Catherine Nielson, the executive director of the Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities and a member of the Nevada Employment First Task Force, speaking to a legislative committee last week. (Legislative stream screengrab).

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Advocates are pushing Gov. Joe Lombardo to embrace “Employment First” policies that assist people with disabilities in finding and keeping paying jobs.

Catherine Nielsen, the executive director of the Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities and a member of the Nevada Employment First Task Force, told state lawmakers last week that the policy groups are in conversation with the first-term governor’s office to embrace the designation, which could be established via an executive order.

“Gov. (Brian) Sandoval did sign an employment first initiative several years ago,” Nielsen told lawmakers on the interim Legislative Committee on Senior Citizens, Veterans and Adults With Special Needs. “That was not carried through Gov. (Steve) Sisolak’s time in office. We are hopeful Gov. Lombardo — seeing as supportive as he is of employing the state of Nevada — will continue to support that effort.”

The Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities is housed within the state’s Department of Health and Human Services but is self-governed and independently authorized by the Federal Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act. That federal act covers 75% of the council’s budget, with the remainder coming from state general funds, according to Nielsen.

Nielsen has been with the council since 2016 and executive director since 2021. The council has five employees and one intern; it spent approximately $800,000 on grants, contracts and operations last fiscal year, according to its most recent annual report.

Ongoing areas of concern identified by the council include employment, health, education, transportation and housing. Specific issues identified through surveys and outreach include the state’s long wait lists for services, inadequate transition services for young adults coming out of school-based care, and gaps in support for getting and keeping a paying job.

Employment First policies vary in scope but all center around the shared belief that “employment in the general workforce should be the first and preferred option for individuals with disabilities receiving assistance from publicly funded systems,” according to the Association of People Supporting Employment First (APSE), a national organization pushing the policy.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 30% of Nevada adults — 742,000 people — have some kind of disability. Those can include physical (14%), cognitive (14%), hearing (7%), and vision (6%) disabilities.

An estimated 8% of Nevada adults — 200,000 people — have an independent living disability.

In addition to its work on employment, the council is also working with the state’s Division of Emergency Management to address disability inclusion within emergency preparedness plans.

“The last time we had a mass shooting at the end of last year there was a student with disabilities who was left in the building unplanned for,” Nielsen said, referring to the on-campus shooting at UNLV on Dec. 6 that killed three faculty members. “We are working with UNLV to make sure that never happens again.”

The council is currently conducting surveys of disabled Nevadans to update its insight, which they will use to recommend policies to the Legislature and governor. The survey will close in January 2025 but reopen in the spring as the council begins drafting its next five-year state plan.

Nielsen said one area of concern emerging from the more than 200 surveys already completed is accessibility of recreational activities.

“Recreational activities aren’t just about going out and having fun,” she continued. “They build a sense of community, networking and skills that cannot be taught in a lot of other settings.”

Icy reception

Nielsen offered some suggestions to the Nevada State Legislature itself, saying there was room for improved accessibility during hearings: “There have been many, many times that we have had people who are deaf and hard of hearing come to the Legislature, request an interpreter … and they remove the interpreter from the screen at various parts of the hearing, especially when it comes to your votes on the floor.”

She continued, “We encourage you, we beg you, to please increase accessibility. Provide interpreters and provide them all the time. … Imagine what it’s like to come to this room and sit in silence and not have any idea what you’re talking about.”

Nielsen’s comments received an icy reception from a pair of Democratic lawmakers who suggested she was offering complaints but no solutions.

“I heard a whole lot of criticisms and not a lot of solutions,” said state Sen. Marilyn Dondero Loop (D-Las Vegas), who suggested “the last 20 minutes” of Nielsen’s hour-long presentation had been critiques.

Dondero Loop pointed out that the Legislature does not have a staff and suggested it should be on the council to reach out and offer interpreters for important upcoming meetings. She also suggested the council consider funding a dedicated school for the deaf that had been requested by earlier presenters during the hearing.

Nielsen responded that her office would be happy to do what they could, but she pushed back on the characterization of her comments as criticism from her or her office directly.

“As much as they may seem like criticisms, it’s not our voices,” she said. “This is the community that has brought these concerns to us. We’re just the people that, unfortunately, have to deliver that bad news, and (we) sometimes have to say this is what your community is saying. … They have concerns.”

She added, “It’s not criticism. It’s passion. It’s their families.”

Nielsen was also rebuked for suggesting the current language of the Nevada State Constitution is “disrespectful and demeaning.”

State Sen. Pat Spearman (D-North Las Vegas), who chairs the interim committee, told Nielsen she should look at the Nevada Equal Rights Amendment, which was proposed by the Legislature in 2017 and passed by voters in 2020, suggesting that it had addressed those issues.

“It is the most expansive Equal Rights Amendment in the country, and that’s not my saying, that’s other people saying,” said Spearman.

