Action on toll road measure must come today or it dies

CARSON CITY -- A decision on whether to set up procedures for authorizing toll roads in Nevada won't come until just before a deadline today when the bill must pass, or it automatically dies for the remainder of the 2009 Legislature.

After listening to Sen. John Lee, D-North Las Vegas, and others plug the toll road bill Thursday, Assembly Transportation Chairman Kelvin Atkinson said he would hold the bill until today when the committee could vote on it during a break in the Assembly floor session.

Earlier this year, Atkinson, D-North Las Vegas, used a similar move to kill a toll road bill. He called the committee into order and members then immediately adjourned without a vote on the bill.

At the time, Atkinson predicted a move to revive toll road legislation would materialize in the Senate. He has stated he believes most residents oppose toll roads, particularly during a recession.

State law prohibits toll roads, but Lee's Senate Bill 206 would set up rules for a state Tolling Revenue Commission to follow in approving privately operated toll roads. The bill passed the Senate 15-6 on April 16.