The 81st session of the Nevada Legislature convened on February 1st this year and will conclude 120 days later on May 31st. The Legislative Subcommittees start their meetings jointly on February 04th. Legislators' Bill Draft Requests (BDR) will be submitted on February 8th with the resulting bills being introduced on March 15th. The Legislature will start closing budgets on April 9th and their Economic Forum Report will be due on May 4th. Budget Bills Introduced and Exempt Bills from Committee will be voted upon on May 26th. Although scheduled to conclude on May 31st, typically rules are suspended and the session extends through June.
The Legislative Building is currently closed to the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however, meetings are available through the existing streaming service at https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/Calendar/A/ . The Nevada Legislature meetings are also accessible via the new YouTube channel, https://youtube.com/c/NVLeg.
There are a total of 63 seats in the Nevada Legislature: 21 Senators and 42 Assembly members. The Senate, during the 81st session is comprised of 12 Democrats and 9 Republicans. On the Assembly side, there are 26 Democrats and 16 Republicans.
Members of the Assembly are elected to a two-year term with a term limit of six terms (12 years). Members of the Senate are elected to a four-year term and similarly face term limits of three terms (12 years). In order to be elected as a member in either chamber of the Legislature, a person must be a citizen of the United States, be at least 21 years of age, a Nevada resident for at least one year, and a qualified voter in their residing district.
Local government officials will maintain a presence at the legislature through their respective lobbyist and consultants. In addition, the lobbyist representing Churchill County in the Legislature is Marla McDade Williams, senior director for the Strategies 360 Nevada team.
Robert Erquiaga, Chief of Staff for the City of Fallon, said, “This will certainly be a unique session with no, or limited, in-person access, at least initially. As always, we will be closely monitoring the entire session and participating as necessary to protect the interests of our citizens. We will once again be working with Lisa Foster and Tom Grady. They are a great team, and they will continue to do great work for us.”
Dr. Summer Stephens, Superintendent, Churchill County School District shared her insights, priorities and future directions with The Fallon Post. “This legislative session will be tough for all Nevadans and I thank those serving in the Assembly and Senate for their service and for their informed decision making during this time. Priorities for Churchill County School District include ensuring that we get streamlined approaches from the legislature meaning we need to eliminate unfunded mandates, avoid legislation that duplicates existing work, and reduce the amount of reporting and mandates that takes teachers and other school staff away from the direct focus of learning.
Other items are really not only school efforts but community, county, and statewide concerns that will take all citizens sharing their perspectives over the coming months. In addition, we need to continue to see strides in connecting all of Nevada through internet connectivity AND through providing enough funds to support the mental health and wellness supports needed in today's schools and in today's communities.
In addition, we have to restore funding that has been lost by schools over the last several years, ensure more funds are available to get to adequate funding and work toward optimal funding. It is critical that districts be able to have some guarantee of funds earlier to be able to make sound financial decisions for the next school year. The current timeline for budgeting by schools is ineffective, so I am looking for legislation that supports a sounder practice for creating school budgets. Finally, the state must start more conversations on expanding the revenue streams for our state's financial wellness. This is critical to getting school funding to optimal levels to support the programming and supports that will take Nevada forward in this next decade.”
Governor Sisolak stated his priorities during the 2021 State of the State address on January 19, including winning the battle against COVD and vaccinating all Nevadans, getting all students back in the classroom and providing teachers with the tools they need to do their job and getting the economy back on its feet and the people back to work. Future priorities include infrastructure, green energy jobs, help for small businesses and other growth industries that will provide new opportunities for Nevadans.
The Governor presented his budget to the Legislature for the start of the 81st Legislative Session, saying, “The budget I recently presented reflects the emergency we are currently in. There’s nothing traditional or customary about fighting through and emerging from a global pandemic, catastrophic personal and financial consequences, business shutdowns, and what continues to be unknown territory. But as I said in my State of the State address, we are forging a new path forward. Nevada is and always will be determined, resilient, and strong.”
Assemblywoman Robin Titus, (R-38) the Assembly Republican Caucus leader responded to his remarks with the Republican priorities for the session. Those priorities include immunizing and improving health care access across Nevada, prioritizing children's education, rebuilding the economy, maintaining and open and transparent government, and enacting meaningful election reform.
“As I said in my State of the State,” said Sisolak, “Nevadans have always shown grit in the face of adversity, and I’m confident we’ll recover from this crisis. The resilience of Nevadans should never be doubted.”
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