But Nielsen was referring to language in the Nevada State Constitution that describes people as “deaf and dumb” and “insane.”

Assembly Joint Resolution 1, which was unanimously passed by the Legislature in 2021 and 2023, proposes removing that language. It will appear before voters as Question 2 on this year’s general election ballot. 

If that ballot measure is approved by voters, “insane” would change to “persons with significant mental illness,” “blind” to “persons who are blind or visually impaired,” and “deaf and dumb” to “persons who are deaf or hard of hearing.”

Spearman also took issue with Nielsen suggesting that the lack of interpreters was likely a budget issue for the Legislature, saying that the Legislature’s budget is done in conjunction with the governor’s office.

[Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Catherine Nielsen’s name.]

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(Photo: April Corbin Girnus/Nevada Current)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

The Nevada Democratic Senate Caucus, which has a credible chance of winning a veto-proof majority this year, has yet to endorse a candidate in Senate District 18, while Republicans in the primary race have a sizable lead on fundraising, endorsements and party support from Gov. Joe Lombardo. 

The district, which was left vacant after the term-limited Republican State Sen. Scott Hammond resigned in October, was previously considered a solidly red district in past elections. 

Democrats redrew the district in 2021 and made it more competitive. 

SD 18 currently has 30,866 active registered Democrats, 33,663 active registered Republicans and 32,729 active registered nonpartisans.

Former Clark County Fire Department Chief John Steinbeck, who is endorsed by Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, Assemblyman Richard McArthur, and businessman Josh Leavitt, who is endorsed by Hammond, are running in the Republican primary. 

Steinbeck has raised $69,542, according to campaign finance reports. Leavitt has raised $17,875, and McArthur has raised $21,000.

On the Democratic side, Ronald Bilodeau, who finished a distant second in the SD 18 Democratic primary in 2020, and first-time candidates Iman Joseph and Donald Connors have reported no campaign contributions.

The Nevada Senate Democratic Caucus has not endorsed any of the three Democratic candidates ahead of the June 11 primary.

“SD 18 is on our list of emerging districts and one we’ll continue to monitor as we enter the General Election,” Greg Lademann, the executive director for the Nevada Senate Democratic Caucus, said via email.

Nevada Current also asked the caucus how it planned to be competitive in SD 18, in a campaign cycle with a veto-proof majority on the line, if Democratic candidates aren’t raising money?

The caucus declined to answer. 

Meanwhile, Connors and Bilodeau said they have yet to make any connections with the caucus. Joseph was unavailable for comment.

Further underscoring a seeming indifference to the district from Democratic officials and stalwarts, groups typically aligned with Democrats are making endorsements – not in the Democratic primary, but in the Republican one.

Leavitt has received a primary endorsement from the Nevada Conservation League while Steinbeck received one from the AFL-CIO. 

Both Leavitt and Steinbeck were the only Republican Senate candidates to receive endorsements from either group. 

The last time the district was contested – prior to redistricting – when Republicans held a far greater voter registration advantage in SD 18, the Nevada Democratic Senate Caucus endorsed Liz Becker months ahead of the primary. 

Less than 11,000 people voted in that primary in which Becker crushed Bilodeau, receiving nearly 90% of the vote.

Hammond won the seat in the general election with 56% of the vote.

With the Republican voter registration edge narrowed after redistricting, Republican primary candidates acknowledge the seat is more competitive than in prior campaign cycles.

“Both sides have a big stake in SD 18 going one way or another,” Leavitt said.

Steinbeck said the district won’t be an easy win. 

“Republicans do outnumber the Democrats in that area but independents are even with Republicans almost,” he said referring to nonpartisan voters. The Republican nominee will have to  “appeal across the aisle and certainly to the independents to win this seat,” Steinbeck predicted.

McArthur didn’t respond to requests for comment. 

On the Democratic side, Connors also views the seat as “very competitive.” While Democratic voter registration still lags both Republicans and nonpartisans, “the numbers aren’t that bad,” he said. 

“I am stunned Democrats haven’t done more to select a candidate,” he said. “This is one of the seats that if they actually do win it, and I think it’s very winnable all things being equal, this would make them a veto-proof legislature.”

Democrats already hold a veto-proof majority in the Nevada Assembly, and hope to retain it after the November election. Combined with a veto-proof Senate, Democratic lawmakers could enact a legislative agenda and/or stymie that of Gov. Joe Lombardo.

But both Connors and Bilodeau said they’d prefer Democrats use the process of compromise and finding bipartisan solutions rather than just relying on veto overrides. 

Bilodeau said since the Republicans have already garnered a lot of support “it is going to be an uphill battle” to be competitive in the race going into the general election.

“I hope after the primary (the Nevada Senate Democratic Caucus) will jump in and say, ‘hey, we want to challenge the Republicans,” he said. “That’s yet to be seen. I’m waiting to see what happens.”

‘Cherry picking who they want’

Leavitt criticized Lombardo’s endorsement of Steinbeck and is arguing that he is a better choice to ensure the district remains a Republican seat. 

“I think it’s pretty well known that the Lombardo machine is cherry picking who they want as loyalists to be up there,” he said. “I look at that and I think that is the wrong approach. Legislators need to work for the people and not the governor.”

Leavitt added that there has been “pressure that has been put on me to drop out from a variety of people aligned with the governor.” Leavitt declined to name names.

Steinbeck pushed back, saying if elected he’s not going to be a Lombardo “yes man.”

“The governor asked me to come up there because he knows how effective I am,” he said. “He understands I’m effective at making policy and also at getting a group of people to work in a cohesive manner and find compromise. He didn’t ask me so that he could run to control me. He asked me to run so I could be an asset.”

Leavitt said a 2011 investigation of Clark County firefighters abusing sick leave and overtime pay could make Steinbeck, the former fire chief, vulnerable to Republican attacks. 

“I think Lombardo’s team made an error and miscalculated when choosing who was their loyalist,” Leavitt said. “They completely forgot that 2011 firefighter scandal.”

Leavitt pointed to information on Transparent Nevada that shows Steinbeck’s base pay in 2009 was $71,346 and overtime pay was $80,515.

“This is something that could be brought to attention and put Republicans at risk,” he added.

Steinbeck dismissed Leavitt’s claim, saying he wasn’t the chief of the department at that time, and that while others were disciplined, he wasn’t one of them. 

“I have no discipline for overtime within my entire career or improper use of sick leave for my entire career,” he said. “He’s grasping for straws on that.”

And if Democrats do win a veto-proof majority?

Steinbeck said one of his “biggest concerns about a veto-proof majority is to see some of the policies come through that the governor has already had to veto.” 

That included Assembly Bill 298, which capped rents at 10% for one year for seniors older than  62 and Nevadans relying on disability insurance benefits

He also worried Democrats would enact criminal justice reforms. 

“When we take a look at L.A, Portland, Seattle and the law enforcement posture they’ve taken in those cities and the incredible detrimental effects that’s had, my fear is that kind of policy could be pushed here,” Steinbeck said.

Leavitt said he understands wanting to protect the power of the governor’s veto. However, he said wants to focus more on finding compromise on legislation, saying “Democrats and Republicans want to solve the same problems, just with different approaches.”

“The mantra is protect the veto,” he said. “The veto is a good tool to have but if it’s used, it’s a failure of the legislation. You didn’t compromise. You didn’t work together.”

The post Even after district was redrawn to be competitive, Senate Dems give it the cold shoulder appeared first on Nevada Current.

Republican candidates in state Senate District 19, where no Democrat is running in the general election. From left: Bill Hockstedler, John Ellison, and Chelsy Fisher. (Campaign photos)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Voters in a large swath of rural Nevada will need to choose a new state senator in a Republican primary that will determine who represents the bright red district after no Democrats filed for the race.

Republican Sen. Pete Goicoechea has represented the predominantly rural Senate District 19 for the past 12 years. Now three Republican candidates are seeking to replace the term-limited lawmaker: former Assemblyman John Ellison, healthcare executive and entrepreneur William Hockstedle, and Nye County School Board Trustee Chelsy Fischer.

The sprawling senate district extends all the way from Elko County in the north to Clark County in the south. The district includes Lincoln and White Pine counties and parts of Clark, Elko, Eureka and Nye counties.

The district also represents a sure win for Republicans in the battle against a Democratic supermajority in the Nevada Legislature. Democrats control 13 seats in the 21-member state Senate — one short of a two-thirds supermajority needed to override a gubernatorial veto. 

Last year, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo set a state record for vetoing the most bills in a single session, and has made it a top priority to prevent a Democratic supermajority.

Former Assemblyman John Ellison

Despite the lack of Democratic competition in the Senate District 19 race — and several competitive senate seats up for reelection elsewhere — the seat has attracted a fair amount of fundraising for the likely front-runner, former Assemblyman John Ellison, who was endorsed by Gov. Joe Lombardo. 

“Nevadans know they can depend on John Ellison to give them a voice in Carson City. For years he has fought for the rights and interests of Nevada families and small businesses,” Lombardo said in an endorsement post on social media.

Ellison did not respond to interview requests from the Nevada Current.

The former assemblyman has the largest financial lead in the race, pulling in $12,650 from nine donors, according to the final campaign finance report before Nevada’s June 11 primary. Ellison’s highest donation is $5,000 from personal injury lawyer Craig Kidwell, followed by a $2,500 contribution from commercial real estate company R&S Leasing. Ellison’s campaign had spent $10,000 and has $46,700 cash on hand left over from prior campaigns.

