AB628

Assembly Bill No. 628–Committee on Transportation

CHAPTER........

AN ACT relating to public transit; exempting a common motor carrier that operates a public

transit system which provides certain transportation services from the requirement

of obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity under certain

circumstances; expanding the authorized purposes of interlocal contracts to include

the joint use or operation of a system of public transportation; authorizing a regional

transportation commission, certain less populous counties and incorporated cities

within such counties to establish or operate a public transit system that provides

certain services to serve certain specified persons and the public; and providing

other matters properly relating thereto.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. NRS 706.745 is hereby amended to read as follows:

706.745 1. The provisions of NRS 706.386 and 706.421 do not apply

to ambulances or hearses.

2. A common motor carrier [~~who]~~ that enters into an agreement for the

purchase of its service by an incorporated city, county or regional

transportation commission is not required to obtain a certificate of public

convenience and necessity to operate a system of public transit consisting

of [~~regular]~~ :

(a) Regular routes and fixed schedules [~~. Under such an agreement,]~~

; (b) Nonemergency medical transportation of persons to facilitate their

use of a center as defined in NRS 435.170, if the transportation is

available upon request and without regard to regular routes or fixed

schedules;

(c) Nonmedical transportation of disabled persons without regard to

regular routes or fixed schedules; or

(d) In a county whose population is less than 100,000 or an

incorporated city within such a county, nonmedical transportation of

persons if the transportation is available by reservation 1 day in advance

of the transportation and without regard to regular routes or fixed

schedules.

3. Under any agreement for a system of public transit that provides

for the transportation of passengers that is described in subsection 2:

(a) The public entity shall provide for any required safety inspections;

or

(b) If the public entity is unable to do so, the authority shall provide

for any required safety inspections.

4. In addition to the requirements of subsection 3, under an

agreement for a system of public transit that provides for the

transportation of passengers that is described in:

(a) Paragraph (a) of subsection 2, the public entity shall establish the

routes and fares . [~~and provide for any required safety inspections.~~

~~3.]~~ (b) Paragraph (c) or (d) of subsection 2, the common motor

carrier:

(1) May provide transportation to any passenger who can board a

vehicle with minimal assistance from the operator of the vehicle.

(2) Shall not offer medical assistance as part of its transportation

service.

5. A nonprofit carrier of elderly or [~~physically or mentally~~

~~handicapped]~~ disabled persons is not required to obtain a certificate of

public convenience and necessity to operate as a common motor carrier of

such passengers only, but such a carrier is not exempt from inspection by

the authority to determine whether its vehicles and their operation are safe.

[~~4.]~~ 6. An incorporated city, county or regional transportation

commission is not required to obtain a certificate of public convenience and

necessity to operate a system of public transportation.

7. Before an incorporated city or a county enters into an agreement

with a common motor carrier for a system of public transit that provides

for the transportation of passengers that is described in paragraph (c) or

(d) of subsection 2 in an area of the incorporated city or an area of the

county, it must determine that:

(a) There are no other common motor carriers of passengers who are

authorized to provide such services in that area; or

(b) Although there are other common motor carriers of passengers

who are authorized to provide such services in the area, the common

motor carriers of passengers do not wish to provide, or are not capable of

providing, such services.

Sec. 2. NRS 277.180 is hereby amended to read as follows:

277.180 1. Any one or more public agencies may contract with any

one or more other public agencies to perform any governmental service,

activity or undertaking which any of the public agencies entering into the

contract is authorized by law to perform. Such a contract [~~shall]~~ must be

ratified by appropriate official action of the governing body of each party

to the contract as a condition precedent to its entry into force. Such a

contract [~~shall]~~ must set forth fully the purposes, powers, rights, objectives

and responsibilities of the contracting parties.

2. The authorized purposes of agreements made pursuant to subsection

1 include , but are not limited to:

(a) The joint use of hospitals, road construction and repair equipment,

and such other facilities or services as may and can be reasonably used for

the promotion and protection of the health and welfare of the inhabitants of

this state.

(b) The joint use of county and city personnel, equipment and facilities,

including sewer systems, drainage systems, street lighting systems, fire

alarm systems, sewage disposal plants, playgrounds, parks and recreational

facilities, and public buildings constructed by or under the supervision of

the board of county commissioners or the city council of the county and

city concerned, upon such terms and agreements, and within such areas
within the county as may be determined, for the promotion and protection

of health, comfort, safety, life, welfare and property of the inhabitants of

the counties and cities.

in the offices of the city and county auditor, city and county assessor, city

and county treasurer, or any other joint city and county office existing or

hereafter established in the several counties, upon such terms and

conditions as may be determined for the equitable apportionment of the

expenses of the joint city and county office.

(d) The joint and cooperative use of fire-fighting and fire-protection

equipment for the protection of property and the prevention and

suppression of fire.

(e) The joint use of county and city personnel, equipment and facilities,

upon such terms and conditions, and within such areas within the county as

may be determined, for the promotion and protection of the health of the

inhabitants of the county and city through the regulation, control and

prohibition of the excessive emission of dense smoke and air pollution.

(f) The joint and cooperative use of law enforcement agencies.

(g) The joint use or operation of a system of public transportation.

