Centennial fund posts small net gain; awarded projects leave multimillion-dollar commitments

Paul Bresnahan, the city finance analyst, told the Commission for the Las Vegas Centennial that the year ended June 30 with total revenues of $1,880,000, including $1,680,000 in license-plate receipts and $197,000 in interest income. He said the commission awarded $5,054,000 in projects in the year, of which $1,650,000 has been expensed, leaving $3,400,000 expected to roll into the next fiscal year.

"So for license plate revenues, we have, $1,680,000," Bresnahan said as he reviewed the year-end statement. He also summarized long-term collections: "Since the beginning of time, since 2004... it's $43,500,000," showing the commission's cumulative receipts from commemorative plates.

Commissioners pressed staff on the practical effect of already-awarded but unspent funds. One commissioner noted that if no additional revenue were received, "we would have less than $3,000,000 on our bank account" after committed awards were taken into account; Bresnahan affirmed the calculation and warned the commission that net assets are expected to fall by roughly $1,000,000 next year given current award schedules. Staff emphasized that accounts-payable can post through mid‑August and small adjustments may still occur.

The presentation included scheduling notes for multi-year awards: the Hel Dorado Days parade award ($405,000) is split across fiscal years, and a multi-year rodeo award accounts for $250,000 per year through 2029. Commission members asked staff to provide further detail on historic fundraising classifications and to clarify whether certain early revenue lines represented plate sales or pre‑incorporation fundraising; staff agreed to research older statements and circulate details.