Ellison raised about $10,000 more than his nearest competitor Hockstedler, whose campaign is predominantly self-funded by a $1,500 loan to himself.

Before running to represent Senate District 19, Ellison spent 12 years in the Nevada State Assembly until he termed out in 2022. Prior to that, Ellison served 12 years on the Elko County Board of Commissioners, and 10 years on the Elko City Council.

On his campaign website, Ellison listed the economy, taxes, the Second Amendment, and education as his top priorities in the Nevada State Senate.

The candidate was criticized days after being endorsed by Lombardo when he referred to his former employees as “colored people” during an endorsement interview with Veterans in Politics. Ellison was also listed as a suspect in a simple battery in 2022, a misdemeanor under Nevada Revised Statutes, but was never charged, according to the Elko Daily Free Press. 

Healthcare executive and entrepreneur William Hockstedle

Hockstedler, an Army and the Air Force veteran, said he was encouraged to run for the down-ballot race after being defeated by Republican Adam Laxalt during the 2022 U.S. Senate Republican primary. Laxalt went on to lose to Democratic incumbent U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.

Out of the $1,500 Hockstedler had acquired for his campaign as of the end of March, he’s spent $1,300, and has $1,000 cash on hand.

Hockstedler is vice president of strategic development with Ambient Clinical Analytics, a firm based at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, which focuses on early detection and treatment of sepsis.

In his role as senior adviser of Alka Products LLC — a medical and industrial gloves manufacturer — Hockstedler helped the company establish a new factory in Nye County. In November, the business proposal was approved for $1.9 million in tax abatements by the Governor’s Office of Economic Development. It is expected to be operational in early 2025, and will create 240 jobs in the first two years, according to the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

“The governor’s office loves it,” said Hockstedler, adding that the biggest concern in his district is jobs. “We will be the third largest employer in Nye County,” behind Nye County and Valley Electric Association Inc.

Hockstedler said he was disappointed to hear Lombardo endorsed Ellison in the Republican primary, but said it was also expected since Ellison is a former lawmaker who was termed-out.

“I think it further divides our party and the things we’re trying to accomplish, because we’re all Republicans in this particular race,” Hockstedler said. “I view the endorsement as a crutch. I’ll stand on my own without it.”

The Army and the Air Force veteran listed crime, education, taxes, and balancing the state budget as his top priorities in the Nevada State Senate.

Goicoechea “did a wonderful job of connecting with the people that he represented,” said Hockstedler. He said he’s interested in expanding on Goicoechea’s work in the state senate to strengthen personal property rights and water rights in the state, while ensuring natural resources are equitably divided.

“It just takes common sense legislation to make sure that water is both conserved and used properly for the survival of everyone in the state,” Hockstedler said.

Hockstedler described himself as a consensus builder, and believes that is the best way to protect Lombardo from being a one-term governor, as more and more voters in Nevada identify as non-partisan. In Senate District 19, non-partisan voters are the second largest share of registered voters, only behind Republicans, according to the Office of Nevada Secretary of State.

“I’m not far right or far left. I’m sort of in the middle with some common sense legislation in mind that will benefit most or all Nevadans,” Hockstedler said. “We have to do better. We have to cooperate. We’re paid and elected to do a job, and I think that we need to stop sending empty suits to Carson City. We’ve got to get things done.”

Nye County School Board Trustee Chelsy Fischer

Fisher has raised the least money out of the three Republicans vying to represent Senate District 19. The Nye County School Board Trustee’s only reported contribution as of the end of March was a $350 loan to herself. 

Fisher did not respond to interview requests from the Nevada Current.

In a statement to The Nevada Globe, Fisher said she opposes Nevada businesses receiving tax credits and believes the state legislature should explore implementing a corporate tax on businesses that do not pay a livable wage or offer full health care benefits. She also expressed criticism of unfettered utility-scale solar development in the district, as well as the proliferation of lithium mining for electric vehicles.

“Fossil fuels are far better for the environment than lithium mines,” Fisher argues on her campaign website.

Fisher lists education, economic growth, and universal Pre-K as top priorities if she were elected to represent Senate District 19. Fisher also advocates for bipartisan solutions and fostering partnerships across party lines.

However, Fisher’s most cited concern across platforms was that health insurance companies in Nevada are required to cover treatment for gender dysphoria and gender incongruence. In her statement to The Nevada Globe and on social media site X, formally known as Twitter, Fisher called for the repeal of Senate Bill 163, which requires insurers to make a reasonable effort to provide gender affirming care to customers in their network plan. Lombardo signed the bill into law in 2023. 

Fisher said she respects Lombardo’s work as governor, and his numerous vetoes last session, but vowed to repeal the health care bill. Fisher also pledged to protect Senate District 19 from “the proliferation of ideologies such as communism.”

The post Former assemblyman faces GOED grantee, Nye school trustee in decisive GOP state senate primary appeared first on Nevada Current.

