apparently took a lot of money from Realtors and didn't follow through on its promises. Our Family First is now out of business. Better Realty Deals is Rex Harris' company which appears to operate in very much the same way as our Family First. Collect money from Realtors with promises of advertising. But so far, the ads have not aired.
Here's a sample of some of the emails I received after the story aired:

Just wanted to add myself to the list of people ripped off by Rex Harris. I bought in for $3,800 in Zip codes and never saw a thing in return for my investment.
Colette

$1600 for a zip code and never a ad in!
I feel like a fool but appreciate the fact you are making this public so hopefully he will be shut down for good!
Bev

I was one of many Realtors here in Arizona that was misled by Rex Harris back in October 4, 2007. He runs a pretty good scam by keeping people running in circles. I never met with Rex, only spoke with him, but dealt with two of his sales people and spoke to one of his associates that had the business in her name.
Mark

Please add me to your list of scammed Realtors. He took me for $2,200 August of 2007. I have demanded my money back several times and got nothing. I have his voicemail recorded where he tells me to read my contract.
Deanne

And I got an email from Rex Harris AFTER the story aired. Remember we offered him a chance to sit down, face to face, and talk about many of the inconsistencies we found in our investigation.. before the story aired. We also asked him for proof that he had a contract to air commercials. He told an agent during the sales pitch he had a contract. We also asked for documentation about when and where we could see those commercials on the air. That's something you would have if you actually purchased the time to air the commercials. We never got that information and he never showed for the interview.

In this latest email, he talks about a "crook" who didn't finish the commercial .. correctly. I know he already has commercials ready to go .. at least he told me that. In fact, you can see it on his website. It's the same commercial he will show you before he starts his sales pitch. Why doesn't that one air in the meantime?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
To Whom It May Concern,
First and foremost I want to offer my sincere apology to any and all Realtors who were mislead by Our Family First Realty.
Wow, where should we start. How about proof that I did not own Our Family First Realty? I have . FBN numbers on two owners. How about proof that the company closed down due to a web desighner who was a crook and when he did not get his way he shut down the site and started making allegations to all of the company's clients for his own twisted fun?What about all the clients like Mr and Ms Gunning who have been responded to and being told that this will get back up and running and that we will give them more than they signed up for, for there patience. These agents like the Gunning's have stated they our excepting the free extension. Then they lie on camera. Does that not stand for anything?
I understand that you can and will report what you want. But i work 7days a week trying to build a dream. Next time you want to talk to me. Get the facts straight. And again our commercials start in January as stated to any of the Better Realty Deals clients. We wanted to start earlier but as we ran into another crook who did not finish the commercial correctly. We shoot a new commercial this week. And on air the next. Feel free to call us if you have not seen us. Also Nevada Coorperate Headquarters is responsible for all our coorperate paperwork. Did you need anything from them? to show we are a corp?
I have tried talking, I am trying to do right by my clients. Why don't you do your story on that? If you only had a clue how hard it is starting something that has this potential by yourself. Im doing everything in my power and again want to apologize to anyone that was not contacted about this matter.
Agents need to contact me and let me know what areas they were signed up for, so that I can honor their contrcat with the company that I worked for, not owned.
Rex Harris 877-78-better
_______________________________________________________________________________________
We did find that Better Realty Deals did finally register as a corporation with the Nevada Secretary of State's office. It became incorporated December 12, 2008.

Selling Commercials and Some Hints About Mailing Holiday Cards

I hope you checked out our latest report. We heard from many real estate agents who say they paid for a service and didn't get it.
They were promised TV commercials and new business referrals. They tell me they got neither and they want their money back.

I had a viewer contact me recently about some missing Holiday cards. That led to some phone calls to the United States Postal Service. The customer service person I spoke with reminded me that if you're mailing a check or gift cards, be careful. Although the postal service says it's mail drop boxes have been reinforced, you still need to be wise about your mailing habits. If there is money or gift cards inside the card you are sending, deposit it in the drop box INSIDE the post office. If you use one of the outdoor mailboxes, or even the drive by mailbox, check to see when the last pickup is. If it says the last pickup is 6:30pm, and you're dropping off something after 7pm .. it'll sit there all night and that's just one more chance for something to happen. The USPS also told me most of those mail thefts happen between 1 and 5 am. If you ever see someone breaking into a mailbox, the best thing to do is call 9-1-1. If you suspect mail theft is going on, contact the postmaster at your local post office or call the mail inspection service at 702-796-5272.

DIDN'T PAY YOUR CREDIT CARD BILL?

If you have a debt...PAY IT!.

Credit attorneys tell us

"Any unpaid debt will never go away ... but legal action has a time limit."

While "the bill collector" is one person no one wants to hear from from ... these debt collectors play an important role in our economy.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP conducted a survey on behalf of ACA International.

The survey found that in 2007 about $40.4 billion of debt was collected and returned.

That $40.4 billion is equivalent to an average savings of $354 per American household that might otherwise been spent had businesses been forced to raise prices to cover the unreceived debt.

If you have debt - know the laws and rules.

A good place to start?

The FAIR DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES ACT

The FTC is another good source.

Statue of Limitations in Nevada
Written Contracts: 6 years
Nev. Rev. Stat. 11.190(1)(b) (WESTLAW through 2001 Reg. Session and 17th and 18th Special Sessions of the 71st Leg.).

