THE FLOOR VOTES DON’T SAY IT ALL

During a legislative session, the votes cast by our elected representatives tell part of the story.  The following may fill in the blanks and tell more of the story.  We’ll break it down three ways…good ideas which didn’t get very far, bad ideas that were killed (often after much work) but without a full vote and job killers, those really bad ideas that would badly damage Nevada’s economy.  We talk about who proposed them, who supported or opposed them and how they turned out. 

GOOD (SOMETIMES GREAT) IDEAS

Assembly Joint Resolution 12, proposed by Assemblyman Harvey Munford (D-Clark County AD-6) would have created a non-partisan commission to reapportion Nevada following each census.  Removing the political aspects of reapportionment would allow decisions based on accurate voter representation as well as the true needs of the people of Nevada.  It would eliminate the bartering that happens each decade during the session following the census and the political trades for seats as well as the chronic gerrymandering that is the current norm.

This gerrymandering provides one or the other party a distinct advantage in an entire chamber without regard to the balance of voters or demographics or growth patterns. 

Unfortunately, AJR12 did not even receive a first hearing.  It was introduced and assigned to the Assembly Committee on Elections & Procedures, Ethics and Constitutional Amendments where it received a tag team welcome from chairs Ellen Koivisto and Harry Mortenson and then was never heard from again.   That’s death by the chairman’s drawer.

Senate Bill 367, sponsored by Senator Valerie Wiener (D-Clark SD-3) continues her support of regulatory fairness.   The bill received unanimous support in both houses and was signed by the Governor on May 31, 2007 with an effective date of July 1, 2007.

 SB367 closed a loophole in the regulatory process by providing that every regulation be reviewed prior to becoming effective by the Legislative Commission, the interim legislative committee that operates throughout the interim period between sessions.  This means that every regulation gets one additional review for both following legislative intent and appropriate procedures including consideration of the impacts of the regulation on the businesses which fall under its rules.

 SB367 also provides that a public body must hold two separate meetings (a workshop and an adoption hearing) on separate days to receive public comment.  This means that no regulation can be adopted without sufficient opportunity for businesses and the public to comment.

Assembly Bill 236, sponsored by freshman Assemblyman James Settelmeyer (R-Douglas County AD-39), proposed to simplify the sales tax process for small or seasonal businesses by setting a minimum threshold under which sales tax forms and payments may be submitted annually instead of quarterly.  The bill also provides that the Department of Taxation, before it undertakes to collect unpaid taxes, must review the cost to collect versus the amount owing.  While this may seem like simple common sense, it was not previously allowed the Department.  The bill should save the state about $1 million each year. 

BAD (SOMETIMES LOONY) IDEAS

Assembly Bill 488 (sponsored by the Assembly Commerce and Labor Committee) would have forced the Labor Commissioner to be selected by the Governor from a list provided to him by the AFL-CIO.  Since the Labor Commissioner enforces actions between employers and employees, this would have stacked the deck in labor’s favor.

Seen as a political gesture, the bill did not move from its house of origin.   As a note, committees are often used to sponsor bills when a single legislator might be damaged by individually supporting the idea.  A committee sponsorship requires the consent of the committee chairman.

Assembly Bill 519, sponsored by the Assembly Judiciary Committee, as proposed would have disallowed a court sealing records except for a limited list of reasons.  It would have created a shopping center for trial lawyers looking to mine legal cases.  The bill only received two “no” votes in the assembly (Assemblymen Beers and Marvel) and was only stopped after significant effort in the Senate.  One reason for this is a current action by the Nevada Supreme Court which is attempting to create rules for sealing records that may prove less burdensome to Nevada’s businesses.

Assembly Bill 433, proposed by Speaker Barbara Buckley as well as Assemblymen Arberry, Atkinson, Conklin, Denis, Hogan, Kirkpatrick, Koivisto and McClain attempted to overturn a court decision in which a hearing was closed to the public because privileged business information was being discussed, upon which a decision was made that the sponsors did not approve, and was subsequently upheld by the court.

The bill was significantly amended along its way by the Senate, enough so that Senators Beers, Care, Hardy, Lee, Raggio, Titus, Townsend signed on a co-sponsors. 

JØB KILLERS 

Senate Bill 422, brought by Senator Dina Titus (D-Clark SD-7) would have required the reduction of greenhouse gases in Nevada without regard to the cost the reductions would impose on Nevada’s businesses and consumers.  Fortunately, the bill was transformed into a registry of potential greenhouse gas emitters in the state to create an inventory of those gases.

Senate Bill 82, another from Senator Titus, created a new deceptive trade practice of price gouging.  A nebulous concept, price gouging was not clearly defined nor were the conditions under which an emergency might be called or called off.  Since the language was so subjective, the bill did not leave its house of origin (until Senator Titus later attempted to insert it into another bill by amendment) although it did receive the courtesy of a hearing and referral to a subcommittee for further work. 

Assembly Bill 91, initially proposed by Assemblywoman Susan Gerhardt (D-Clark AD-29), would have had a devastating impact on industry in Nevada including manufacturing and mining.  As initially proposed, the bill would have created a legislatively imposed list of chemicals which would require registration with law enforcement agencies.

As amended, the bill adopted the existing federal list of chemicals that already require registration and does not impose additional, excessive burdens on Nevada businesses.

Assembly Bill 383, proposed by Assemblywoman Marilyn Kirkpatrick, began its journey as a bill to create a link between Nevada’s Labor Commissioner and the Social Security Administration website so that Nevada employers could more easily verify eligibility for employment.

Following a hearing in the Assembly Commerce and Labor Commissioner, the bill was amended to include significant prohibitions against human trafficking, another worthy goal.   However, a further provision in that amendment provided that a business’s state license could be revoked for hiring an illegal alien even if he did not knowingly do so.  This brought a second amendment in the Senate that indicated that a business must have been adjudged guilty of illegal hiring by the U.S. Attorney General in order for an administrative penalty to be assessed.

We hope this gives you a better picture of the 2007 Nevada Legislative Session.  As you can see from the voting record, it was not business friendly.  But as you can also see, the voting records don't tell the whole story.