Governor won’t immediately call 2nd special session
CARSON CITY — With COVID-19 cases surging again in Nevada, lawmakers will not return to Carson City for a second special session to address criminal and social justice reforms and other policy issues, Gov. Steve Sisolak announced Sunday.
In a statement, Sisolak said that the state “is in a dangerous situation,” and that it is necessary for his office to dedicate all of its time toward slowing the spread of the virus.
“While it was my previous intention to call an immediate subsequent special session to discuss extraordinary policy issues that I believe cannot and should not wait until the regularly scheduled 2021 legislative session, I have serious reservations about having our lawmakers convene again for a similar – or longer – period of time in the midst of this spike in our State,” Sisolak said in a statement.
Sisolak said he still plans to issue a proclamation for a second special session, but that would only happen once lawmakers, in coordination with his office, have a fully-baked list of policy issues to address so that they could have “a thorough, organized and efficient second special session.”
”This is the responsible decision to make in order to protect the time needed to address the ongoing COVID-19 crisis,” Sisolak added.
The announcement came on the afternoon of the 12th day of the special session that was called to address the $1.2 billion budget shortfall as lawmakers were finalizing the last bill to implement steep budget cuts.
While he said he won’t call a second special session immediately, Sisolak listed the policy issues he intends to have addressed.
They include:
— Social and criminal justice reform.
— Issues involving conducting elections amid the pandemic.
— “Helping stabilize Nevada businesses,” and establishing safety standards for workers.
— Speeding up the unemployment insurance claim process by “removing statutory barriers.”
Contact Capital Bureau Chief Colton Lochhead at clochhead@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ColtonLochhead on Twitter.
