MINUTES OF THE meeting
of the
ASSEMBLY Committee on wAYS AND MEANS AND
SENATE committee on FINANCE
JOINT SUBCOMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND
TRANSPORTATION
Seventy-First Session
March 15, 2001
The Assembly Ways and Means and Senate Finance Joint Subcommittee on Public Safety, Natural Resources and Transportationwas called to order at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 15, 2001. Chairman David Parks presided in Room 2134 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.
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:
Mr. David R. Parks, Chairman
Mr. Bob Beers
Mrs. Vonne S. Chowning
Mrs. Marcia de Braga
Mr. John W. Marvel
Mr. Richard D. Perkins
SENATE COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:
Senator Lawrence E. Jacobsen, Chairman
Senator Joseph M. Neal, Jr.
Senator William R. O’Donnell
COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT:
None
STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT:
Steve Abba, Principal Deputy Fiscal Analyst
Mark Krmpotic, Program Analyst
Gary Ghiggeri, Fiscal Analyst
Linda Smith, Committee Secretary
BUDGET ACCOUNT 3774, PEACE OFFICERS STANDARDS AND TRAINING COMMISSION, PAGE -1
Chairman Parks recognized Richard P. Clark, Executive Director, Peace Officers’ Standards and Training Commission (POST). Mr. Clark stated the commission had been established on July 1, 1999, as a stand-alone regulatory agency under the Governor’s Office. The commission provided oversight of the professional standards and the quality of training for peace officers throughout the state of Nevada and had previously been a committee under the management of the Department of Motor Vehicles and Public Safety (DMV&PS). With the passage of S.B. 68 of the Seventieth Session, a commission was created and placed under the Governor’s Office and an executive director position was created. The funding source continued to be court assessments and the agency shifted from the narrow focus of the DMV&PS Training Division to the broader statewide responsibilities of a regulatory agency. More emphasis was placed on academies, auditing, monitoring, and law enforcement courses. Training needs assessments were established, and greater input was received from training managers statewide. The agency had conducted, facilitated, and managed over 66,000 student hours of in‑service training since the beginning of the biennium, and approximately 52,000 student hours of basic training would be provided by the end of the current biennium. A strategic plan was developed that included vision, mission, and philosophy statements. Goals and objectives were established and performance indicators were created. In the transition, the commission lost the fiscal and personnel support from the DMV&PS, but had since developed fiscal and personnel operations and updated policies and procedures, including internal controls, work performance standards, and test banks. An academy audit protocol was developed and four basic academy audits had been conducted. Special training topics had been expanded, i.e., domestic violence, elder abuse, stalking, aggravated stalking, and rapid deployment tactics had been expanded. A federal grant administered by the Western Community Policing Center in Oregon provided $93,000 for community police training within Nevada. As of September 29, 1999, the Governor had designated the commission as the state’s lead agency for the federally funded Nevada Police Corps Program, which received approximately $1 million in funding.
Mr. Clark stated the agency budget request was modest. Four replacement vehicles were requested for each year of the biennium. Because the vehicles would be salvaged Nevada Highway Patrol vehicles, there would be no cost to the state. The commission had also requested three replacement computers for each year of the biennium and a replacement printer the first year of the biennium. The cost was approximately $7,500 for the first year and $4,800 the second year of the biennium.
Senator Jacobsen asked Mr. Clark if any problems had occurred due to the change to a stand-alone agency and requested more detail on the Police Corps. Mr. Clark stated the Police Corps was a federally funded program. College graduates holding a degree in any field, from any state, who committed to four years of service in law enforcement in Nevada could receive up to $30,000 for tuition reimbursement for their college education. Agencies within the state of Nevada that sponsored the cadets would receive $10,000 each of the four years the cadets were connected with their agency. The students would attend a 20‑week, live-in academy where much emphasis would be placed on ethical behavior and community-oriented policing concepts. The cadets who graduated would be very well educated and well trained with good leadership qualities. Mr. Clark felt the Police Corps was a “win-win” situation for the communities, for the sponsoring agencies, and for the participants. The first Police Corps academy would begin in July of 2001. Senator Jacobsen asked if there would be any conflicts with the academy and Mr. Clark responded in the negative. Mr. Clark explained the corps was a totally separate academy with separate funding.
Mr. Clark indicated there had been difficulty locating adequate facilities for the corps. The Stewart Facility and Western Nevada Community College (WNCC) were considered, but Mr. Clark thought the Department of Prisons had taken both of those locations. The Clear Creek facility had also been considered. A major problem was that many of the facilities had only office space and the program required classroom space. Buildings with classroom space were at a premium. Mr. Clark stated that due to the generosity of Director Kirkland and the Department of Public Safety the agency had enjoyed borrowed office space and a classroom at the Howard Building, however, in 2003 that space would no longer be available. Mr. Clark stated the decision to make the agency separate was approved because no additional funding would be required. Even though responsibilities had been added for fiscal operations and administrative operations, and there had been constant expansion, the agency had still requested a bare-bones budget in accordance with the Governor’s request. Senator Jacobsen asked if the shooting range located on prison property was adequate and Mr. Clark affirmed.
Senator Neal referred to the performance indicator that projected 119 peace officers would be enrolled in the academy in FY2000 and the actual number reported was only 18. Mr. Clark thought the projected column should have been actual, and at the time the numbers were developed the POST was still connected to the DMV&PS – the count of 119 included Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) troopers, Parole and Probation, Capitol Police, etc. In FY2001, 43 students were projected; the actual number to date was 57. Senator Neal asked the purpose of the agency and Mr. Clark responded the agency was regulatory and had oversight of the professional standards of law enforcement officers, as well as the quality of training. Senator Neal asked for an example of the courses offered. Mr. Clark indicated skills-related courses were offered: defensive tactics and physical fitness, emergency vehicle operations, firearms training, decision-making in shooting situations, a host of legal issues, and other basic training courses. Senator Neal asked what was taught in terms of vehicle pullovers, and Mr. Clark indicated safety and tactical aspects, laws of arrest, and the ethical treatment of people during the contact. Senator Neal asked about the treatment of racial profiling, and Mr. Clark stated there was no specific course for profiling but understood profiling strictly on race, or any other issue, was not appropriate. Senator Neal indicated profiling was an issue being addressed across the nation. Mr. Clark acknowledged profiling was a serious problem and indicated the issue was addressed in an ethical behavior course.
Dennis M. Kollar, Deputy Director, Peace Officers’ Standards and Training Commission, testified that representatives from the Attorney General’s Office taught a course in civil liability in the basic academy. In that course, as well as others, the subject of racial profiling was addressed. The courses also addressed the fact that the officers and their agencies were vulnerable to liability if they wavered from the law.
Mr. Beers asked what departments the 18 peace officers who attended the POST Academy in FY2000 represented. Mr. Clark indicated he would provide the information to the subcommittee. Mr. Kollar stated 33 students were enrolled in the class currently in session and that class included agency representatives from:
Mr. Kollar stated the POST Academy combined Category I and Category II peace officers. A Category I academy operated 16 weeks, but during the first 10 weeks of that academy a Category II was presented. Some of the participating agencies were Category II and their employees completed the course in 10 weeks. Participants from Category I agencies remained for the full 16 weeks. The class had 25 Category I students and 8 Category II students. Chairman Parks asked if gender information was available, and Mr. Kollar thought 4 females had been enrolled in the class. In response to a question posed by Chairman Parks, Mr. Clark stated by the end of the current biennium the agency believed the total of all basic training would be 52,000 student hours. In the first year of the biennium 17,000 student hours were completed.
Chairman Parks indicated there appeared to be a disparity in the performance indicators and asked for an explanation. Mr. Clark explained when the commission was under the management of the Department of Motor Vehicles and Public Safety all entry-level cadets were counted – the NHP troopers, Probation and Parole, Capitol Police, etc. The projected count of 119 shown in the performance indicators included all of those agencies.
Chairman Parks asked if, given the constraints relative to facilities, the Police Corps Academy would conflict with the ongoing, normal program. Chairman Parks also wanted to know what steps the commission had taken that would make certain one program did not suffer at the expense of the other. Mr. Kollar stated the projected enrollment for the Police Corps Academy was a maximum of 22 students. The Police Corps had rented separate facilities for office staff and classroom on the first floor of building 17 at the Stewart Facility. However, there would be a sharing of dormitories and an overlap of the POST Academy and the Police Corps Academy during the current federal fiscal year. Because building 17 was scheduled for renovation in October of 2003, the commission was looking at alternate dormitory space and permanent office and classroom space.
Chairman Parks stated the Police Corps Academy was scheduled to open in July of 2001 and would extend into the beginning of the following federal fiscal year and wondered if there would be any funding problems. Mr. Kollar said the Police Corps was subject to annual appropriations from Congress and, because there was strong bipartisan support for the program, it was hoped funding would continue. Mr. Kollar stated the U.S. Department of Justice had assured staff if federal funding was cut while the academy was in session, there would be a continuation of the program for a period of time. There was an eight-year obligation – $7,500 per year to students for reimbursement for college tuition and then $10,000 a year, for the first four years of service, to the agencies that employed Police Corps graduates. Mr. Kollar stressed there was no intent to transfer any of the responsibility to the state should the funding cease. Mr. Kollar stated there was an interagency agreement between the POST and the U.S. Department of Justice and an Implementation of Services Agreement that covered a more modest amount of money earmarked for recruitment.
Senator Jacobsen said individuals had the opportunity to attend the community college system and the POST Academy for training and wanted to know if the graduates had the same kind of ability and qualifications. Mr. Clark stated it was the responsibility of the POST to make certain every student obtained a commensurate level of professionalism. The academies throughout the state had to be evaluated and certified by the commission before operating. The POST also audited and monitored those academies throughout the state to make certain a high level of professional service was delivered. Senator Jacobsen asked if graduates received a card that identified them as a police officer. Mr. Clark stated graduates received a certificate upon graduation and an identification card was provided by the agency of employment.
Senator Jacobsen asked if it was realistic to envision the POST as the training center for all safety‑related activities. Mr. Clark indicated he would like to see a regional training center – perhaps a refurbished Stewart Facility that would become a public safety training service center for fire services and law enforcement. An emergency vehicle operations track would eliminate transporting people to Reno to the livestock center or the Reno Hilton parking lot for training. In response to a question posed by Senator Jacobsen, Mr. Clark remarked the POST had tremendous support from the Sheriffs and Chiefs Association. The association had been instrumental in recommending the study that determined where the POST should be located in state government and had made recommendations to the Governor for the commissioners.
Mr. Beers addressed the performance indicators and stated he had deep concerns that the POST was viable. The student/teacher ratio appeared to have been 1:1 throughout FY2000 – 18 students participated and there were 21 staff, which the Governor had reduced to 16. Last biennium 97 graduated from the academy with 11 staff. Mr. Beers asked for clarification. Mr. Kollar provided historical background. The POST Academy was previously called the Nevada Law Enforcement Academy and trained all the DMV&PS peace officers, as well as officers from other agencies. The DMV assigned permanent staff to assist in the administration and presentation of that academy. Two Category I academies were offered each year. Staff included an academy commander, a supervisor, and three training officers on loan from the Nevada Highway Patrol and two POST training officers. The class sizes varied between 35 and 45 students. Excluding the 9 federally funded staff of the Police Corps, the POST had only 12 employees. One lead training officer, who functioned as the commander, and two POST training officers were assigned to the basic academy function. Mr. Kollar said the current class had 33 students and the training officer to cadet ratio had actually increased from the period of time when the DMV&PS resources had been included. The remaining 9 positions had responsibility for the compliance, certification, rule making, regulations, and monitoring. The positions also provided in-service to incumbent officers through course presentation, facilitating courses or managing courses. Mr. Kollar stated in FY2000 two rapid deployment courses were conducted that provided training in responding to situations such as the shooting incident at Columbine High School. Small rural agencies did not have the available resources to develop the training. Mr. Kollar said another academy was scheduled for August 2001 and had received 12 applications and expected an enrollment of 30 or more students. The training officers were immediate supervisors of the cadets and had responsibility for retention or dismissal recommendations.
Mr. Beers asked the agency to provide a POST organizational chart that included functional responsibilities. Mr. Beers wanted to know if any portion of the $1 million of federal funds could be used in any other fashion. For example, could any of the cadets located in the Carson City area enroll in the same courses at the Western Nevada Community College? Mr. Kollar stated the Police Corps federal funds could not be used for any other purpose. Mr. Beers wondered if perhaps the court assessment fees could be used. Mr. Kollar felt it was clearly within the legislature’s purview to decide how court assessments would be used. Mr. Kollar added, the issue had been discussed at length during the SCR 21 Interim Study of the Sixty-Ninth Session that determined whether the POST should have been separated from the DMV&PS. Discussion of the various merits continued during the legislative hearings on S.B. 68 of the Seventieth Session. At that time, sheriffs and chiefs testified to preference for the POST Academy and indicated strong support to continue the program.
Mr. Beers asked if 30 students would graduate during FY2001, and Mr. Clark said the number would total 57. Mr. Beers compared the 97 students in FY1998, supported by 11 staff, to the current 57 students with 21 staff. Mr. Clark clarified, of the 21 full-time positions, 12 were POST staff members, 4 Police Corps staff members, and 5 were Police Corps seasonal employees; 9 of the 21 were Police Corps staff who had nothing to do with the POST. The Police Corps employees were completely separate from the POST operation. The Activities Bureau provided regulatory responsibility for the POST. Of the 12 POST staff, only 3 were located in the Basic Training Bureau – one lead instructor who operated as the academy commander and two instructors. Mr. Clark stressed the POST was a regulatory agency that had responsibilities far and above the basic training operation and probably had lower student/teacher ratios than most other academies across the state. The POST needed additional staff but, out of respect for the Governor’s request to maintain a status quo budget, had not included decision units for new staff in the agency budget request. Mr. Beers concluded that the main problem was that the performance indicators had not reflected the diverse nature of the responsibilities of the agency.
Senator Neal referred to the POST objectives and indicated one objective established minimum professional standards for training police officers. Senator Neal asked how the minimum standards would be developed and what type of input had been received. Mr. Kollar stated the basic training curriculum had been developed over a number of years and included basic skills needed for a professional peace officer. Senator Neal asked if there had been community input in the standards development. Mr. Kollar said minimum standards were set through Nevada Administrative Code (NAC). The POST Commission had the authority to modify standards and reviewed regulations on a regular basis through public workshops and public hearings. There were minimum standards for the actual curriculum and presentation of the academies. However, each academy had the discretion to go beyond the minimum standards. In response to a question posed by Senator Neal, Mr. Kollar said the commission was made up of seven members. The commissioners were appointed by the Governor and included: Mike Murphy, Commander, Las Vegas Detention and Enforcement Division; Jackie Crawford, Director, Department of Prisons; Joseph Callo, Senior Agent, Nevada Gaming Control; John Dodson, Chief, Sparks Police Department; Mike Doyle, Chief Deputy, Juvenile Probation, Douglas County; Sheriff Gene Hill, Humboldt County; and Sheriff Bernie Romero, White Pine County. Senator Neal wondered if there should have been a commissioner that represented the public, and Mr. Kollar stated the composition of the commissioners was currently set in statute.
Senator Jacobsen asked if there was anything at the Stewart Facility that needed attention, i.e., food, dormitories, workout areas, etc. Mr. Clark said the food services were provided by the Services to the Blind. The buildings were rustic, but overall they were adequate – no crises at this time.
Chairman Parks asked the agency to provide the subcommittee with an organization table requested earlier in the meeting by Mr. Beers. Chairman Parks also asked the agency to provide more information on the various programs operated by the POST.
BUDGET ACCOUNT 4733, PUBLIC SAFETY TECHNOLOGY DIVISION
PAGE PS-28
The Chair recognized Richard Kirkland, Director of the Department of Motor Vehicles and Public Safety (DMV&PS), who introduced Alan Rogers, Chief of Public Safety Technology, DMV&PS. Mr. Rogers referred to the handout (see Exhibit C) and read the mission statement of the DMV&PS Technology Division:
This agency has a dual mission to provide technical support and computer resources to users of criminal justice and public safety information throughout the state and to provide full service technical support to Public Safety agencies in the Department of Motor Vehicles and Public Safety by applying sound management principles and technical decisions to resolve problems and by providing resources.
Mr. Rogers testified that Budget Account 4733 provided basic computer services to each public safety division and user fees were charged to each division. Mr. Rogers indicated the public safety computer system was home to the Nevada Criminal Justice Information System (NCJIS), which contained files used by law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges to make decisions to protect Nevada’s citizens. The system was available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Mr. Rogers referred to a chart in the handout (Exhibit C) that detailed the system performance. A key performance indicator was the production of the programming staff. The 11-member programming staff spent approximately 80 percent of their time in new development – a good indication that existing programs had been designed effectively and required very little maintenance. The administrative overhead was also very low. New programs were developed using modern programming tools on state-of-the-art equipment that provided efficient, effective, and timely applications to the users. An example was the completion of the Parole and Probation system. A summary of the projected programming hours for each division was included in the handout (Exhibit C).
Mr. Rogers stated the public safety system was used by every justice agency in the state and many private companies were directly connected for civil applicant purposes. Mr. Rogers referred to a chart (see Exhibit C) that showed increased transaction volume. It was predicted over 200 million messages would be sent and received through the system in 2001. Mr. Rogers referred to the next chart (Exhibit C) that showed the increased number of users over the past ten years. The increase was attributed to the success of the available programs and to the growth of the state. The list included in the handout (Exhibit C) described accomplishments of the DMV&PS technology staff:
Mr. Rogers stated the budgets approved for the last biennium had been sufficient and indicated the Governor had recommended three one-shot appropriations related to computer programs for the next biennium:
Mr. Beers stated the Department of Information Technology (DoIT) had the same licensing issue as DMV&PS and was currently exploring the concept of developing several servers, rather than continuing to upgrade one server. Mr. Beers asked Mr. Rogers if the agency had considered the concept. Mr. Rogers responded that the agency was currently working with DoIT to negotiate Oracle licenses and reduced costs. In response to a question posed by Mr. Beers, Mr. Rogers stated the agency’s Oracle ran on a dual system with four processors in each system and was an Intel-based Unisys server. The current operating system was Windows NT and it was proposed to move to Windows 2000. Mr. Beers asked what measure of server capacity Oracle used to determine licensing fees. John Turcich, Network and Systems Manager, Technology Division, DMV&PS, stated as the speed of the processor, or the number of processors increased, the cost increased dramatically. Mr. Beers asked if the costs increased more for additional processors or increased speed and Mr. Turcich responded there was no difference in the costs. The agency Oracle, located in the data center, was running on a dedicated database server, so Oracle only received payment for actual usage. Mr. Beers asked if the agency had considered locating the server in Las Vegas where 68.8 percent of the use would be. Mr. Turcich stated there was a “hot site” backup in Las Vegas, but the agency had not looked at moving the prime center. Mr. Turcich indicated the agency hoped in the near future to have a query-only copy of the database located in Las Vegas.
Senator Neal asked if the NCJIS was essential to the agency and Mr. Rogers responded in the affirmative. The system provided access to criminal history and criminal justice to all agencies associated with the justice community in the state of Nevada. The system also provided interfaces to all regional and federal criminal justice databases. There were direct ties to California’s justice information. Senator Neal wanted to know why the agency was controlled by the system producers. Mr. Rogers responded that the agency director had selected the system based upon recommendations from the NCJIS Advisory Committee. Senator Neal said it appeared an entity outside of the agency controlled the system. Mr. Kirkland agreed and explained the issue was far beyond the agency’s control.
Chairman Parks indicated some of the agency’s programs went beyond the actual public safety function and were more in the area of the Office of the Courts and the integrated justice system. Chairman Parks asked if the agency received any reimbursements for those programs. Mr. Rogers responded in the affirmative. The programs that coordinated with the courts or other agencies were included in the criminal history budget and were billed through the criminal history repository – the agency that managed the statewide criminal justice activity. Because of the close relationship between law enforcement and the courts, there was a real need for integration of information. Mr. Kirkland reflected that it might not be efficient or effective to charge all participating agencies since those agencies might then generate charges to the DMV&PS.
Chairman Parks referred to the key project proposals the Technology Division developed for the next biennium and asked for comment on those proposals. Mr. Rogers stated, each year the agency’s divisions submitted program requests. The requests were prioritized and the development hours that would be required were incorporated into a plan for the programs with highest priority. Funding included in The Executive Budget was for those projects that reached the top of the priority list. Mr. Rogers stated the criminal history system, which was about ten years old, was the largest project. The system would be moved from the Legacy system to Oracle databases that would provide more functionality and compliance with federal files. Other large projects were the parole and probation program and the citations and accident system.
Chairman Parks asked about the recommended increase in each year of the biennium that would upgrade existing communications circuits by increasing the bandwidth. Mr. Rogers indicated that funding provided by the last legislative session had enabled major improvements to the agency’s circuit systems. As part of the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) project, the system needed to begin transmitting fingerprint and photograph images with criminal history information. The bandwidth required to send images was much greater than text.
