The Hidden $500 Million: How the A's Stadium "No New Taxes" Claim Masks the Real Cost

Governor Lombardo claimed the A's stadium deal "contains no new taxes imposed against the residents of Nevada." This is technically true and fundamentally deceptive. The real public cost is $500-600 million over 30 years—and unlike the Raiders stadium, it's paid by Nevada residents, not tourists.

The Official Number vs. Reality

The "official" public funding figure is $380 million. Here's what that actually includes—and what it hides:

Component	Amount	Who Pays
State tax credits	$180 million	Nevada general fund (residents)
Clark County bonds	$120 million	Redirected local taxes
Infrastructure credits	$25 million	County taxpayers
County land contribution	$55 million	County taxpayers
30-year property tax exemption	$55-184 million	Not included in "official" number

When you add the property tax exemption, the true public subsidy reaches $435-565 million. With interest and opportunity costs over 30 years, the total approaches $600 million.

The Critical Difference: Tourists vs. Residents

This is the most important deception in the entire deal.

Allegiant Stadium (Raiders) is funded by a 0.88% hotel room tax. Tourists pay roughly $4-8 per night. With 40 million annual visitors and 150,000 hotel rooms, the revenue base is massive and paid almost entirely by out-of-state visitors. Local taxpayers face minimal burden.

The A's stadium uses ZERO hotel tax funding.

Instead, the financing relies on:

• $180 million in transferable tax credits that directly reduce Nevada's general fund—money that would otherwise fund education, Medicaid, and infrastructure
• A TIF (Tax Increment Financing) district that captures 17 different tax streams from the stadium site for 30 years
• General obligation bonds with Clark County taxpayers as the ultimate backstop

How the Tax Credit Scam Works

The state issues $180 million in "transferable tax credits" redeemable against gaming license, payroll, and insurance premium taxes. Here's the money flow:

1. The A's receive $180 million in credits
2. They sell credits to casinos (MGM, Caesars, etc.) at 60-90 cents on the dollar
3. The A's pocket $120-162 million in immediate cash
4. The casinos redeem credits against their tax bills
5. Nevada's treasury receives $180 million less in tax revenue
6. Schools, healthcare, and services lose that funding

The state requires "repayment" of $90 million from stadium revenues—but only if more than $90 million in credits are issued. In the best case, Nevada loses $90 million permanently. In the likely case, it loses more.

The TIF Trap

The Sports and Entertainment Improvement District captures 17 different tax streams from the nine-acre stadium site:

• Sales taxes on tickets and concessions
• Property taxes (after the 30-year exemption expires)
• Payroll taxes from stadium workers
• Business license fees
• Liquor taxes
• And more...

For 30 years, these revenues won't fund schools, police, roads, or county services. They'll pay off stadium bonds instead.

When Revenues Fall Short

Here's the kicker: if stadium-generated revenues don't cover bond payments, Clark County taxpayers must make up the difference.

The A's had the worst attendance in MLB in Oakland—fewer than 10,000 fans per game. The stadium projections require near-capacity crowds of 29,630 for 81 games. If those projections fail (as economists predict they will), property taxes go up or services get cut.

This already happened with Allegiant Stadium during COVID-19—the bonds required two emergency draws from reserves. The only reason taxpayers weren't hit was the rapid tourism recovery.

Why No Hotel Tax?

The obvious question: why not use the successful Allegiant model?

• The hotel industry resisted another tax increase
• Lombardo wanted to claim "no new taxes" for political purposes
• Tax credits obscure the subsidy's true nature, making it harder for voters to understand

The result: a deal structured to hide who's really paying. And that's Nevada residents—not tourists.

Sources

• Nevada Independent
• Field of Schemes
• Nevada Policy