3. Each public agency which has entered into an agreement pursuant to

this section shall annually at the time of preparing its budget include an

estimate of the expenses necessary to carry out such agreement, the funds

for which are not made available through grant, gift or other source, and

provide for such expense as other items are provided in its budget. Each

such public agency may furnish property, personnel or services as

necessary to carry out the agreement.

Sec. 3. NRS 373.117 is hereby amended to read as follows:

373.117 1. A regional transportation commission , a county whose

population is less than 100,000 or an incorporated city within such a

county may establish or operate a public transit system consisting of

~~[regular]~~ :

(a) Regular routes and fixed schedules to serve the public [.] ;

(b) Nonemergency medical transportation of persons to facilitate their

use of a center as defined in NRS 435.170, if the transportation is

available upon request and without regard to regular routes or fixed

schedules;

(c) Nonmedical transportation of disabled persons without regard to

2. A regional transportation commission may lease vehicles to or from

or enter into other contracts with a private operator for the provision of

such a system.
3. In a county whose population is less than 400,000, such a system

may also provide service which includes:

(a) Minor deviations from the regular routes and fixed schedules

required by paragraph (a) of subsection 1 on a recurring basis to serve the

public transportation needs of passengers. The deviations must not exceed

one-half mile from the regular routes.

(b) The transporting of persons other than those specified in paragraph

(b), (c) or (d) of subsection 1 upon request without regard to regular routes

or fixed schedules, if the service is provided by a common motor carrier

which has a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued by the

transportation services authority pursuant to NRS 706.386 to 706.411,

inclusive, and the service is subject to the rules and regulations adopted by

the transportation services authority for a fully regulated carrier.

4. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 332 of NRS or NRS

625.530, a regional transportation commission may utilize a turnkey

procurement process to select a person to design, build, operate and

maintain, or any combination thereof, a fixed guideway system, including,

without limitation, any minimum operable segment thereof. The

commission shall determine whether to utilize turnkey procurement for a

fixed guideway project before the completion of the preliminary

engineering phase of the project. In making that determination, the

commission shall evaluate whether turnkey procurement is the most cost

effective method of constructing the project on schedule and in satisfaction

of its transportation objectives.

5. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 332 of NRS, a regional

transportation commission may utilize a competitive negotiation

procurement process to procure rolling stock for a fixed guideway project.

The award of a contract under such a process must be made to the person

whose proposal is determined to be the most advantageous to the

commission, based on price and other factors specified in the procurement

documents.

6. If a commission develops a fixed guideway project, the department

of transportation is hereby designated to serve as the oversight agency to

ensure compliance with the federal safety regulations for rail fixed

guideway systems set forth in 49 C.F.R. Part 659.

7. As used in this section:

(a) "Fully regulated carrier" means a common carrier or contract carrier

of passengers or household goods who is required to obtain from the

transportation services authority a certificate of public convenience and

necessity or a contract carrier’s permit and whose rates, routes and services

are subject to regulation by the transportation services authority.

(b) "Minimum operable segment" means the shortest portion of a fixed

guideway system that is technically capable of providing viable public

transportation between two end points.
(c) "Public transit system" means a system employing motor buses, rails

or any other means of conveyance, by whatever type of power, operated for

public use in the conveyance of persons.

(d) "Turnkey procurement" means a competitive procurement process

by which a person is selected by a regional transportation commission,

based on evaluation criteria established by the commission, to design,

build, operate and maintain, or any combination thereof, a fixed guideway

system, or a portion thereof, in accordance with performance criteria and

technical specifications established by the commission.

Sec. 4. NRS 377A.130 is hereby amended to read as follows:

377A.130 A public transit system may, in addition to providing local

transportation within a county, provide:

1. Services to assist commuters in communicating with others to share

rides;

2. Transportation for elderly persons and the handicapped [;] ,

including, without limitation, nonemergency medical transportation of

persons to facilitate their use of a center as defined in NRS 435.170;

3. Parking for the convenience of passengers on the system; [~~and]~~

4. Stations and other necessary facilities to ensure the comfort and

safety of passengers [.] ; and

5. Transportation that is available pursuant to NRS 373.117.

Sec. 5. NRS 377A.140 is hereby amended to read as follows:

377A.140 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, a public

transit system in a county whose population is 400,000 or more may, in

addition to providing local transportation within the county and the services

described in NRS 377A.130, provide:

(a) Programs to reduce or manage motor vehicle traffic; and

(b) Any other services for a public transit system which are requested by

the general public,

if those additional services are included and described in a long-range plan

adopted pursuant to 23 U.S.C. § 134 and 49 U.S.C. § 5303.

2. Before a regional transportation commission may provide for an on

-call public transit system in an area of the county, other than an on-call

public transit system that provides the nonemergency medical

transportation described in NRS 377A.130, the commission must receive a

determination from the transportation services authority that:

(a) There are no common motor carriers of passengers who are

authorized to provide on-call operations for transporting passengers in that

area; or

(b) Although there are common motor carriers of passengers who are

authorized to provide on-call operations for transporting passengers in the

area, the common motor carriers of passengers do not wish to provide, or

are not capable of providing, those operations.

3. As used in this section:

(a) "Common motor carrier of passengers" has the meaning ascribed to

it in NRS 706.041.
(b) "On-call public transit system" means a system established to

transport passengers only upon the request of a person who needs

transportation.

Sec. 6. This act becomes effective on July 1, 1999.