Chairman Parks moved to decision unit E-276, and requested more information on the computer system technician recommended. Mr. Rogers stated the Motor Vehicle branch would fund the position. The Technology Division provided a 24‑hour, 7‑day‑a‑week operation center and help desk. The Motor Vehicle branch was currently operating a 24‑hour‑per‑day Web site for registrations, renewals, etc., and wanted the Technology Division to provide support in the off hours. It was determined that the Technology Division could provide that support on a 7‑day‑a‑week basis with the addition of just one position. If Motor Vehicles had to provide the staff, one position for each shift each day of the week plus weekend shifts would be required -- it would take a minimum of four positions to monitor the system. The Technology Division could monitor the system with minimal workload. Chairman Parks indicated the Motor Vehicle branch should provide the funding for the new position. Mr. Rogers indicated Public Safety would provide the support but would bill the Motor Vehicle branch for the services provided. Chairman Parks asked why a 24-hour help desk was necessary for the Motor Vehicle branch and Mr. Rogers stated the primary function would be to monitor the Web site. Mr. Kirkland explained that renewals, registrations, and driver licenses could be renewed on-line and said the system had a great deal of activity 24 hours a day.
Chairman Parks asked for an explanation of decision unit E-277 that recommended approximately $66,000 over the biennium to provide a report‑generation tool. Mr. Rogers stated the funding was needed for software that would enable each division to train staff in report development. The software would eliminate the need for an additional programmer. The Chair asked the agency to provide more detail for decision unit E-278 that requested funding for hardware and software maintenance costs. Chairman Parks asked how the Technology Division would benefit from the consulting services recommended in E-283. Mr. Rogers said the agency would provide the subcommittee with the requested information.
Chairman Parks noted decision unit E-888 recommended one-shot appropriations in excess of $1 million and asked for detail. Mr. Rogers stated the first request was for $338,000 for the federally-mandated software and programming to be installed by July 2002 for continued access to the NCIC system. The second one-shot was $362,233 to convert the Oracle licenses. The final one-shot was $304,355 for the Microsoft operating system. Mr. Kirkland stated the one-shot requests would be removed from the Technology Division budget and included in the Governor’s one-shot list.
In response to a question from the Chair, Mr. Rogers stated the recommended transfer of two programming positions from the Criminal History Repository budget to the technology budget should have occurred last biennium. The Technology Division had provided supervision of the two positions, but because paperwork had not been transferred, the funding for the two positions had remained in Budget Account 4709.
BUDGET ACCOUNT 4728, PUBLIC SAFETY, HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
PAGE PS-59
Chairman Parks moved to Budget Account 4728, Hazardous Materials, and recognized Colonel Michael E. Hood, Chief, Nevada Highway Patrol Division. Colonel Hood testified the Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) currently had 439 sworn and 200 civilian personnel and was a highway-funded organization with two exceptions: 1) dignitary protection, which was funded through the state General Fund; and 2) Criminal History Repository, which was funded by fees. The Nevada Highway Patrol’s sole responsibility was to provide the highest level of professional law enforcement public safety services to Nevada’s citizens and visitors. In accordance with the Governor’s direction, the current budget was held at the same level as the 1999 budget request except five additional positions were requested for maintenance for the new highband radio system. Colonel Hood stated a major problem the NHP faced was retention of qualified personnel. Due to vacancies and continuous staff training, the NHP operated 80 troopers down every year. Colonel Hood also said there was an insufficient pool of applicants. The Executive Budget recommended the consolidation of Budget Account 4728 with Budget Account 4713, the main NHP account. No new requests were recommended for Budget Account 4728. Chairman Parks stated highway funds were used for the hazardous materials function and asked if the consolidation with the main NHP budget account would jeopardize the funding. Colonel Hood answered in the negative and indicated hazardous material enforcement was conducted by all of the commercial enforcement section and sometimes by traffic officers, not just the 15 positions in Budget Account 4728. Colonel Hood indicated his support for consolidating the two budget accounts.
Mrs. Chowning indicated 15 officers was not very many even with the assistance of the traffic officers and voiced concern about the number of inspections that were conducted. The performance indicators did not reflect how many transporters were licensed versus how many were inspected. More and more hazardous waste was being transported on Nevada’s roads, in some cases illegally. Mrs. Chowning asked for the agency’s input as to what had been accomplished and what indicators would be provided in the future. Colonel Hood indicated the agency did not know how many low-level shipments came through Nevada because those shipments were not regulated. The agency could provide fairly accurate information on the number of high-level shipments. Mr. Kirkland stated neither federal nor state regulations required transporters to report low-level shipments. Mr. Kirkland asserted it was difficult to perform at the expected levels when the agency was down 80 people at any given time. The agency currently had 13 trained troopers that had applied to southern Nevada law enforcement agencies. Mrs. Chowning affirmed the staffing shortage was a crisis -- Nevada’s citizens had been placed in jeopardy because hazardous shipments traveled through the state, rules were not followed, and there was a lack of personnel.
