Q 1. What improvements would you like to see in the legislative process in general?
Overall, the design of the Nevada legislative process is quite good. It has not, however, adjusted to the mandated 120-day Session. As each Session begins, staff supports the process in a very professional and effective manner; however, as the Session winds down, staff is inundated by monumental workloads brought on, in part, by how Committees operate. Most of the Committee operational rules are adopted through the Assembly/Senate rules and Joint rules. In order to manage the 120-day Session effectively, including citizen participation, the rules need to be addressed. While all Sessions will necessitate heavier workloads at the conclusion, procedural changes can be put in place that don’t lead to “choking” the process at the end. This “choking” effect makes it impossible to manage the LCB’s excellent website and virtually excludes participation by interested parties other than a handful of legislators/lobbyists.
Q.2. Bill Requests:
All agency requests should be limited, approved and submitted in time to be written and filed before the Session begins. Agency bills not making the first filing, should be emergency measures only, approved for introduction by the Governor and the legislature.
All pre-filed requests by legislators should carry the name of the legislator requesting the BDR.
Further limitations on requests from legislators should be made - five requests from Assemblypersons and ten from Senators. Committee chair introductions should be limited to ten each from the money, judiciary and government affairs and five each from the other Committees. Senators not up for re-election and unopposed Assemblypersons should submit their requests so they can be drafted before the general election. Newly elected and/or re-elected legislators should submit personal requests within 45 days of the general election. These requests should be drafted before the Session begins.
All resolutions honoring people, events, etc. should be on the consent calendar and all ceremonies related to the presentation of those resolutions should occur on a set day, a set time in the rotunda area between the Assembly and Senate. For example, they could all be at 4 p.m. on Tuesdays or Thursdays.
Q 3. Bill Introductions:
Both the Senate and the Assembly should adopt central calendaring. All bills introduced and referred to a Committee should be scheduled for hearings within five to 10 days from introduction.
All agency and legislator requested bills should be introduced within the first 30 days of the Session and only emergency requests should be allowed after that cut-off date.
Bills arriving in Committee should be accompanied by the dates in which the bill should be heard.
Bills should be heard and acted on within six days of a hearing (exceptions are necessary for bills containing appropriations – these bills should be acted upon within five days of the Economic Forum revenue projections).
Bills not acted upon within these timeframes should be declared dead, unless the Assembly or Senate declares a special emergency declaration.
Committee Chairpersons should allow members of the public who have requested to speak to be heard. Should timeframes need to be imposed because of Committee time constraints, it should be imposed on all speakers at the beginning of the hearing.
Bills determined to be dead, should not be introduced in part or in whole in any other measure before that Committe
As previously stated, resolutions memorializing an individual, event, etc. should be on the consent agenda with ceremonies held in the Rotunda with leadership officiating. These should be scheduled on a weekly basis
Q 6: Budget Reviews:
While it may not be cost-effective all the time, when requested, Senate Finance and the Assembly Ways and Means Committees should be video-cast to the Grant Sawyer Office Building for purposes of offering testimony
Q 7: Completing sessions on-time:
Completing a 120-day Session on time will require rules to stop bills from bottlenecking at the end.
Bills not processed from Committee within five days of the end of the Session, should be considered dead. The exception would be revenue bills in Finance or Ways and Means or bills declared emergencies. Any bill containing an appropriation should be printed and on the floor of the appropriate House 24-hours before final passage
