Crunch time: Lawmakers racing to finish of Nevada legislative session

Nevada State Legislature in Carson City, Nevada Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Photo by: Wade Vandervort

The 83rd Nevada legislative session is set to conclude its 120-day tenure late today, as members rush against a ticking clock — passing nearly 400 bills with Gov. Joe Lombardo signing 206 into law and vetoing one.

It’s a noticeable contrast from a previous session, where the Republican governor vetoed a state-record 75 bills, including a Democrat-led bill that would have added more mail ballot drop boxes for voting.

Following a weekend packed with meetings, the legislators spearheaded marathon voting on legislation ranging from higher education appropriations to extensive crime and safety reform, often touching on the limited time remaining. The governor’s office did not comment on if Lombardo has plans for calling a special session.

The Sun has moved between Carson City and Las Vegas since February to follow bills that bear consequential day-to-day alterations for Nevadans. Here are some actions that could shape the state for the next two years:

Governor’s priority legislation

The governor outlined his five priority bills in his January State of the State address, officially releasing his final piece of legislation on May 15 as the final days of the session neared. Lombardo’s priority bills:

Senate Bill 495: The governor’s omnibus health care bill would create a state office of mental health, accelerate the licensing process for health care providers and invest millions with the goal of increasing access into underserved areas. The legislation has not been voted on.

Assembly Bill 540: Lombardo’s solutions for the state’s housing concerns include allowing “affordable housing” for people with up to 150% of area median household income and expediting processes for “attainable housing.” A second draft passed the Assembly Wednesday, with no Senate votes at the time of publication.

Senate Bill 461: The bill offers partial tax deductions for a “high-impact” business, tax credits up to $12 million for child care facilities and goals of diversifying Nevada’s economy. SB 461 has not been voted on.

Assembly Bill 584: now part of Senate Bill 460: Once dueling with Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro’s Senate Bill 460, Lombardo’s education bill has now been merged with hers. The Assembly Committee on Education heard the bill Monday morning.

Senate Bill 457: addresses crime and public safety; it has faced changes after a back-and-forth with the initial pitch for the bill being deemed as an overreach by legislators. SB 457 passed the Senate Monday.

Lombardo’s sweeping SB 457 passed the Senate Monday afternoon in a 20-1 vote — with only Sen. James Ohrenschall, D-Las Vegas, in opposition. His priority bill would create harsher sentences for certain offenders like those driving under the influence and creates a “smash and grab” provision allowing retail theft to become a felony if it includes property damage.

Sen. Melanie Scheible, D-Las Vegas, made the floor statements in support of the extensive public safety bill, acknowledging the body was “short on time,” and that the legislation had been an effort months in the making.

“I am very proud of this work,” Scheible said on the floor. “Having been able to meet with the governor's office numerous times on this bill and work alongside him and his team to ensure that this bill addresses real problems that Nevadans are facing.”

Following the pushback from Democrats, the bill was changed to remove provisions that would have lowered the felony threshold to $750. It’s still contested by advocates in the state, with the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada announcing a rally against the bill scheduled for tonight.

“It was heard for the first time less than a week before Sine Die, despite having massive implications for community members,” read an email from PLAN communications and digital strategy director Hector Fong. “This legislation hasn’t even been heard in a manner that allowed for communities to engage.”

Bills before the buzzer:

The last day of the Nevada Legislature is always a busy one. This year was no different with the Assembly and Senate rushing to push through dozens of bills before the session officially ends. Here’s a list of a few of the noteworthy bills getting sent to the governor on day 120:

Assembly Bill 76 tweaks and adjusts Nevada’s marijuana regulation. It enables the Cannabis Compliance Board to issue summonses and subpoenas for its investigations and grants them the ability to immediately halt a store’s operations if there is a public health hazard. The bill also requires the Cannabis Advisory Commission to create subcommittees on the sale of consumable hemp products and another on the taxation of cannabis.

Senate Bill 487 appropriates nearly $9 million from the general fund to Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar’s office to modernize Nevada’s business licensing system. Aguilar previously told the Sun that the current system, SilverFlume, is “antiquated.”

Senate Bill 6 allocates $1.2 million for the Nevada State Cloud Seeding Program through the Desert Research Institute. Cloud seeding involves burned silver iodide rising into the clouds to help create snowflakes, according to the institute, which is helpful for Nevada’s snowpack.

Senate Bill 85 removes the upcoming expiration of traffic stop data collection requirements. At each traffic stop, officers in Nevada have to collect information such as the race, age and sex of the person stopped, why they were stopped and whether there was a search or arrest. That is now set to continue past the previous end date of Dec. 31.