Senator O’Donnell recalled that two years ago it was suggested vacancy savings be used. DMV and NHP staffs were cut, vacancy savings funds were used in other areas and both agencies were basically stripped. The price was now being paid for those decisions. Senator O’Donnell recommended the subcommittee look at making DMV and NHP whole. The NHP was very instrumental in saving lives and was available for those needing assistance. Senator O’Donnell stated the vacancy savings problems seemed to be exacerbated by the fact people were leaving the department and asked how many more positions were needed to return to the staffing levels of two years ago. Mr. Kirkland stated the agency did not currently have that information. The agency was in the process of trying to determine the demand for services and would provide the information to the subcommittee within the next week to ten days. There had been a problem with gathering the statistics. Colonel Hood indicated 271 troopers were authorized but the fact remained, the agency was operating 80 troopers down. Senator O’Donnell asked if the agency was able to hire individuals and Colonel Hood referred to the chart in Exhibit D that showed the applications were also down. Ten years ago there had been over 1,000 applicants and in January 2000, there had been only 345 applicants statewide for the highway patrol. Out of the 345 applicants, only 95 tested and 50 of those failed the test. Colonel Hood stated applicants could earn $10,000 to $12,000 more in local government law enforcement agencies. Senator O’Donnell asked if increased salaries would help. Mr. Kirkland indicated if the NHP salaries were increased, then all other state employees would want increased salaries. Mr. Kirkland stated the NHP officer salaries started at $28,000 and the troopers were required to pay their retirement. An officer employed by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department had a starting salary of approximately $43,000.
Mr. Perkins stated all law enforcement agencies were experiencing a lack of applicants. The Henderson Police Department had between 1,000 and 1,200 applicants two or three years ago and currently had between 300 and 400. Mr. Perkins thought the shortage was partially due to the full employment economy and partially due to some of the issues in the law enforcement industry over the past few years. This was one of the bigger issues that had to be addressed at the both the state and local levels.
Senator Neal expressed his respect for the troopers and stated the troopers were the representatives of the state of Nevada when on duty and should be sufficiently compensated.
Chairman Parks informed Mr. Kirkland and Colonel Hood that during the legislative session break he had served 13 months as foreman of the Clark County Grand Jury. In that time, various law enforcement agencies appeared in front of the Grand Jury, and, time after time, the jury members had very favorable comments as to the testimony, the demeanor, and appearance of all the Highway Patrol officers. Chairman Parks felt the NHP officers stood out above the other law enforcement officers.
Mr. Kirkland stated the handout (Exhibit D) included statistics that indicated the troopers, despite the numbers being significantly down, were doing an outstanding job. Traffic accidents were down, citations were up, driving under the influence (DUI) accidents were down and DUI arrests were up. Mr. Kirkland was concerned troopers were getting burned out due to the volume of work.
Colonel Hood explained the statistics in the handout (Exhibit D) were in the NHP jurisdiction. He then referred to the statistics:
Mrs. Chowning indicated the presence of the NHP at statewide events was important. There were several bills related to trading roads from the state to locals and asked Colonel Hood’s opinion. Colonel Hood stated the NHP had entered into Memos of Understanding with local law enforcement agencies. Last year the NHP gave up the Tropicana, Paradise, and the strip in Las Vegas that allowed the troopers to patrol the freeways and highways. However, the NHP also had new roads to patrol. Mr. Kirkland stated part of the agreement with giving up some roads was for the NHP to assume some responsibilities that were difficult for the locals. Senator Jacobsen indicated there was a bill that would lower the truck speed limit to 65 miles per hour and wondered if that would be helpful. Colonel Hood indicated he could not respond to Senator Jacobsen’s question since he had not studied the results of reduced speed limits for trucks. Mr. Kirkland stated the trucking industry had concerns that the reduced staff affected the ability of the agency to inspect, enforce, and cite. The agency was down one major, a couple of captains, and was reticent to fill those positions since that would mean pulling another patrolman out of a patrol car. Senator Neal stated the reduction in speed for trucks pulling triples would reduce a great deal of road wear.
Mr. Kirkland responded to Senator Neal’s concern, expressed earlier in the meeting, related to racial profiling. He said the NHP had instituted a logging process, a tracking process, and a training program that addressed racial profiling. Mr. Kirkland indicated he would provide the subcommittee with a copy of the program, the report, and the analysis. Senator Neal expressed his appreciation to Mr. Kirkland for the professionalism he brought to the agency.
BUDGET ACCOUNT 4709, PUBLIC SAFETY, CRIMINAL HISTORY REPOSITORY
PAGE PS-65
Chairman Parks referred to Budget Account 4709, Criminal History Repository, and stated one of the performance indicators indicated only 17 percent of criminal fingerprints were processed within ten working days. Jeff Artz, Technical Services Supervisor, DMV&PS, explained a brand-new Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) was implemented in the Criminal History Repository. The AFIS was not operational until 35 days into FY2000. Although the fingerprints were not processed in a timely fashion, over 15,000 more fingerprints were processed than scheduled for the fiscal year. The live-scan fingerprinting devices located in the jails throughout the state had the ability to submit electronic fingerprints to the repository. Over the past two months, instead of processing fingerprints within 10 working days, the agency processed approximately 75 percent within a 24-hour period because interfaces were established. Senator Neal asked if there was still a hard card backup of the fingerprints. Mr. Artz responded the agency still maintained the hard card backup but eventually there would be a paperless system. Mr. Beers asked if the other 25 percent would be addressed with the additional automated collection devices and Mr. Artz affirmed. The agency was in the process of adding five new scanning systems to the network and probably in late summer or early fall two more would be added. The goal was to cover every county jail within the state. There would be a few small city jails that would not have the live scan technology due to insufficient revenues. Mr. Artz indicated some of the small jails might generate one or two arrests per day. Mr. Beers asked when the next phase of implementing the computer system would be completed. What percentage of fingerprints would come from outside the system? Mr. Artz indicated the projection for automatically uploading electronic fingerprints to the AFIS was in excess of 95 percent. Mr. Kirkland invited the subcommittee to tour law enforcement agencies within their area to review the system. Senator Neal asked if there was a dual filing of all the prints to the agency and to the FBI. Mr. Artz said with the live-scan and AFIS the fingerprints would be processed within a matter of hours, and then electronically transmitted to the FBI. The FBI would then process the fingerprint and respond back to the booking agency.
