MINUTES OF THE meeting

of the

ASSEMBLY Committee on Government Affairs

 

Seventy-First Session

May 22, 2001

 

 

The Committee on Government Affairswas called to order at 8:14 a.m. on Tuesday, May 22, 2001.  Chairman Douglas Bache presided in Room 3143 of the Legislative Building, Carson City, Nevada.  Exhibit A is the Agenda.  Exhibit B is the Guest List.  All exhibits are available and on file at the Research Library of the Legislative Counsel Bureau.

 

 

COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:

 

Mr.                     Douglas Bache, Chairman

Mr.                     John J. Lee, Vice Chairman

Ms.                     Merle Berman

Mr.                     David Brown

Mrs.                     Dawn Gibbons

Mr.                     David Humke

Mr.                     Harry Mortenson

Mr.                     Roy Neighbors

Ms.                     Bonnie Parnell

Mr.                     Bob Price

Mrs.                     Debbie Smith

Ms.                     Kathy Von Tobel

 

COMMITTEE MEMBERS EXCUSED:

 

Mrs.                     Vivian Freeman

Mr.                     Wendell Williams

 

GUEST LEGISLATORS PRESENT:

 

Senator Terry Care, Clark District No. 7

 

STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT:

 

Eileen O’Grady, Committee Counsel

Dave Ziegler, Committee Policy Analyst

Glenda Jacques, Committee Secretary

 

OTHERS PRESENT:

 

Ron Cruz, Vice Chairman, Nevada Veterans Commission

 

 

Senate Bill 135:  Requires appointment of administrator for each veterans’ home in Nevada. (BDR 37-1032)

 

Senator Terry Care, Clark District No. 7, stated the original bill had been changed because of fiscal impacts and the revised bill clarified administrators for veterans’ homes must be licensed nursing facility administrators.

 

Mr. Neighbors asked where the fiscal impact had come from.

 

Senator Care clarified any unused money given to the Gift Fund reverted to the General Fund.  They had requested any donated money to stay in the Gift Fund for the use of veterans and that created an annual fiscal impact of $38,000.

 

Mr. Neighbors felt any money donated to the Veteran’s Fund through tax exemptions should benefit them.  He thanked Senator Care for his effort to keep the money for veterans.

 

Senator Care stated current statutes allowed unspent monies to revert to the General Fund and he had hoped to change that.

 

Mr. Neighbors felt many veterans would not donate to the fund if they knew any unspent money went to the General Fund.

 

Mr. Lee asked how many veterans’ homes were in the state.  Senator Care replied there was one.

 

Mr. Lee asked about Section 1, subsection 3, where it said, “an additional veterans’ home is authorized, it must be established in northern Nevada.”

 

Senator Care stated the language came from the original statute and the current home in Las Vegas was scheduled to open soon.

 

Ron Cruz, Vice Chairman, Nevada Veterans Commission, explained an interim committee was looking at ten acres south of Carson City for a northern Nevada veterans’ home.  The southern Nevada home was hoping to open in July of 2001 and had 170 people on the waiting list.

Mr. Lee asked about the reference to the fiscal note in the bill.  Senator Care stated the language in Section 1, subsection 1(a), was there for Medicare compliance and there was no fiscal impact to the state.

 

Ms. Berman asked if the original language “any money remaining in the Gift Account for veterans’ homes at the end of each fiscal year does not lapse into the state General Fund, but must be carried forward to the next fiscal year” could be inserted back into the bill.

 

Senator Care stated the original bill included money from license plates, property tax exemptions and vehicle privilege tax exemptions in the Gift Account for veterans.

 

Mr. Humke asked Senator Care to explain to the high school seniors in the audience about veterans and their service to the country.

 

Mr. Cruz replied 90 days of honorable active military service entitled a veteran to live in the home.  He had served in the United States Navy for 21 years and currently worked for the Veteran Commission and over 240,000 veterans in Nevada.  Many veterans and their families were moving to Nevada because of military hospitals closing in California and the tax benefits of Nevada.  The regional veteran hospital in Reno was expanding.

 

Senator Care stated the military in southern Nevada was unable to handle all of the veterans and had formed its own HMO, Tri Care Prime.  During the 1960s any male turning 18 had the choice of jail, Canada, Vietnam, or college.

 

Mr. Humke wanted the young people to realize that democracy was made possible by veterans who fought and died for America.

 

Ms. Parnell felt very strongly about the veterans’ contribution to America and encouraged the students to see “Pearl Harbor” and “Saving Private Ryan.”  All legislators were able to serve Nevada because of the fine men and women who had fought for democracy.

 

Mr. Neighbors thanked Nye County Commissioner Dick Carver and Mrs. Pam Cushman and her high school class of 30 that had driven the 250 miles from Round Mountain to be here.  He stated there were currently 240,000 veterans in Nevada and about 25,000 took advantage of the veteran’s exception or vehicle tax.  They hoped to have the veterans’ home finished in Boulder City by July 1, 2001, and he invited the students to come and tour the facility.

 

Chairman Bache closed the hearing on S.B. 135.

 

ASSEMBLYMAN NEIGHBORS MADE A MOTION TO DO PASS S.B. 135.

 

ASSEMBLYWOMAN SMITH SECONDED THE MOTION.

 

THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY BY THOSE PRESENT.

 

 

Senate Bill 228:  Authorizes state controller to appoint persons to certain positions in unclassified service of state. (BDR 18-663)

 

Chairman Bache stated he had heard from the State Controller and she did not like the change of “assistant controller” to “deputy controller” in S.B. 228.  Her concern was a deputy controller was in charge of various staff members and an assistant controller had minimal staff supervision.  She did feel the term was appropriate for the position and she wanted the committee to rescind their action.  Chairman Bache asked Ms. O’Grady for clarification on how to handle the problem.

 

Ms. O’Grady stated she checked with the Legislative Counsel Bureau and the motion could be rescinded and a new motion done without causing the bill to die.

 

ASSEMBLYWOMAN VON TOBEL MADE A MOTION TO RESCIND HER ORIGINAL MOTION ON S.B. 228.

 

ASSEMBLYMAN HUMKE SECONDED THE MOTION.

 

THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY BY THOSE PRESENT.

 

********

 

ASSEMBLYWOMAN VON TOBEL MADE A MOTION TO DO PASS S.B. 228.

 

ASSEMBLYWOMEN GIBBONS AND PARNELL SECONDED THE MOTION.

 

THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY BY THOSE PRESENT.

 

Chairman Bache stated there would probably be one more bill the committee had to process.

 

VICE CHAIRMAN NEIGHBORS MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE ALL OF THE MINUTES PRODUCED TO THIS DATE.

 

VICE CHAIRMAN LEE SECONDED THE MOTION.

 

THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY BY THOSE PRESENT.

 

Chairman Bache seeing no further business adjourned the meeting at 8:46 a.m. 

 

 

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED:

 

 

 

Glenda Jacques

Committee Secretary

 

 

APPROVED BY:

 

 

 

                       

Assemblyman Douglas Bache, Chairman

 

 

DATE: