Are dollar tips for cocktail waitress still the norm?

Your misunderstanding is common, and quite forgivable.

There is no misunderstanding the part that says - "to give money to a person in order to pay the cost of something that they do"

The person that you tip does not pay the cost of the service or good they provide for you. A tip would be a subsidy if you tipped that person's employer.

Don't be ashamed, David. Many people also misunderstand this concept. You're not alone.

Many bartenders/servers make virtually no meaningful hourly wage.  Their income is mostly tips.   Some states allow you to pay servers nothing which means 100% of their earnings are tips.   I dont know the law in Nevada.

I take that into account with dayshift employees.   That guy behind the bar at 10:00AM on a Wednesday is not getting much of anything in terms of wage or tips....so I usually leave extra in that circumstance.   By contrast the guy working Friday night is probably rolling in cash.      Positioning one's self for the right shift can be the difference between squalor and prosperity for these people.   

Great point, PJ.  

Nevada has a minimum wage for all employees, including servers and others who are tipped, of $12 an hour. Most states have a subminimum wage for tipped employees, which can be as low as $2.13 an hour. States that also mandate regular minimum wage for all employees include CA, OR, and WA (liberal coastal elites!!!!), as well as, interestingly, MT and AK.

So whether that poor guy behind the bar is making virtually nothing or is still making at least minimum wage will depend on what state you're in. But the practice of paying subminimum wage in Nevada is long gone.

Oh, and since there still is a huge earning difference between day/morning shift and eveening/night shift for these types of jobs (as you note), there is fierce competition for the better shifts. If you're not juiced in, you'll never get the good shifts unless and until you pay a bribe of $25,000--50,000. It's even more expensive to get a good valet parking shift at a Strip joint--that can cost 75 to 100 grand. But people are happy to pay that baksheesh, because they know they'll make it back and then some in a year or less.

Station Casinos sees ‘no taxes on tips’ as a big boost for Las Vegas economy

If taxes on tips were eliminated would you tip less? I think I would

   I always tip in cash, (servers report what they want) - therefore, I will still tip the same

If taxes on tips were eliminated, we wouldn't have to worry one way or the other, because the resulting Trump deficit would make it impossible for anyone to afford to go to Vegas, or to their local restaurant, for that matter.

I've yet to see the logic of not taxing tip income. What's so special about it that it shouldn't be taxed? I pay taxes on MY income.

(Of course, this was just a pandering gesture by Trump to try to buy votes, and since he plans to run the US like he runs his businesses--don't pay the bills--I guess another couple trillion added to the deficit doesn't matter that much.)

 I believe that those who receive tips will appreciate not having their tips taxed. Hopefully not taxing tips will become a law.