Senate Bill No. 138–Committee on Finance

 

(On Behalf of Colorado River Commission)

 

February 15, 2001

____________

 

Referred to Committee on Finance

 

SUMMARY—Exempts Colorado River commission from State Budget Act. (BDR 31‑344)

 

FISCAL NOTE:            Effect on Local Government: No.

                                    Effect on the State: No.

 

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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.

 

AN ACT relating to the Colorado River commission; exempting the commission from the provisions of the State Budget Act; requiring submission of the commission’s proposed budget to the chief of the budget division of the department of administration for his information in preparing the proposed executive budget; establishing the format in which the budget of the commission must be submitted to the legislature and the basis for information concerning future state revenue in that budget; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

1-1    Section 1. NRS 353.210 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1-2    353.210  1.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 6, on or

1-3  before August 15 of each even-numbered year, all departments, institutions

1-4  and other agencies of the executive department of the state government,

1-5  and all agencies of the executive department of the state government

1-6  receiving state money, fees or other money under the authority of the state,

1-7  including those operating on money designated for specific purposes by the

1-8  constitution or otherwise, shall prepare, on blanks furnished them by the

1-9  chief, and submit to the chief estimates of their expenditure requirements,

1-10  together with all anticipated income from fees and all other sources, for the

1-11  next 2 fiscal years compared with the corresponding figures of the last

1-12  completed fiscal year and the estimated figures for the current fiscal year.

1-13    2.  The chief shall direct that one copy of the forms submitted pursuant

1-14  to subsection 1, accompanied by every supporting schedule and any other

1-15  related material, be delivered directly to the fiscal analysis division of the

1-16  legislative counsel bureau on or before August 15 of each even-numbered

1-17  year.

2-1    3.  The budget division of the department of administration shall give

2-2  advance notice to the fiscal analysis division of the legislative counsel

2-3  bureau of any conference between the budget division of the department of

2-4  administration and personnel of other state agencies regarding budget

2-5  estimates. A fiscal analyst of the legislative counsel bureau or his

2-6  designated representative may attend any such conference.

2-7    4.  The estimates of expenditure requirements submitted pursuant to

2-8  subsection 1 must be classified to set forth the data of funds, organizational

2-9  units, and the character and objects of expenditures, and must include a

2-10  mission statement and measurement indicators for each program. The

2-11  organizational units may be subclassified by functions and activities, or in

2-12  any other manner at the discretion of the chief.

2-13    5.  If any department, institution or other agency of the executive

2-14  department of the state government, whether its money is derived from

2-15  state money or from other money collected under the authority of the state,

2-16  fails or neglects to submit estimates of its expenditure requirements as

2-17  provided in this section, the chief may, from any data at hand in his office

2-18  or which he may examine or obtain elsewhere, make and enter a proposed

2-19  budget for the department, institution or agency in accordance with the

2-20  data.

2-21    6.  Agencies, bureaus, commissions and officers of the legislative

2-22  department[, the public employees’ retirement system] and the judicial

2-23  department of the state government , the public employees’ retirement

2-24  system and the Colorado River commission shall submit to the chief for

2-25  his information in preparing the proposed executive budget the budgets

2-26  which they propose to submit to the legislature.

2-27    Sec. 2.  NRS 353.246 is hereby amended to read as follows:

2-28    353.246  1.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2 of this

2-29  section and subsection 6 of NRS 353.210, the provisions of NRS 353.150

2-30  to 353.245, inclusive, do not apply to :

2-31    (a) The agencies, bureaus, commissions and officers of the legislative

2-32  department[, the public employees’ retirement system] and the judicial

2-33  department of the state government.

2-34    (b) The public employees’ retirement system and the officers and

2-35  employees thereof.

2-36    (c) The Colorado River commission and the officers and employees

2-37  thereof.

2-38    2.  The legislative department[, the public employees’ retirement

2-39  system] and the judicial department of the state government , the public

2-40  employees’ retirement system and the Colorado River commission shall

2-41  submit their budgets to the legislature in the same format as the proposed

2-42  executive budget unless otherwise provided by the legislative commission.

2-43  All projections of revenue and any other information concerning future

2-44  state revenue contained in those budgets must be based upon the

2-45  projections and estimates prepared by the economic forum pursuant to

2-46  NRS 353.228.

