Legislators slowing down

Circumstances dictated that the $6.8 billion budget for the next two fiscal years and a tax-increase plan — which, coupled with higher room taxes in Las Vegas and Reno that are already approved, would raise taxes in the next biennium by some $1 billion — get to Gov. Jim Gibbons by last Friday. He’s expected to veto the tax-increase plan, and the big task in the lawmakers’ final week will be a veto override attempt.

Gibbons has five days, excluding Sunday, in which to veto the tax plan. If he takes all five days, a veto override attempt wouldn’t occur before Thursday. Had lawmakers not sent him the tax and budget plans on Friday, they could have wound up dealing with an override vote on June 1, the last day of the session.

Legislators also faced a Friday deadline for the state Senate to act on most bills that the Assembly had sent it, and for the Assembly to do the same with state Senate measures it had received.

Among several measures that missed the deadline was AB95, which would have expanded the authority of the state attorney general to review mergers of major health insurance companies. The bill stemmed from the 2008 merger between Sierra Health Services and insurance giant UnitedHealth Group.

Legislators will keep themselves busy in their final full week reviewing remaining bills and amendments, and scheduling conferences to resolve differences between the state Senate and Assembly on various proposals. While most committees are done with their work, a few are still discussing bills.

On Tuesday, Senate Legislative Operations and Elections plans a hearing on AB82, a proposal from the secretary of state’s office that makes numerous changes in Nevada election laws. Changes in the measure include an increase in penalties, from gross misdemeanors to felonies, for offenses such as intimidating voters and interfering in the conduct of an election.

The bill also prohibits county clerks from knowingly appointing field registrars who have felony records for theft, fraud or dishonesty.

The ACLU has expressed numerous concerns about the measure, particularly the sections that increase the criminal penalties and impose new reporting requirements on campaign donations.

Senate Energy, Infrastructure and Transportation has no meeting scheduled, but still has AB522, Assemblywoman Marilyn Kirkpatrick’s renewable energy bill. The bill says, among other things, that lawmakers would approve the governor’s appointment of an energy commissioner, oversight that Gibbons opposes.

Also, state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford’s “green jobs” initiative, SB152, is in Assembly Ways and Means, which has no meeting scheduled. The bill would use federal stimulus money to create renewable energy jobs.

On Wednesday, Assembly Health and Human Services considers SB311, allowing the Truckee Meadows Water Authority to fluoridate drinking water in the Reno area.

An amendment requires a November 2010 ballot question that would determine whether the fluoridation continues.

The committee also plans to discuss SB382, which attempts to fix hospital funding problems by changing the way funds are distributed to hospitals that care for a “disproportionate share” of people who can’t pay for their care.

At stake are tens of millions of dollars, distributed through a complicated funding formula involving county dollars and federal matching funds.

State Senate Finance considers AB92, dealing with benefits of retired judges; and AB555, dealing with property tax breaks for senior citizens.

For the rest of the week, there was nothing listed in the way of committee hearings. That leaves several days for wrapping up any final details of the 2009 session and for scheduling veto override votes in the Assembly and Senate once the lawmakers’ tax plan is rejected by the governor.