Update on Thursday March 11, 2021 at 05:29 – Monday March 8, 2021 marks day 36 of the 120-day, biennial session of the Nevada Legislature and a full slate of legislative activities. Here are a few bills and events we’re tracking this week. Please be advised that schedule changes can occur at any time. This report will be updated every weekday morning and as new information becomes available.
Monday March 8, 2021 – Day 36 of 120:
March 8 is International Women’s Day.
8:00 AM – Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor will workshop SB103, a bill that would prohibit property insurers from discriminating based on the breed of dog at a property.
9:00 AM – Assembly Committee on Judiciary will hear AB64, a bill that would change the penalties for certain unlawful acts relating to preventing or dissuading certain persons from testifying or producing evidence of illegal prostitution. The bill would increase the penalties for certain lawful acts relating to preventing, dissuading, hindering or delaying certain persons from reporting a crime, commencing prosecution or causing arrest for certain unlawful acts relating to customers who engage in and solicit for prostitution. The bill would revise provisions concerning soliciting a child for prostitution; increasing and creating civil penalties for certain unlawful acts relating to customers who engage in and solicit for prostitution; revising provisions relating to certain unlawful acts relating to advertising for prostitution.
1:00 PM – The Senate Committee on Education will hear, SB160, a measure that would enable a school district or charter school to enter into a cooperative agreement to provide dual credit courses with an institution of higher education located in another state.
3:30 PM – The Senate Committee on Government Affairs will hear SB150, a bill that would enable a city or county government to authorize tiny houses in certain zoning districts.
3:30 – The Senate Committee on Growth and Infrastructure will hear SB134, a bill that would change the way a citizen decides to become an organ donor when getting a drivers license.
4:00 PM – The Assembly Committee on Natural Resources will hear AB103, a bill that revises the provisions related to obtaining a permit to excavate a site on private property that is known to be a prehistoric Indian burial site.
Tuesday March 9, 2021 – Day 37 of 120:
8:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Ways and Means and Senate Committee on Finance, Subcommittee on K-12/Higher Education/CIP will hear the budget for instruction of financial literacy.
8:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Ways and Means and Senate Committee on Finance Subcommittees on Public Safety, Natural Resources, and Transportation will hear several budgets related to wildlife management, conservation, and numerous public safety budgets.
9:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Government Affairs will hear AB99, a measure that would raise the prevailing wage requirement for contractors who undertake work on a Nevada System of Higher Education campus.
1:00 PM – Senate Committee on Revenue and Economic Development will work session SB25, a bill that would revise provisions governing the determination of whether food for human consumption is subject to sales and use taxes.
1:30 PM – The Assembly Committee on Education will hear and work session several bills of interest. AB88 would require the board of trustees of a school district, governing body of a charter school or governing body of a university school for profoundly gifted pupils to adopt a policy prohibiting the use of certain racially discriminatory identifiers; authorizing the board of trustees of a school district, governing body of a charter school or governing body of a university school for profoundly gifted pupils to use an identifier associated with a federally recognized Indian tribe in certain circumstances; authorizing the Board of Regents of the University of Nevada to prohibit the use of certain racially discriminatory identifiers; requiring the Nevada State Board on Geographic Names to recommend changes to the names of geographic features or places that are racially discriminatory or named after certain persons; requiring the Board to report annually to the Legislature or the Legislative Commission, as applicable, on any recommendations.
The committee will also work session AB136, a bill that would prohibit an agent from intentionally giving a student athlete or, if the athlete is a minor, a parent or guardian of the athlete materially false or misleading information or make a materially false promise or representation with the intent to influence the athlete, parent or guardian to enter into an agency contract.
3:30 PM – The Senate Committee on Natural Resources will hear and work session several bills of interest. The committee will hear SB78 increases the membership of the Commission by adding one member who is licensed as a master guide and one member who is an elected officer representing a local political subdivision. The bill would also increase the number of members who may be from the same county whose population is less than 100,000 currently all counties other than Clark and Washoe Counties) from one member to two members. The make up of this board determines if the state continues to authorize an annual bear hunt and other controversial topics.
The committee will also hear SB98, a bill that would add a member of Storey County to the Carson Water Subconservancy District Board of Directors. The bill would also mandate a payment from Storey County to the Carson Water Subconservancy District. The CWSD, provides municipal water for the Carson City region. It also manages the Marlette Lake water system and the The Virginia and Gold Hill Water System that brings water more than 25 miles from the Sierra Nevada range to Virginia City via a giant reverse siphon.
The committee will also hear SB114, a bill that would exempt a person who holds a permit to operate a food establishment from certain requirements relating to hemp under certain circumstances; requiring the Department of Health and Human Services to adopt certain regulations relating to food that contains hemp; authorizing a person who holds a permit to operate a food establishment to engage in certain activities related to the production and sale of food that contains hemp; prohibiting a food from being deemed to be adulterated solely because such food contains hemp.
