(Las Vegas, NV) — Governor Brian Sandoval has come out in support of a sales tax increase to get more police on the local force.

Long an outspoken critic of raising anyone’s taxes, Sandoval says the idea of a quarter-of-a-cent jump in the Clark County sales tax to fund more cops has already been approved by voters here – and that he will not stand in the way of making that happen.

The original tax hike proposal called for a half-cent increase, but the 2005 Legislature only allowed half of that to go through.

Metro Sheriff Doug Gillespie says the tough economy has already led to layoffs, and his department really needs the rest of the money to prevent further job cuts.