2-47    Sec. 3.  NRS 538.226 is hereby amended to read as follows:

2-48    538.226  1.  The commission shall prepare and approve a water

2-49  administrative and operating budget. The budget must include all costs and

3-1  expenses incurred by the commission in performing its functions and duties

3-2  relating to water, except:

3-3    (a) The costs and expenses related to any financial obligations or other

3-4  obligations assumed by the commission pursuant to any agreement

3-5  described in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection 6 of NRS 538.161.

3-6    (b) The costs for any services of an independent contractor related to a

3-7  specific opportunity to negotiate and enter into an agreement to acquire any

3-8  interest in supplemental water from one or more particular sources, to the

3-9  extent all those costs for those opportunities during the period covered by

3-10  the budget exceed $200,000. This amount may be decreased or increased

3-11  as indicated by engineering cost indexes or other cost indexes which are

3-12  applicable to the services used by the commission.

3-13    (c) The costs for any services of an independent contractor or costs

3-14  contributed by the commission for any services of a governmental agency

3-15  or its independent contractor, other than the commission, for studies or the

3-16  implementation of projects relating to water quality, evaluation or

3-17  enhancement of ecological habitat or weather modification, to the extent

3-18  that all those costs for those studies or projects during the period covered

3-19  by the budget exceed $250,000. This amount may be decreased or

3-20  increased as indicated by engineering cost indexes or other cost indexes

3-21  which are applicable to the services used by the commission.

3-22    (d) Costs which are capitalized in accordance with generally accepted

3-23  accounting principles, except costs for office space and equipment required

3-24  for the principal place of business of the commission.

3-25    (e) Costs for the operation of any facility which belongs to the

3-26  commission, except the principal place of business of the commission.

3-27    2.  The water administrative and operating budget, and any changes to

3-28  the budget, must be submitted for the authorization [in the manner

3-29  prescribed by the State Budget Act.] of the legislature. If the budget is

3-30  authorized, the budget is payable by, and becomes a liability of, each water

3-31  purveyor in the amount, if any, to which the budget is allocated to that

3-32  water purveyor pursuant to subsection 3.

3-33    3.  The commission shall allocate the entire amount of each water

3-34  administrative and operating budget, minus the portion of that amount

3-35  which represents the net revenues which the commission estimates it will

3-36  receive pursuant to its contracts from the sale of water during the period

3-37  covered by the budget, among those water purveyors which the

3-38  commission determines will directly and substantially benefit from the

3-39  commission’s activities which are related to water during that period. In

3-40  determining the allocation, the commission shall consider appropriate

3-41  factors relevant to those benefits. If a water purveyor ceases to exist during

3-42  the period covered by the budget, the commission shall amend and

3-43  reallocate the budget as necessary.

3-44    4.  In each fiscal year covered by the water administrative and

3-45  operating budget, each water purveyor to which the commission has

3-46  allocated an amount of the budget pursuant to subsection 3 shall pay to the

3-47  commission quarterly a portion of the water purveyor’s total liability for

3-48  that fiscal year as billed by the commission. At least 60 days before the

3-49  first day of the quarter for which the bill is prepared, the commission shall

4-1  submit to each water purveyor a bill for its portion of the total amount of

4-2  the budget due for that quarter. Each water purveyor shall pay its bill

4-3  within 30 days after the bill is submitted by the commission.

4-4    5.  Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the commission

4-5  shall apply, within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year, any

4-6  unexpended balance in the budget at the close of the fiscal year as a credit

4-7  to that amount allocated among the water purveyors pursuant to subsection

4-8  3 for the next fiscal year. The commission shall apply that credit to the next

4-9  quarterly payments remaining due from each water purveyor, unless the

4-10  commission determines it is appropriate to refund the unexpended balance.

4-11    6.  If in any fiscal year the money payable by a water purveyor

4-12  pursuant to subsection 4 is not received by the commission when due, that

4-13  money also becomes the several liability of all public entities who:

4-14    (a) Purvey water; and

4-15    (b) On the date the budget was approved by the commission, were

4-16  members of the water purveyor liable for that money,

4-17  in proportion to their liability for the budget of the water purveyor effective

4-18  on the date the budget was approved by the commission.

4-19    Sec. 4.  This act becomes effective on July 1, 2001.

 

4-20  H