LAS VEGAS – The Private Bank by Nevada State Bank released the 23nd edition of its High Net Worth Report series. The topic of this edition is public education in the state. It includes summaries of key laws passed this year during the legislative session in Carson City and a guest column by Susie Lee, board chair of Communities In Schools of Nevada, a nonprofit organization that coordinates community resources to help at-risk students both on and off campus.
Highlights from the report include the following:
Education remains a priority issue for Nevada’s high net worth households. In a 2014 survey by Nevada State Bank, 78 percent of high net worth households said improving the state’s K-12 education programs was either somewhat important or very important. That issue ranked third among survey respondents, behind reducing the state’s unemployment rate and long-term water resource stability. Improvement of higher education programs ranked fourth, with 71 percent of respondents calling that a somewhat or very important issue.
Education and unemployment are closely linked, with 2014 federal jobs data showing that when educational attainment rises, the unemployment rate falls. Last year, workers without a high school diploma had a 9.0 percent unemployment rate, almost double the national average of 5.0 percent. Workers with a high school diploma or some college fared better, but their 6.0 percent unemployment rate was still worse than average. These national trends are especially apparent in Nevada, which has one of the nation’s lowest levels of higher-educational attainment, one of the worst high school graduation rates and one of the highest unemployment rates.
Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval made education the top issue of his legislative agenda, proposing roughly two dozen education-related bills and an overhaul of Nevada’s tax structure to support them. The tax code changes created a more broad tax base that will generate more than $1.5 billion in revenue for state programs over the next biennium. A significant portion of that new funding will support the education programs passed under Gov. Sandoval.
New education initiatives include a school voucher program that allows families to use public school funds to attend private school, increased funding for schools with higher levels of students in poverty and English language learners, and a statewide Achievement School District that would take over failing public schools and convert them into charter schools.
“Education is a priority for all of Nevada, including high net worth households,” said Randy Boesch, The Private Bank’s executive vice president. “The state’s new focus on improving education will help Nevada remain competitive in attracting new businesses while raising the employment prospects for our students now and in the future.”
The Private Bank publishes the High Net Worth Report several times a year. Briefings are made available on Nevada State Bank’s website at www.nsbank.com/HNWreport, or by contacting The Private Bank directly at 702.855.4596.
About The Private Bank by Nevada State Bank (@NSBPrivateBank)
The Private Bank by Nevada State Bank provides a full range of personalized financial services for high net worth and high-income clients, including deposit and lending services and wealth management planning. The Private Bank by Nevada State Bank is an unincorporated division of Nevada State Bank that provides specialized banking services to significant net-worth clients. Nevada State Bank is a full-service retail bank that has been chartered by the state of Nevada and is insured by the FDIC.
About Nevada State Bank (@nevadastatebank)
Nevada State Bank, with assets of more than $4.0 billion, is the largest state-chartered bank in Nevada. A full-service bank with 50 branches statewide, Nevada State Bank offers a complete range of consumer, private and business banking services. It is a subsidiary of Salt Lake City-based Zions Bancorporation (Nasdaq: ZION), one of the nation’s premier financial services companies. With affiliates in 10 Western and Southwestern states, 140-year-old Zions Bancorporation has assets of $55.2 billion. For more information on Nevada State Bank, call 702.383.0009 or access www.nsbank.com.
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