NSHE Regent Michelee Cruz-Crawford, left, and state Assemblywoman Clara Thomas.

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

The Nevada Senate Democratic Caucus endorsed Michelee “Shelly” Cruz-Crawford, a first-term Nevada System of Higher Education Regent, over Assemblywoman Clara Thomas, in the Democratic primary for Senate District 1. 

In an interview with Nevada Current, Thomas attributed the party caucus’s decision to back a regent instead of a fellow state legislator to Thomas’s opposition to Democratic-sponsored restorative justice reforms from a previous legislative session that had ​​made it more difficult for schools to suspend or expel children.

“They decided to speak of the elephant in the room and basically tell me I went against the caucus,” Thomas said, referencing her endorsement meeting. “I felt that was not necessary. They brought up the fact that on these two bills I went against a caucus member and I just don’t understand.” 

The initial restorative justice reform, she said, was passed in 2019 to address the disproportionate discipline practices for students of color, particularly Black students. 

Since the restorative justice measures created by the bill were adopted right before the pandemic, Thomas said it didn’t receive proper funding nor sufficient time to be implemented. 

Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo campaigned on rolling back criminal justice reforms passed in 2019 as well as repealing the restorative justice law. 

Lombardo’s broader efforts to reverse earlier enacted criminal justice reforms was largely ignored by Democrats, and only received a hearing in the final days of session during intense budget negotiations where the legislation was considerably scaled back. The restorative justice repeal supported by Lombardo, on the other hand, had garnered early support from Democrats. 

Thomas said her vote against the 2023 bills, which gives more leeway for school administrators to be able to suspend or expel, reflected what her constituents wanted. She added she was elected as a “legislator to be the voters’ voice” and not simply support the caucus. 

“If we sit there and are sheep and press the green button to say yes to whatever, what are we doing up there?” she said. “Why are the citizens sending us up there? They could just send robots.”

She was one of four Democrats to vote against both pieces of legislation in the Assembly. Democratic state Sen. James Ohrenschall, whose seat isn’t up for re-election this year, was the lone Democrat in the senate to vote against the bills.

Cruz-Crawford, who is a principal at Ronnow Elementary School, agreed with using restorative justice in schools adding any programs adopted have to be properly funded and staffed.

“If we’re not supporting it financially, or with the manpower or training or curriculum we need, it’s just another unfunded mandate,” she said. 

In addition to providing resources to address the root causes of student behavior, Cruz-Crawford said lawmakers need to monitor any measure that could lead more Black and brown students being disproportionately suspended.

“In order for something like that to work we need a principal in the legislature,” she said. 

Thomas, who was first elected to the assembly in 2020, and Cruz-Crawford, who won a seat on Nevada Board of Regents in 2022, are vying to replace the termed-out state Sen. Pat Spearman.

Spearman also endorsed Cruz-Crawford in September. 

The winner will face off against Republican Patricia Brinkley, though the district has an overwhelming Democratic majority.  

Democratic lawmakers already have a majority in the senate but are one vote shy of a veto-proof majority. 

Cruz-Crawford said if they get a veto-proof majority they can ensure school vouchers, a priority for Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, never get funded and take steps to further protect reproductive health. 

Thomas and Cruz-Crawford both criticized Lombardo for vetoing several tenant protection bills, including legislation that would have temporarily capped rents for seniors for one year. 

“Right now we have seniors being evicted and we could have prevented that from happening,” Thomas said. “We have to bring back all of those housing bills the governor vetoed.” 

For the last few years, Cruz-Crawford said she has had to navigate the housing crisis by directing families to rental and utility assistance. 

On top of addressing housing, Cruz-Crawford said lawmakers “need to look at raising the minimum wage.”

When they had a trifecta, Democrats passed legislation in 2019 to raise the minimum wage gradually to $12, far lower than push from organizers for $15 but deemed palatable by Democratic leadership.  

Cruz-Crawford didn’t have a specific figure in mind. 

“I would leave that to the subject matter experts and economists to look at how many hours someone would have to work to afford a one bedroom apartment,” she said.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates that it would cost $23 an hour to afford a one bedroom apartment and not be considered rent burdened.   

During her time at the legislature, Thomas helped pass Assembly Bill 140, which made Juneteenth a state holiday, and Assembly Bill 119, which expands the Maternal Mortality Review Committee to explicitly review disparities among persons of color, 

While she hasn’t served as a state lawmaker, Cruz-Crawford said as a regent she helped draft Senate Bill 352, which passed in the 2021 session. The legislation creates a path for education support staff to go through an accelerated student teacher program.

Cruz-Crawford said the bill is designed to increase the number of teachers of color to be more reflective of the community. 