Oral Contracts 4 years
Nev. Rev. Stat. 11.190(2)(c) (WESTLAW through 2001 Reg. Session and 17th and 18th Special Sessions of the 71st Leg.).

Judgments 6 years
Nev. Rev. Stat. 11.190(1)(a) (WESTLAW through 2001 Reg. Session and 17th and 18th Special Sessions of the 71st Leg.).

Hospital Accounts
Effective Date: October 1, 2007
1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, an action against a person to recover payment for any amount owed to a hospital for hospital care provided to the person at the hospital must be commenced not later than 4 years after the date on which any payment that is due for the services is not paid.
2. The period provided in subsection 1 is tolled during any periods in which the hospital is awaiting a determination concerning eligibility for, or the amount of, benefits from an
insurer or public program and during any periods in which payments are being made.
3. As used in this section, “hospital care” has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 428.155.
N.V. A.B. 247(Sec. 7) (2007)

WHAT TRIGGERS THE CLOCK ON DEBT TO RESTART?
The time in NRS 11.190 shall be deemed to date from the last transaction or the last item charged or last credit given;

and whenever any payment on principal or interest has been or shall be made upon an existing contract,

whether it be a bill of exchange, promissory note or other evidence of indebtedness if such payment

be made after the same shall have become due, the limitation shall commence

from the time the last payment was made. Nev. Rev. Stat. 11.200

(WESTLAW through 2005 73rd Reg. Sess. & the 22nd Special Sess.)

If a debt is days or minutes away from reaching six years

and a payment is made, the clock restarts.

** First, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits any debt collector from falsely representing the character, amount, or legal status of any debt.

** Second, Rule II(A)(6) of the ACA Code of Ethics states members have a duty not to threaten or initiate collection litigation on time barred debts.

Another Consumer resource is "Ask Doctor Debt." It is a sort of "Dear Abby" for consumers with specific credit and debt questions.

"Ask Doctor Debt" is a completely free web site where consumers can find tons of information on credit and debt collection issues like the one we profiled in our story.

There is a staff dedicated to answering specific Consumer questions that get e-mailed to

"Ask Doctor Debt."

POOPER SCOOPER ON THE RUN

The Pooper-Scooper-on-the-run … is still wanted by authorities.

If you didn’t see the story, you can click here.
In a nutshell, it’s the story of a man who was hired to do a job, and then for some reason did some bad things to his former clients, according to the orders of protection filed in Justice Court.

One of his former clients told us Gober dumped paint all over his truck.

The protection order says Gober called one client after he left paint thrown on the front door of that client’s home. The report says he called the client and left a message. In part it said, “It’s payback time B****. The paint on your F****** door, I did it. And you know what, there’ll be more.”

It’s something to think about. How much do you know about the person you hire to mow your lawn, clean your pool, clean your house? There is an arrest warrant out for Joe Gober, since he didn’t show up for a court appearance.

SENTENCED!

Juanetta Granger, also known as "The Heiress", "The Designer", "The Master Florist", and a list of 20 other aliases was in court today. * She was sentenced by Judge John McGroarty.

It's been a long road for the victims in this case, and some of them had their cases dismissed, although there is a chance they will get some restitution.

If you didn't see our stories, you'll find them listed on the player as "The Heiress" and "The Designer". Click here to see them.

The particulars: She was sentenced to 19 to 48 months at the Nevada State Prison. That sentence was suspended. She will be on probation for 5 years. she's to have no alcohol during that time. She will be paying restitution to her many victims, but the total amount is not yet clear. The judge used the figure of $128,851.46, but a restitution hearing in November will determine the exact amount.

She will have to pay extradition costs of $1,226.14, and will have to stay behind bars for 90 days,. starting today, October 22, 2008. Two victims spoke at today's sentencing. One man who runs Summerlin Shoes says she intentionally and deliberately talked up a good story and took advantage of him and his business, with no intention of ever paying for the shoes he sold her. He is owed $1230.25. Another victim, Janet Schertzer, is owed far more. She wants her $22,500 back. Granger told Janet she was a designer and the two of them should start a business. Granger took Janet all over town to furniture stores, model homes, and high rise condos to make Janet believe this was a real business. When Granger was asked by the Judge if she had anything to say. She did say "I'm sorry." She then complained that there was no counseling for her, no impulse counseling available to help her.

According to the District Attorney in Payne County, Oklahoma, Juanita Charree Lantz, as she's known there, told people she was JC Gaylord .. a member of the Oklahoma City Gaylord family that owns the News Press. She signed real estate documents as JC Gaylord Wolf. Granger/Gaylord's boyfriend, a Mr. Wolf, said that Granger/Gaylord told him that she was a member of the Gaylord family of Oklahoma City. She's now facing a felony charge of personation in Payne County.

*Here's a look at some of what we believe to be her aliases: Charree Lavicky, Juanetta Charree Gross, JC Lantz, JC Lavicky, JC Gross, Brandy Lance, Charree Tuscanio, Juanita Lance, Juanita Lavickey, Juanita Lavicky, Juanita Tuscanio, Juanita West, Juanetta Granger, Juanetta Charree Granger, Bobbie Sue Ford, Juanita Charee Gross, Juanita Gross, JH Stranhan, Juanetta Granger Gaylord!

INFINITY INVESTMENT SERVICES - BUSTED!