Mr. Marvel asked if the civil fingerprint checks had impacted the agency. Mr. Artz indicated the civil fingerprints were processed the same as the criminal fingerprints. The agency was looking at some agencies that currently had live‑scan technology in their civil sections and some of those agencies would be brought in through interface directly to the AFIS. Mr. Artz indicated fingerprint checks were made on all child services staff and all teachers as mandated by statute. In response to a question posed by Mr. Beers, Mr. Artz stated the state owned the AFIS database, but the actual database was located in Sacramento, California. Sharing of resources within the network would be eliminated if Nevada purchased an AFIS database. Nevada, with some additional computer manipulations, had access to the records in California and the state of Washington. However, in addition to Nevada records, Wyoming, Utah, Alaska, Oregon, Montana and Idaho records could automatically be accessed. There was also access to some high-profile felons through an interface to the immigration service in San Diego, California. Chairman Parks indicated he had witnessed the AFIS program and was very impressed with the system.
Chairman Parks moved to the Civil Name Check program and asked what impact the Virtual Private Network had on the volume of transactions. Mr. Artz stated the Virtual Private Network was not yet operational because the equipment had not been received until late February 2001. Users had been advised of the hardware and software requirements, and Mr. Artz indicated the system should be operational around the first of April 2001. The network would add numerous transaction counts and provide increased revenue. Chairman Parks wondered why projected revenues were developed based on a transaction volume of 72,228, while the projected performance indicators reflected 80,000 transactions. Mr. Artz stated there had been a communication problem in southern Nevada. Dedicated telephone lines were used for the Civil Name Check program located in the DMV&PS Sahara office. Additional ports were required but could not be installed without tearing up the office parking lot. The agency was forced to go to the Virtual Private Network in order to add users to the program and that process required additional revenue.
Chairman Parks asked the agency to comment on the base increase in the administrative court assessments recommended in the budget. Carol English, Assistant Chief, Administrative Services Division, DMV&PS, stated the budget moved all court assessments into the base budget. Decision units were funded out of reductions to reserve. Approximately $1 million of court assessments went to the NHP in FY2001. Ms. English said some of the billings for the statewide use of the law enforcement network went to the NHP and some went to the repository. The budget moved court assessments out of the NHP into the repository budget.
Chairman Parks stated decision unit E-900 recommended the transfer of two information system specialist positions to the Technology Division and understood the positions would be dedicated to the continued development of the Civil Name Check program.
Chairman Parks referred to decision unit E-912 which proposed a transfer of positions from Parole and Probation to the Criminal History Repository. Chairman Parks wondered if the positions performed an integral function that enabled Parole and Probation to meet the statutory requirement for registration of sex offenders. Mr. Artz stated E-226 and E-912 were two maintenance items that transferred personnel from Budget Account 3740, Parole and Probation, to Budget Account 4709, Criminal History Repository, for the sex offender registration program. The transfer was recommended because there was a great deal of redundancy, i.e., records research, maintenance, dissemination, and data entry. By combining the two groups, the record research would be performed once and registration information would be immediately available. The funding for the two positions would be transferred to court assessments.
BUDGET ACCOUNT 4738, PUBLIC SAFETY, DIGNITARY PROTECTION
PAGE PS-73
Chairman Parks moved to Budget Account 4738, Dignitary Protection, and asked what impact the vacancy of the sergeant’s position had had on the agency operation over the past year. Colonel Hood stated the agency had attempted to fill the position and had looked at both selective and open recruitments. Mr. Kirkland indicated the Governor had an interest in the position and might suggest some special legislation. The agency would wait until after the current legislative session to proceed with the recruitment. Mr. Kirkland also stated the Governor wanted to be comfortable with the individual who served as sergeant.
BUDGET ACCOUNT 4713, PUBLIC SAFETY, HIGHWAY PATROL
PAGE PS-78
Chairman Parks moved to Budget Account 4713 and asked for comment on the NHP response times. The actual response times for FY2000 were under the projected numbers included in the performance indicators. Colonel Hood stated 80 vacant positions had made it difficult to maintain response times. Mr. Kirkland indicated his preference for a performance indicator that was linked to staffing. Chairman Parks was concerned with the VHF Highband Radio Project. Colonel Hood stated the project was on track and would be completed in June of 2001. The project was currently operational in southern Nevada and the agency was operating within the approved budget. Senator Neal asked if there were any “dead areas” where patrolmen could not be contacted. Colonel Hood stated the old system had numerous dead areas, but the new state‑of‑the‑art system would be one of the best in the country. The dead spots were very minimal and repairs could be made quickly and inexpensively. Senator O’Donnell asked if the agency was happy with the system and Colonel Hood answered in the affirmative and stated the system had been very economical to purchase. Colonel Hood thought if the agency had not gone with the highband system, more funding would have been required. Utah had selected another system with an estimated cost of $14 million – the system ended up at $45 million. Mr. Kirkland stated he had not been involved in the initial process of selecting a system, but had been involved in Washoe County, as Sheriff, in purchasing a system. That system had begun as a $9 million, 800-megahertz system just for Washoe County and was currently a $14 million system. Mr. Kirkland thought the 800-megahertz system was a better system and thought the state should also have purchased the system. The system would have made inter-operability better, but it would also have been much more expensive. Senator Jacobsen asked if the agency had experienced any interference with the fire service while using the new system and Colonel Hood responded in the negative. Chairman Parks said the highway funds had been used to support the highband radio system. It appeared the system provided uses for non-highway funded divisions and Chairman Parks wondered if that would violate the constitutional use of highway funds. Carol English did not understand the question and Chairman Parks said he would ask staff for clarification and would get back to Ms. English.
