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April 29, 2005
Bill deadline hangs over Nevada Legislature
By KATHLEEN HENNESSEY Bills not passed through the Assembly or the Senate - and not deemed exempt - by end of business Tuesday were declared dead. That meant a day of quick votes in the Assembly, where majority Democrats steamrolled over minority Republicans to pass a package of bills aimed at curbing hospital costs. In the Senate, a homeland security bill sparked debate on how to balance security with the state's sunshine law. SB115 would allow local governments and some advisory boards to hold closed meetings to discuss homeland security and terrorism. Over Democrats' opposition, it passed on a 13-7 vote. Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, said the bill would require two-thirds of the board to vote in favor of closing the meeting - what he called a very high standard. But Sen. Terry Care, D-Las Vegas, said he didn't see the need for a part-time board to discuss homeland security in private. "I don't see any accountability here," he said, adding that the legislation could easily be abused and boards could discuss other issues behind closed doors. Democrats in the Assembly took advantage of their hefty majority - moving swiftly through a long list of bills with little debate and abbreviated remarks. Republicans registered opposition to three measures - AB296, AB322 and AB342 billed as "cost-containment" proposals by Democrats. The proposals require hospitals with more than 100 beds to spend 4 percent of their profits on indigent care or community reinvestment. They require hospitals run by out-of-state corporations to file more detailed reports on their earnings, and mandate that all major hospitals give patients more information on their pricing. "The idea is if we have more information we're going be able to regulate them better," said Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, D-Reno. "I'm hoping that information will help us get at whatever the root cause is of Nevadans having to pay the top hospital costs in the nation." Assembly Minority Leader Lynn Hettrick, R-Gardnerville, objected to requiring hospitals to contribute a set percentage of profits without considering a hospital's financial health. He said more financial reporting won't lead to lower hospital costs, but could place a burden on rural hospitals. "It's just going to be costly reporting," he said after the vote. "I don't think reporting does much of anything." Lawmakers in the Assembly also passed: • AB384, imposing stricter regulations on low-interest loan companies. Assembly Majority Leader Barbara Buckley's bill would prohibit lenders from charging exorbitant fees and interest, and would limit the amount they could lend to 25 percent of a customer's monthly income. Buckley, D-Las Vegas, said the bill would help borrowers get off the "debt tread mill." (The bill will impact a number of such companies in Pahrump.) • AB419, an ethics reform bill crafted by Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, and Attorney General Brian Sandoval. The bill, passed unanimously, would give additional protections to whistleblowers, explicitly prohibit the use of public resources and employees for campaign work, and increase fines for ethics violations. • AJR11, freezing property taxes for senior citizens who have paid their property taxes for 10 years. The proposal, backed by Perkins, requires a constitutional amendment and could not become law for at least five years. • AB312, requiring local governments to auction off public lands. Assemblyman Scott Sibley, R-Las Vegas, introduced the bill in response to recent newspaper reports about McCarran International Airport land exchanges that netted a Las Vegas land broker millions of dollars in profits. • AB455, an omnibus elections bill. It requires counties to number voter registration forms so they can be tracked, and moves the primary from September to June. The proposal passed 30-12. • AB452, allowing ex-felons who were dishonorably discharged to petition to have their voting rights restored. The proposal, backed by Assemblyman Harvey Munford, D-Las Vegas, was passed after a similar measure was voted down in the Senate. Munford's bill is expected to be amended to include provisions in the Senate bill. Senate bills that survived and will travel to the Assembly include: • SB123, defeated last week, came up for a second Senate vote at the request of Sen. Randolph Townsend, R-Reno. The bill, whose sticking point was that it would change the state's "weatherization" program to exclude mobile homes, passed the second time around 14-6. • SB473, sought by the city of North Las Vegas, would allow cities to implement and study until mid-2007 whether using cameras, or "photo cop," to catch red-light violators will reduce injuries and deaths at intersections. The bill passed 16-4. • SB109, sponsored by Sen. Maurice Washington, R-Sparks, outlines for courts the issues to consider when determining child custody. The bill at first established a presumption that joint custody is in the best interest of the child in all cases, but was entirely rewritten. • SB125, passed without opposition, would increase the residency period required to run for public office in Nevada from 30 days to six months before the last day to file. • SB212, sponsored by Sen. Bob Beers, R-Las Vegas, and supported by all senators except Maggie Carlton, D-Las Vegas, restricts the start time of high school classes to no earlier than 7:35 a.m., with some exceptions. • SB267, sponsored by Care, would give the public access to more government meetings when the competency, misconduct or character of high-ranking public officials is being considered. The meetings still would be closed to consider the physical or mental health of a public official and meetings on the hiring of these individuals would be closed. • SB329, provides for the option of voting "no preference" on ballot questions or any offices, not just statewide elective offices. |
