Wednesday, May 13, 2009

NWL 2009 Legislative Session Update

We’re in the home stretch, with June 1 just around the corner. The budget deficit and tax structure continue to dominate every conversation- all policy issues are affected by the unprecedented decline in available funding to support vital human services, fund education and preserve public safety. NWL set out last fall with a handful of top legislative priorities, including the aforementioned budget and tax issue, plus child welfare and child support legislation, and our proactive bill creating a study of incarcerated women in Nevada.

As always, any bill that would impact our core NWL advocacy issues (reproductive health and civil rights) becomes a priority issue as well. A couple of examples:

Equal Rights Amendment/Equal Pay Day: NWL was a key proponent of AJR 3, Assemblywoman Kathy McClain’s resolution to ratify the ERA in Nevada. When the bill did not come up for a hearing, NWL joined with other women’s organizations and Assemblywoman McClain to recognize the hard work of women by designating April 28, 2009 as Equal Pay Day. Assemblywoman McClain has said that she will continue the ERA fight in Nevada.
Domestic Partnership Registry: Additionally, NWL has been working with bill sponsor Senator David Parks and many partner organizations and individuals to secure long-overdue rights for same-sex couples (it so happens this bill also accords rights to unmarried heterosexual partners). SB 283 made it out of the Senate several weeks ago and recently passed out of Assembly Judiciary. It next goes to the Assembly floor, for a vote of the full Assembly. We know we have enough votes to get it out of the Assembly and we’re working on securing enough votes in both houses for a veto override. Wish us luck and contact your assemblyperson to urge their support!

Budget/Taxes:

First, the budget situation: The governor submitted his recommended budget just prior to the session. His budget came in at about $6.1 billion, with recommendations to cut vital human services, including the capping of Nevada Checkup, the closure of rural mental health clinics, cuts in autism services, and the elimination of the Office of Consumer Health Assistance. Since February, lawmakers have been culling through each departmental budget to determine which cuts to support and which cuts are simply unacceptable, and, while they have chosen to add back in some of the recommended cuts, everything (including the add backs) is still on the table. Legislators have had extremely tough choices to make and at the end of the day, many families will be (and already are) making sacrifices. The bottom line is that even with federal stimulus funding and new revenues, we still have a budget hole and painful cuts are inevitable.

What about taxes? NWL was an early supporter of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada’s (PLAN) tax study and report (available at http://www.planevada.org/). We have spoken with legislators and attended press conferences and rallies to bring awareness and encourage support for changing Nevada’s current tax structure. The fact is that we are simply not bringing in enough revenue to support current levels of service or anticipated need and we must explore other sources of revenue. To be clear, our state needs tax solutions that bring short-term relief and long-term stability and we must address these issues NOW.

Upcoming Deadlines:

May 15- With the exception of bills with an “Exempt” status, bills currently assigned to committees in the second house must be passed out of committee by May 15. Bills that made it out of the Assembly are now in Senate committees and vice versa.

May 22- Bills that passed out of committee must pass out of the second house (floor vote) by this date.

NWL Active Bills:

All of the bills listed are available for review at
http://www.leg.state.nv.us/75th2009/Reports/; type in the bill number for status, bill language, committee assignment and more. The list below is not an exhaustive list of bills NWL is tracking, but a summary of key bills. The list includes NWL’s position (SUPPORT/OPPOSE/MONITOR). For more information, please contact NWL’s lobbyist, Julianna Ormsby, at 702-493-5030 or juliannaormsby@yahoo.com. We encourage you to contact your legislators on the bills that are of interest to you and/or register your opinion at https://www.leg.state.nv.us/75th2009/opinions/Poll/?CFID=1787333&CFTOKEN=40707731.