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Democratic legislators balked at being asked to pay for the popular Summer ETB program with state contingency funds instead of allocating unspent American Rescue Plan Act money. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Democratic lawmakers on Thursday criticized Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s handling of federal relief money, accusing his administration of not working with them and attempting to tie their hands financially.

Caught in the middle was a food assistance program that could help approximately 350,000 Nevada children this calendar year. On the surface, the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services only needed the Interim Finance Committee to approve the transfer of $905,206 in federal grants to their Division of Welfare and Supportive Services, but that request came with an understanding that administrators would need to return to IFC in June and request $6 million.

The Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Program will provide $40 per kid per month for the three months of summer to eligible low-income families. States pay half the cost of administering the program, but the federal government provides the entirety of the money given to families.

Democrats took issue with potentially being asked to pay for $6 million from the IFC Contingency Account instead of reallocating unspent American Rescue Plan Act money.

Another request before the IFC on Thursday was to de-obligate $9 million in ARPA funding that was set aside but not spent for a universal school lunch program.

“Why are we not using that money for this new program?” asked Assemblywoman Daniele Monroe-Moreno (D-North Las Vegas), adding that she was worried approving the initial grant money would put the committee in the position of having to fund the $6 million out of the contingency fund.

Using the contingency fund for the EBT program would leave the fund with an $11 million balance–considered too low by lawmakers.

“ARPA is a shared responsibility,” said Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas). “I feel like this is an issue that could have been solved before we got to this meeting, if we had been at all advised that there was a program coming forward to feed kids.”

Yeager added that Lombardo vetoed a bill Democrats introduced in the 2023 session that would have provided universal free lunch for K-12 students.

DWSS Administrator Robert Thompson said the department is neutral when it comes to what fund pays for the $6 million they will need to fully implement the EBT program.

“We can use a GoFundMe account,” said Thompson. “We can do whatever we need to.”

Democrats eventually approved the initial $950,000 transfer request and rejected the request to de-obligate the $9 million in unspent ARPA funds, with the intention of having the leftover universal school lunch funds cover the future $6 million request.

“That solves the issue without further depleting the contingency fund,” said Yeager.

The IFC contingency fund balance was a point of contention for lawmakers during Thursday’s meeting, which followed a report from The Nevada Independent that Lombardo said during a Board of Examiners meeting earlier this week that a legislative special session might be needed to replenish the IFC contingency fund. Yeager said the fund has “adequate funding to handle emergencies.”

Yeager made the comment during a request from the Nevada Department of Education for $158,855 from the contingency account to fund two new positions, which administrators said they needed to assist with new programs and a new director who’d replaced a longtime employee who’d left.

“I do not see this as an emergency,” said Yeager. “It isn’t a lot of money but we don’t want to set this precedent.”

IFC denied the funding request.

At another point in the meeting, Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizarro (D-Las Vegas) criticized the Governor’s Office of Finance for providing financial information to IFC members the morning of their meetings, which leaves lawmakers little to no time to review and prepare to make decisions on requests.

Cannizarro told the Governor’s Office of Finance it wasn’t the first time it had happened, “but this better be the last time.”

The post Democrats chide governor’s office over allocation of federal funds for assistance programs appeared first on Nevada Current.

Aerial view of a dirt road leading up through the Thacker Pass Lithium mining area. (Getty Images)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Despite a growing interest in lithium mining, Nevada has limited understanding of the precise location of the highly sought mineral deposits or how exploration may impact groundwater.

That lack of mapping isn’t unique to Nevada, however. According to the Association of American State Geologists, the United States lacks an effective nationwide process for gathering, organizing, compiling, or publicly sharing geologic data on mineral deposits.

Rob Ghiglieri, deputy administrator at Nevada Division of Minerals, told lawmakers last week that may soon change for Nevada in the next few months.

In January, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) announced they would invest more than $1 million to map mineral resources in western and central Nevada using cutting-edge data in partnership with the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology. The Nevada Division of Minerals is also working closely with the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology on the survey.

“That report should be hopefully coming out mid this year,” Ghiglieri told lawmakers during a Joint Interim Standing Committee on Natural Resources meeting last week.

The mapping effort will use electromagnetic and magnetic data to capture images at depths of more than 1,000 feet underground. The electromagnetic images can be used to identify ancient faults, aquifers, volcanic rocks and other geologic features. State resource managers say the data can be used to better understand the geologic framework and natural resources of the state, including groundwater, mineral deposits, and geothermal resources.

The Nevada Division of Minerals does not issue permits for mining in Nevada, but it does provide data and statistics on mining. The division also has the regulatory authority to permit geothermal drilling and exploration activities on lithium brine resources.

“We do not permit mining, but we often help guide companies to the right agencies for their permit needs. This also includes informing companies that are new to the state to focus early efforts on tribal and community engagement early in the permitting process,” Ghiglieri said.

