MINUTES OF THE meeting

of the

ASSEMBLY Subcommittee on Government Affairs

 

Seventy-First Session

March 28, 2001

 

 

The Subcommittee on Government Affairswas called to order at 3:41 p.m., on Wednesday, March 28, 2001.  Chairman Douglas Bache presided in Room 3142 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.

 

 

SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:

 

Mr.                     Douglas Bache, Chairman

Ms.                     Merle Berman

Ms.                     Bonnie Parnell

 

GUEST LEGISLATORS PRESENT:

 

Assemblyman Bob Beers

 

STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT:

 

Eileen O’Grady, Committee Counsel

Dave Ziegler, Committee Policy Analyst

Linda Utt, Committee Secretary

 

OTHERS PRESENT:

 

Danny Lee, Lobbyist, Realty Management Incorporated

Bruce Wade, Communication Coordinator, American Red Cross

Terry Philbin, private citizen

 

Assembly Bill 61:  Prohibits certain restrictions pertaining to station antenna structures used in amateur service communications. (BDR 22-672)

 

Assemblyman Beers thanked the subcommittee for holding the meeting on A.B. 61.  After discussion with members of the subcommittee he understood the bill would not pass if Section 3 were included.  Additionally, Mr. Beers held several phone conferences with members of the home association management and attorneys active in the drafting of homeowners conditions, covenants and restrictions (CC&Rs) templates.  All expressed interest in working with him during the interim.  The associations and their attorneys planned to view places that showed low impact radio antennas in tightly managed homeowner associations (HOAs).  They needed to learn how to complete those features and put them in the standard set of templates most HOA’s CC&Rs followed.  Mr. Beers said most of the associations members would follow this avenue and suggested Section 3 be deleted from the bill with the rest of A.B. 61 returned to the committee with a recommendation to pass.

 

Chairman Bache stated he only saw people in the audience who wished to speak in favor of the bill.  He asked Danny Lee if his only objection was to Section 3 and he responded yes. 

 

Mr. Beers made an additional statement to the committee.  The Legislative Council Bureau had an opinion poll where people could call the Message Bureau or e-mail their opinions on a bill.  Currently A.B. 61 was the fourth most mentioned bill and after he checked the morning poll the margin continued to show a 78 percent margin in favor.  Chairman Bache stated he had an Outlook Folder labeled A.B. 61 and kept track of e-mails and admitted he had received well over 100 regarding the bill.  Mr. Beers indicated the way to stop the mail was to pass the bill.

 

Bruce Wade, Communication Coordinator, American Red Cross, also representing the amateur radio community as an assistant emergency coordinator, testified he supported the bill.  During large disasters phone service was a major problem.  Cell phones failed to help even if the systems were up because of the high volume of usage.  Satellite phones became overloaded and were not suited for the peak in calls they would experience.  He emphasized it was imperative the amateur radio operators had equipment needed to assist the first responders.  In emergency conditions, they also volunteered to help with the health and welfare callers and advised people as to the condition of their relatives.  In order to operate their radios, they needed antennas and he felt it very important the bill be passed so they could continue to provide service the community needed.

 

Terry Philbin, private citizen, explained he had worked as an emergency coordinator with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and wanted to explain the experience he encountered on the federal level with emergency responses.  Even at the federal level without practice the handling of emergency traffic was troublesome.  Beyond the equipment available during an emergency, ham radio operators also needed to practice weekly and monthly to be knowledgeable when an emergency arose. 

 

Assemblyman Beers stated if the committee wished to remove Section 3 then he believed Section 5 also needed to be removed.  That section stated that Section 3 would not apply if they had any existing CC&Rs.

 

            ASSEMBLYWOMAN BERMAN MADE A MOTION TO RECOMMEND TO

            THE FULL ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS AN             AMEND AND DO PASS A.B. 61.

 

            ASSEMBLYWOMAN PARNELL SECONDED THE MOTION.

 

            THE SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS AGREED UNANIMOUSLY WITH THE             RECOMMENDATION.

 

 

Chairman Bache adjourned the meeting at 3:49 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED:

 

 

 

Linda Utt

Committee Secretary

 

 

APPROVED BY:

 

 

 

                       

Assemblyman Douglas Bache, Subcommittee Chairman

 

 

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