Vets protest county brothel fees grab

An ordinance scooping up brothel fees designated for veterans services into the general fund drew protests Tuesday from local veterans and the manager of the Chicken Ranch brothel.

The board passed a motion by Commissioner Frank Carbone to table the action. He wanted a budget line to continue allocating the funds collected specifically for veterans services.

Commissioners in 2010 increased the licensing fee for prostitutes from $62.50 to $125 per quarter, with the difference supposed to fund the county veterans service office. The move made national news in the Air Force Times. That bill stated “all fees will be deposited into the general fund” but the latest bill strikes language that said, “and distributed to the veterans service office budget during each budget cycle.”

County Manager Pam Webster said the money funds the county veterans service office, which has now been taken over by the Nevada Office of Veterans Services. She said Nye County is providing office space and utilities but not providing the service.

Pahrump Town Board Vice-Chairman and county commission candidate Bill Dolan decried the downsizing of county veterans services, reminding the board veterans are 36 percent of the county population. He said the agenda item wasn’t specific enough.

“It appears you’re getting ready to throw the baby out with the bath water. So we see veterans services just totally being done away with and the fees being paid on the back of the working girls in the brothel and their employers, the funds going to the general fund and no longer going to be generally used for veterans services,” Dolan said.

Veterans advocate Jose Telles said a state representative works with veterans a few days a week. He said there are 9,000 veterans in Nye County.

“There’s still veterans sitting there waiting and waiting and waiting to get their claims done, to follow through with their claims and do what needs to be done to get their benefits they so earned as heroes of these United States of America,” Telles said. “The worst thing that ever happened to this veterans office was to delete the full-time person that’s supposed to be there because not only was he there from eight to five but he actually went out at night and helped veterans that could not come in.”

Ken Shockley resigned as county veterans service officer a year ago.

But Commissioner Butch Borasky countered, “my understanding since we’ve gone to the state running it and we have a service office here it’s far superior to what we had before and the complaints are going away.”

Judy Neal, manager of the Chicken Ranch brothel, said working girls who come in a week before the quarter ends still have to pay the $125 licensing fee, the fee isn’t pro-rated. They didn’t mind contributing to veterans.

“At the time it was raised they didn’t qualm or question it because it was going to a good cause, our veterans. Now they find out our office is being closed. Where is the money going? They love helping our vets, that is our priority,” Neal said.

The Nevada Brothel Association actually suggested additional fees to the state Legislature in 2009 as a way of legitimizing their business. Former Assistant Sheriff Johanna Cody estimated the licensing increase could provide $160,000 for the county veterans service office.

Webster said the office wasn’t closing, but was in fact expanding.

Brandi Metheny, the state veterans service officer for Nye County, said northern Nye County isn’t being ignored. she travels to Tonopah and Beatty every month. Metheny said she’s been seeing veterans in Nye County since March 8, 2012, sometimes 19 to 20 people per day, taking care of their health insurance and applying for the VA clinic.

“I personally haven’t received any complaints about anybody not receiving any need or any care, not getting any help in claims,” Metheny said. “Any veterans that can’t travel to the office I do homebound visits as well.”

Metheny said she can’t force veterans to file VA claims and the filing of claims isn’t something the state or county can control.

“You can contact Senator Heller until you’re blue in the face,” she said. “The issue is not the claims process. That’s not what we’re deciding here. You can have 20 people working on claims, that’s not going to make it work any faster.”

Metheny had some good news: a Vista volunteer has been approved full-time to help do data entry and help veterans get records in the Pahrump office. Her program manager is pushing to have a representative in Pahrump four days per week and go to Tonopah or Beatty on the fifth day.