The survey area in western and central Nevada includes parts of Washoe, Pershing, Churchill, Lyon, Mineral, and Nye County. It also includes the Pyramid Lake Paiute reservation, the Walker River Paiute reservation, and the Fallon Paiute-Shoshone reservation.

Western and central Nevada hosts brines and mineral systems that might contain lithium resources, as well as rock formations that may contain significant amounts of copper, molybdenum and gold, according to the USGS.

“A direct application of these data will be in facilitating exploration for lithium and geothermal resources, both of which are crucial to transitioning to a more carbon-neutral energy grid,” said James Faulds, director of the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, when the funding was announced in January.

Funding for the survey comes from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and is part of the USGS Mineral Resources Program’s Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (Earth MRI) to map domestic mineral deposits. 

The United States produces less than 1% of global lithium production, all from a single facility, Albemarle Corp.’s Silver Peak mine in Esmeralda County, according to the United States Geological Survey. But that may soon change.

As of March 1, an estimated 21,897 active mining claims have been filed and submitted in Nevada, presumably for lithium or lithium brine, according to the Nevada Division of Minerals.State officials also highlighted the Nevada Division of Minerals’ updated open-data website, a publicly available platform where users can find mining claims, mineral production, and trends.

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Nevada vaccination rates for adults are less than half the national average. (Photo by Emily Elconin/Getty Images)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

A decline in “vaccine confidence” has contributed to a decrease in child immunization rates, Nevada health officials warned state lawmakers on Monday.

Vaccine rates among adults, which includes Covid and flu shots for the current season, are also only a fraction of the national average, health officials said at the Interim Committee on Health and Human Services. 

“Vaccine confidence took a major hit through the pandemic,”  Kristy Zigenis, the immunization program manager for the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services. “It’s going to take a lot to get us back on the right track.”

Medical providers recommend infants get a 7-vaccine series, which includes the Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) shot and the vaccine for Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (DTaP), before 24 months.

But the number of children getting recommended vaccines in Nevada has decreased 3.3% since 2019, Zigenis said. 

Officials were unable to compare state data to national trends since country-wide data is only available through 2020.

The decrease in immunization comes as the U.S. has seen an uptick in diseases like the measles despite the availability of vaccines. National health experts attribute the decline to misinformation. 

As the number of children getting immunized has gone down in the state, Zigenis said there has been an increase in religious exemptions for school attendance. Medical exemptions have stayed about the same. 

Public and charter schools saw 3.5% exemption rates in the 2021 to 2022 school year and private schools had 5.4% rate the same year, she said. . 

That grew to 4.9% in public schools and 8.2% in private schools in the 2022 to 2023 school year. 

According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, “any exemption rate nationally is about 3%,” Zigenis said. The national rate is not a precise comparison because it doesn’t include more recent years. 

Health officials didn’t offer any explanation why Nevada exemption rates are higher than the nation’s. Lawmakers didn’t ask. 

Non-medical exemptions

During public comment, Leann McAllister, the executive director for the Nevada chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, encouraged lawmakers to consider eliminating religious exemptions. 

“Immunization requirements for child care and school attendance are an effective means of protecting people from vaccine-preventable diseases both by direct protection from the vaccine and indirect protection from communal immunity,” she said. 

She added that while “legitimately medical exemptions to immunization requirements are important, non-medical exemptions to immunization requirements are problematic.” 

Republican state Sen. Robin Titus, who is a physician, said eliminating religious exemption would send the public the wrong message. Instead, she said it’s up to health care providers to educate the public to regain trust. 

“When the government comes in and says ‘the heck with that we’re just going to pass a law and make you do it’ it’s giving the wrong message,” she said. 

Officials from the Department of Health and Human Services outlined policy proposals implemented in other states to expand access to vaccines and education efforts for those who seek exemptions for students. 

Vermont, Oregon and Utah require parents to go through an extended process when seeking a religious exemption, Zigenis said. 

She added that includes completing an online educational course before the exemption is implemented.  

“We aren’t making a policy recommendation, just providing an overview of what other states do,” said Jullia Peek, the deputy administrator for the Division of Public and Behavioral Health within the department. 

Peek agreed with Titus that there should be additional efforts to regain trust, and training on how health providers talk with vaccine-hesitant patients.

‘Lots of room to grow’

Lawmakers in 2023 passed Assembly Bill 147, which allows dentists, dental hygienists and other previously unauthorized health care providers to administer vaccines. 

Democratic state Sen. Fabian Doñate, who chairs the Interim Health and Human Services Committee, questioned whether lawmakers should expand the scope of the policy to also allow school nurses to give vaccines. 

It’s not just children lagging in vaccine rates. 

Zigenis said only 10.4% of Nevadans over 18 who are eligible for the most recent Covid-19 vaccine or booster have received one.

“The national comparison is at 22.6% so lots of room to grow,” she said.

Zigenis noted when Covid-19 went “to the commercial market there were some hiccups with the rollout and supply constraints.” 

