| Abstract: | One of the most significant intergovernmental issues today isthe disposal of high-level nuclear waste. Although there isconsiderable scholarly work on the subject, the emphasis hasbeen limited primarily to federal-state relations. Few observershave looked at the intrastate implications of the 1982 NuclearWaste Policy Act. This article attempts to do just that by focusingon the extreme action taken by the Nevada legislature in 1987when it created Bullfrog County, a zero-population county surroundingthe proposed waste repository site. The county was endowed withthe maximum property tax rate allowed under Nevada's Constitutionso as to enable the state to obtain additional funds from thefederal government in exchange for hosting the unpopular "dump."However, what began as a simple maneuver designed to extractthe maximum benefit for the state quickly produced politicaland legal consequences far beyond the intentions of the county'soriginal proponents. |
