Proponents moved a step closer Monday to collecting signatures to put before voters a measure that would end Indian tribes' monopoly on slot machines in California.

Nevada casinos are likely to face major challenges sooner rather than later based on the rapid progress of initial negotiations to expand tribal gaming in California, Wall Street analysts said Tuesday.

Among its restrictions, the Kyl bill would prohibit Nevada and other states from legalizing online wagering within their borders.

Cabdrivers in the Las Vegas Valley favor having digital security cameras put in their taxis by a 2-to-1 margin, according to preliminary survey results released Tuesday.

The poll of 627 Clark County cabdrivers, conducted by the Nevada Taxicab Authority's drivers safety measures committee, found 372 drivers, or 59.3 percent, support the installation of such cameras.

Opposing such a move were 171 drivers, or 27.3 percent. About 13 percent had no opinion or didn't answer.

A 'sneaky' proposal that would have left out any mention of light rail, but perhaps provided money to build it, collapsed late Tuesday, ending the latest compromise over the $15.8 billion Maricopa County transportation plan.

The state Senate Finance Committee expects to reconsider its options today. At issue is whether the half-cent transportation tax extension will be on the May ballot, and whether it will include $2.3 billion to extend the Valley's light-rail system.

Four years ago, math teacher Larry Strom told then-freshman Cristina White that she would ace the math portion of her SATs.

White never forgot her teacher's words and, sure enough, the Desert Vista High School senior recently nailed a perfect math score on the test.

'I wasn't surprised at all,' White said of her flawless test score. 'Strom told me I would get an 800 in math and he told my mom that, too.'

White is one of 18 students at Desert Vista to recently score perfect 800s on the math portion of the SAT. Although the school has churned out math whiz kids in years past, never have so many aced the college entrance exams in one year, said Strom, chairman of the Desert Vista math department.

'We've always had a high number but never anything like this,' he said. 'It's grown exponentially.'

Strom said he was especially pleased that the same number of girls and boys aced the test as well, and that they had diverse ethnic backgrounds.

"We had our first Hispanic student this year and in a couple of years we'll have our first African-American student," he said. "I've already picked him out. The kid is a freshman and I'm on him, telling him he'll be the first."

A $15.8 billion transportation plan is not dead, but it's barely breathing.

The showdown at the Legislature will continue today after hours of intense negotiations broke down Monday night over the plan's inclusion of light rail.

A group of six Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee has refused to budge on its opposition to a May election to extend Maricopa County's half-cent transportation tax after 2005 and their wish for a separate vote for light rail.

Tempe Mayor Neil Giuliano said the cities may need to go it alone, with each Valley community voting in May on its own to approve a half-cent sales tax.

But he said the idea is risky because some cities might approve the plan and others might not.

The school honor roll, a time-honored system for rewarding "A" students, has become an apparent source of embarrassment for some underachievers.

As a result, all Nashville schools have stopped posting honor rolls, and some are considering a ban on hanging good work in the hallways — at the advice of school lawyers.

After a few parents complained their children might be ridiculed for not making the list, school-system lawyers warned that state privacy laws forbid releasing academic information, good or bad, without permission.

Some schools since have put a stop to academic pep rallies. Others think they may have to cancel spelling bees.