Chairman Parks moved to decision unit E-300 and stated a substantial increase in expenditures was recommended in the budget, i.e., the T-1 telephone lines. Colonel Hood said the new system required additional maintenance. Mountaintop locations had increased from 36 to 56; transmitters had increased from 36 to 160; and portables and mobiles had increased from 600 to 2,000. Colonel Hood indicated the additional funding would be used for ongoing maintenance of the new system. Senator Jacobsen asked if the agency had considered protection from vandals, and Colonel Hood answered that a few sites had been vandalized but there had not been a serious problem. Senator Jacobsen thought if vandalism increased, stricter penalties would be required.
Chairman Parks said staff would have to work with Carol English regarding the remaining budget questions on E-710 and E-720 decision units. Chairman Parks asked how the security system would operate if the proposed department split was approved and also asked the rationale for moving contract expenses to other budget accounts. Carol English stated an upgrade for the security system was included in the one-shot list. Ongoing costs were currently allocated to each branch and with the split, the costs would have to be divided between the two departments. Chairman Parks asked about the enforcement of dyed fuel, an off-road fuel, and recognized there was a potential loss of significant revenue. Mr. Kirkland stated the agency had done a great deal of work in the area, with limited resources, and stated a detailed follow-up report would be provided to the subcommittee. Colonel Hood said the agency had dedicated a supervisory position to study the current program. The sergeant position traversed the state and assured the different duty stations were up and reporting by properly citing dyed fuel – the laws were being enforced. Colonel Hood stated the commercial enforcement program had been reorganized and was currently centrally controlled through headquarters.
The Chair recognized Daryl E. Capurro, Managing Director of the Nevada Motor Transport Association. Mr. Capurro voiced his concern over the loss of personnel and the inability to recruit personnel into the NHP. Mr. Capurro was concerned that splitting the Department of Public Safety and Department of Motor Vehicles would move the commercial enforcement farther away from the current place. Currently the NHP was part of the DMV&PS, a division or bureau within that department. A split would mean the enforcement arm would be totally out of the mix with respect to the motor carrier administration, regulation, information collection, and funding for the international registration plan and the international fuel tax agreement – a series of programs that had some federal mandates and some federal funding. Communication was currently difficult and the association was concerned how the communication and support would be if the department was split. Mr. Capurro voiced the association’s concern with respect to the use of available resources and stated the centralization of command in Carson City was long overdue. Mr. Capurro stated one problem was the virtual normal use of commercial enforcement officers in traffic duties, primarily during the midnight shifts. Commercial enforcement staff had a level of training over and above what was required for other enforcement staff. Commercial enforcement staff had to be trained in dyed fuel, commercial vehicle safety inspection procedures, and all areas that supported motor carrier activity. There were instances when those trained in commercial enforcement were moved into traffic enforcement. Mr. Capurro said the cost to train a motor carrier officer was in excess of $50,000 and ranged up to $100,000, depending on the training received. Mr. Capurro wanted a specific table of organization within the NHP that indicated the duties of both traffic and commercial enforcement. Mr. Capurro reasoned, an industry that contributed between 35 and 40 percent to the Highway Fund had to make certain the commercial portion was handled adequately. The association also believed that dyed fuel enforcement needed to be expanded. Other states had found that the evasion of taxes through use of dyed fuel on road applications had significantly reduced Highway Fund revenues and Mr. Capurro thought Nevada had also lost significant revenue.
Mr. Capurro stressed that the association had a good working relationship with the DMV&PS and echoed the comments made by the subcommittee that being down 80 positions was critical, but robbing the resources of commercial enforcement to support traffic enforcement was not proper. The legislature needed to address the issue of the lack of troopers and the insufficient compensation. Mr. Marvel asked if the new Transportation Service Authority (TSA) had any regulatory powers. Mr. Capurro stated, 17 years ago a former Highway Patrol chief convinced the legislature there would be better coverage if the motor carrier enforcement was combined with the commercial enforcement arm of the NHP and all troopers would work with commercial enforcement. The recommendation sounded good, looked good, but it did not work and, in Mr. Capurro’s opinion, still did not work. Mr. Marvel asked if the TSA was still involved and Mr. Capurro stated the TSA was a separate agency and had nothing to do with the NHP or commercial enforcement.
Mr. Kirkland indicated DMV&PS did not disagree with Mr. Capurro and stated he had made some very good points. Mr. Kirkland expressed his willingness to discuss the issue of splitting motor carrier functions and stated the agency continued to struggle to get a better control of the issues that Mr. Capurro had addressed. Previously, 70 percent of the commercial enforcement time had been used for traffic functions and that was not currently the case.
Gary Wolff, Highway Patrol Association Representative, thanked the committee for the concerns on behalf of the troopers and applauded the DMV&PS for supporting the troopers. Mr. Wolff assured the members there were serious problems that needed to be addressed, but the men and women of the NHP were very dedicated and would perform at the highest level.
Chairman Parks adjourned the hearing at 10:57 a.m.
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED:
___________________________
Linda J. Smith
Committee Secretary
APPROVED BY:
Assemblyman David R. Parks, Chairman
DATE: