240 



and the railroad once were booming industries in the County. 

 Now within 5 years all 3 are all but gone. 



Agricultural lands are out of production. Only 10% are 

 producing and they all face bankrupcy. All mines are shut 

 down and the railroad pulled out. Lincoln County faces 

 extinction in a very real sense of the word. 



Our organization was once the Economic Survival Task Force. 

 It was named so because of the severe economic hard times we 

 w^re in and because of the determination we have to servive. 



The sad fact is though all the determination in the world '/ 

 cannot save a dying County without government help instead 

 of hindrance. 



Land values in Lincoln County have dropped 50% in 10 years. 

 You will find a land value analysis done by a master 

 appraiser at Financial Designs. You will note the drop of 

 land values of 11% overall since 1985. Pioche and Alamo 

 experienced mimimal growth because low income retired 

 people are moving in more and more. 



The current total assessed value of the County is 46 

 million — down from our 49 million a year ago. Aerojet 's 

 Land Exchange would increase our county's acreage 1/2 

 again. Once the projects are complete our tax base could 

 triple and then somel 



Our County Assessor, Bill Lloyd, stressed that these are low 

 figures. He estimates the project could improve our net 

 worth to 205 million dollars. This doesn't include all the 

 new housing, sister industry and growth of local business 

 in our communities. 



Can you imagine the impact of increasing our budget 2 1/2 

 times? A county which was forced to go to our state 

 legislature to ask for $600,000 to allow our local 

 government to continue to exist! 



Our land values are dropping — I lived and worked on a ranch 

 in the Northern half of the county which is now bankrupt. 

 This place has been for sale for 4 years, going on 5. The 

 asking price 4 years ago was 4.5 million dollars. Today, it 

 is going for 2.5 million dollars. Two million cash would 

 buy you a ranch with 1,333,230 acres public grazing, 9,212 

 acres in private land, over 30 livestock and irrigation 

 wells, over 100 natural spings, 3 hot springs, 3 reservoirs, 

 4 sets of apartments, 10 homes, a huge shop, numerous 

 corrals, a 1000 head capacity feedlot, an outdoor and indoor 

 arena, stables for horses, and beautiful natural pastures at 

 headquarters — all in a beautiful high desert setting with 

 Mount Wheeler to the North, and all for $54 an acre. 