Assembly Bills:

AB 56 revises provisions governing pupils with disabilities--SUPPORT
AB 76 revises provisions governing the placement of children who are in the custody of an agency which provides child welfare service--SUPPORT
AB 101 revises provisions governing the support of children--SUPPORT
AB 114 makes changes concerning compensation to victims of crime--SUPPORT
AB 116 contributory conduct in domestic violence and sexual assault claims for victims of crime--SUPPORT
AB 120 makes changes concerning orders for protection of victims of sexual assault--SUPPORT
AB 139 creates housing database for people who are low-income, people with disabilities, victims of domestic violence, seniors and more--SUPPORT
AB 162 requires certain policies of health insurance and health care plans to provide coverage for screening for and treatment of autism--SUPPORT
AB 165 revises the provisions governing the Fund to Stabilize the Operation of the State Government--SUPPORT
AB 190 creates a study to review the death penalty in Nevada--SUPPORT
AB 227 revises provisions relating to the provision of foster care--SUPPORT
AB 243 requires certain employers to grant leave to parents, guardians and custodians of children to participate in certain school activities--SUPPORT
AB 337 creates the Office of Statewide Coordinator for Children Who Are Endangered by Drug Exposure in the Office of the Attorney General--SUPPORT
AB 364 makes various changes concerning the protection of children--SUPPORT
AB 544 revises provisions governing the State Plan for Medicaid--SUPPORT

Senate Bills:

SB 3 creates the Legislative Committee on Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice--SUPPORT
SB 4 requires the establishment of a system for the electronic submission of applications for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program--SUPPORT
SB 14 makes various changes to fees relating to a marriage license that fund the Account for Aid for Victims of Domestic Violence--SUPPORT
SB 131 revises provisions governing mental health consortiums that provide mental health services to children with emotional disturbance--SUPPORT
SB 207 revises provisions relating to unlawful discrimination in places of public accommodation--SUPPORT
SB 283 revises provisions governing domestic relations contracts--SUPPORT
SB 293 Establishes procedures for authorizing the administration of certain medication for children in the custody of certain agencies--SUPPORT
SB 341 revises the list of qualifications for relatives to receive supportive assistance from a program to provide supportive assistance to qualifying relatives of children who provide care for and obtain the legal guardianship of those children--SUPPORT
SB 342 expands the relatives who receive preference when a child is placed in the custody of a person other than the parent of the child by a court, an agency which provides child welfare services or other person--SUPPORT
SB 343 makes various changes concerning the application for and provision of certain treatment or services to a person involved in the child welfare system--SUPPORT
SB 344 authorizes the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services to create an interagency committee to evaluate the child welfare system--SUPPORT
SCR 4 urges certain agencies which provide child welfare services to develop a standardized practice model and to address certain issues related to child and family services--SUPPORT


Dead Bills (key bills that NWL followed but didn’t make through deadline)

Assembly Bills:

AB 43 revises provisions prohibiting discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations--MONITOR
AB 68 provides for the issuance of a certificate of birth resulting in stillbirth--OPPOSE
AB 70 designates English as the official language of the State of Nevada--OPPOSE
AB 83 makes various changes concerning the reporting and investigation of allegations of child abuse and neglect--OPPOSE
AB 91 authorizes the State Treasurer to securitize the revenue stream produced by the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement--OPPOSE
AB 157 provides that the head of a household which receives Temporary Assistance for Needy Families must accept certain employment--OPPOSE
AB 184 prohibits discrimination with regard to gender identity or expression--SUPPORT
AB 245 revises certain provisions relating to voter identification--OPPOSE
AB 347 makes various changes concerning foreign nationals--OPPOSE
AB 485 revises provisions governing the program to provide Temporary Assistance for Needy Families--SUPPORT
AJR 3 ratifies proposed constitutional amendment relative to equal rights for men and women--SUPPORT
ACR 5 directs the Legislative Commission to conduct an interim study of issues relating to women incarcerated in Nevada--SUPPORT

Senate Bills:

SB 181 makes various changes regarding governmental administration--OPPOSE
SB 289 establishes a tax credit for certain businesses that donate money to school tuition organizations--OPPOSE
SB 297 revises provisions relating to the credentialing of mental health professionals from other states--SUPPORT
SB 315 revises certain provisions concerning voter identification--OPPOSE

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