Wednesday March 10, 2021 – Day 38 of 120:
8:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Judiciary will hear AB42, a widely inclusive bill that would require certain batteries which constitute domestic violence to be charged with certain felonies and gross misdemeanors; expanding the courts that are required to conduct a jury trial under certain circumstances; revising various provisions relating to jury trials; authorizing the use of sound recording equipment under certain circumstances; making various changes regarding the jurisdiction of municipal courts; revising provisions governing the selection of jurors; establishing a right to a jury trial under certain circumstances; prohibiting a person convicted of a battery which constitutes domestic violence or the same or similar conduct in another state from owning or having in his possession or under his or her custody or control any firearm.
9:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Government Affairs will work session seven bills. AB22 is a bill that would establish the transition assistance program for veterans. The committee will also hear AB86, a bill that would revise provisions relating to the recovery of expenses incurred by certain governmental entities in extinguishing a fire or meeting an emergency; authorizing counties, cities and certain general improvement districts to bring an action to recover certain expenses related to wildfires.
1:00 PM – The Senate Committee on Judiciary will hear SB140, a bill that would require offenders who are employed in programs for the employment of offenders to be paid a living wage; creating the Offenders’ Release Fund; revising provisions relating to deductions made from the wages of offenders; requiring the placement of offenders in certain programs which facilitate their employment in positions upon their release which utilize skills similar to those employed by the offender while incarcerated.
1:30 PM – Assembly Committee on Health and Human Services will hear several bills that would extend Medicaid eligibility to certain pregnant women.
3:30 PM – The Senate Committee on Growth and Infrastructure will hear SB162, a measure that would require the Nevada Department of Transportation to adopt regulations establishing a program for the use of a high-occupancy lane by low emission and energy-efficient vehicles.
The committee will also hear SB163, a bill that would create a special license plate to support the Divine Nine organizations. Divine Nine was previously known as the Pan-Hellenic Council, a group made up of nine historically Black sororities and fraternities.
4:00 PM – The Assembly Committee on Natural Resources will hear AJR3, a joint resolution that would urge the preservation of 30 percent of land in Nevada by 2030. The committee will also hear AB34, a bill that would authorize the Director of the State Department of Agriculture to adopt regulations that establish and administer a program to certify certain agricultural products as being free from propagative parts from which noxious weeds may grow; authorizing certain notices to be delivered by electronic mail; exempting certain businesses that sell nursery stock only to the public exclusively via the Internet from certain licensure requirements; revising the prohibition against engaging in certain activities involving pest control without a license; revising provisions governing the certification of persons to apply or supervise the application of restricted-use pesticides.
Thursday March 11, 2021 – Day 39 of 120:
8:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Judiciary will hear AB202, a bill that would revise provisions relating to the registration of a qualified organization to operate a charitable lottery or charitable game. This bill provides that the regulations adopted by the Nevada Gaming Commission must not impose an annual fee that exceeds $10 on a qualified organization if the total value of the prizes offered by the qualified organization in the same calendar year is not more than $100,000 – Bingo.
8:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Ways and Means and Senate Committee on Finance, Subcommittee on Public Safety, Natural Resources, and Transportation will hear several budgets related to conservation, water resources, the Wildland Fire Protection Program, the Nevada Department of Forestry, fire suppression, conservation camps, and nurseries.
8:00 AM – The Senate Committee on Finance and Assembly Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittees on k-12/Higher Education/CIP will hear budgets for the Department of Administration, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Corrections.
9:00 AM – The Assembly Committee on Government Affairs will hear AB186, a measure that would prohibit police officers from fulfilling quotas on the issuance of citations.
1:30 PM – The Assembly Committee on Growth and Infrastructure will hear AB179, a bill that would enable the issuance of special license plates to family members of a person killed in the line of duty in the Armed Forces of the United States.
The committee will also hear a presentation from the Rocky Mountain Institute.
3:30 PM – The Senate Committee on Health and Human Services will hear SB146. Existing law requires the Department of Health and Human Services to establish and administer the Kinship Guardianship Assistance Program to provide assistance to a relative who becomes the legal guardian of a child in foster care. (NRS 432B.6201-432B.626) Existing law sets forth various criteria that a child and a relative must satisfy in order for the relative to be eligible for assistance pursuant to the Program. SB146 would eliminate the requirement that for a relative to be eligible for such assistance, the child must not be able to permanently return to his or her home or be adopted. Thus, under this bill, the relative of a child who may be able to permanently return to his or her home or be adopted would be eligible for assistance pursuant to the Program if the relative and the child satisfied 10the other eligibility criteria set forth in existing law.
4:00 PM – The Assembly Committee on Operations and Elections will hear AB121, a bill that would require the Secretary of State to allow an elector with a disability to register to vote and a registered voter with a disability to request and cast an absent ballot using the system of approved electronic transmission established for certain uniformed military and overseas voters; setting forth certain requirements for such an elector or registered voter to use the system of approved electronic transmission.
Brian Bahouth is editor of the Sierra Nevada Ally and has variously reported on 11 sessions of the Nevada Legislature. Support his work in the Ally.