During the initial roll out of the vaccination, costs were paid for by the federal government rather than through a person’s insurance. When that changed in 2023, some people showed up to appointments and were told they would have to pay out of pocket.

The rate of Nevada adults getting vaccinated for the flu is also less than half the national average.

 “We are coming to the tail end of the flu season” and 21.6% of those aged 18 and over have received a dose of the 2023-2024 flu vaccine, Zigenis told the committee, noting the national average is nearly 43%. 

The new RSV vaccine, which is recommended for adults over 60 years old, has also seen low rates in Nevada. The state rate is 12.5% while the national rate is 23.6%.

With data showing pharmacies in the state are the “key source for adult vaccinations,” Zigenis said officials are working with pharmacists to ensure they encourage more vaccinations. 

“If someone comes in for a flu vaccine but they can get an RSV vaccine we want to make sure it’s being offered,” she said.

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Neither Democratic Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager nor Democratic Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro have shown any interest in acknowledging, let alone reforming, a state tax system that is among the nation's most regressive. (Photo by Richard Bednarski/Nevada Current)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s top priority over the next seven months until the 2024 election will be exactly the same as his top priority over the last 8 months since the 2023 legislative session ended: Do whatever he can to help the Better Nevada PAC that loves him defeat a few Democratic assembly candidates and deprive Democrats of the supermajority they have in that chamber now. 

Because if Democrats hold that supermajority and also win a supermajority in the state senate – a not unrealistic scenario – Democrats would be able to override Lombardo’s vetoes, of which there were about six dozen last year.

If Democrats have veto-proof majorities in both chambers, some of those vetoed bills would presumably be revived. For instance, in recent months Democrats and allied organizations have been highlighting Lombardo’s veto of a bill designed to lower prescription drugs prices, as well as several vetoes of legislation designed to protect renters from quickie evictions, junk fees, and in the case of seniors, excessive rent hikes.

But for Republicans, an ever-present big scary monster under the bed is some sort of tax increase, specifically on business, industry, or even – gasp – rich people.

Taxes can only be increased or created in Nevada with approval from two-thirds of both houses. And a state tax structure that punishes low-income households needs to be reformed.

Spoiler: Even if they have supermajorities in both houses, Democrats won’t be doing that in 2025.

Lombardo ran for governor in 2022 promising “no new taxes,” even though his Democratic opponent, former Gov. Steve Sisolak, wasn’t proposing any, and nor was any Democratic lawmaker within shouting distance of their party’s legislative leadership.

Which is a crying shame of course. 

In Nevada, the smaller your income, the higher the percentage of your income you pay in taxes. As a result, Nevadans with the lowest incomes pay an effective tax rate that is more than four times higher than that paid by the state’s wealthiest residents. Hitting people at the bottom harder than those at the top, Nevada’s tax structure is upside down and bass-ackwards. Any thoughtful policy maker should be appalled at having anything to do with allowing the status quo to continue.

One illustrative juxtaposition of how morally reprehensible Nevada’s tax system is: The state’s tax on gambling revenue is the lowest in the solar system, while the regressive sales tax rate ranks among the nation’s highest. As a result (and “neener neener,” the resort industry might add), the tax rate paid by average Nevadans when they buy pet food, a used car, or a sandwich for lunch is 24% higher than the tax rate the world’s largest casino corporations pay on Nevada gambling revenue.

One might assume an upside-down tax structure that overburdens low-income households while coddling the rich and corporate is exactly the sort of thing Democrats, given veto-proof majorities, might reform. Party of the working class, after all.

They won’t. 

Last year, Democratic Assemblywoman Natha Anderson introduced a resolution that would have authorized “a study regarding wealth taxes.”

Needless to say, Republicans freaked out.

But the far more consequential reaction to Anderson’s resolution came from legislative Democrats, who let the bill die with little discussion and no recorded votes.

The charitable view of legislative Democratic refusal to even study the unfairness of the state’s tax structure is the practical political one: If they passed the bill, it would be a gift to Lombardo and the PAC that loves him, which now would be jumping up and down and shouting that Democrats wanted to raise taxes. Why would Democrats give Republicans such a juicy opportunity to hammer them over a bill that didn’t even propose any actual policy? Doing so would be bad politics.

A concomitant, and less charitable, view would be that Nevada legislative Democrats have zero confidence in their own ability to honestly confront one of most regressive tax structures in the United States, so they would prefer not to talk about it at all and pretend it isn’t a problem.

Well, the Reid machine was built to win elections, not reform policies that make life harder for Nevadans than it needs to be.

And when the next general session of the Nevada Legislature starts in February 2025, it will be the longest ongoing campaign event of the 2026 election cycle, with Democrats dedicated to doing nothing whatsoever that might be awkward for whoever they think their gubernatorial nominee is going to be. That circumstance would trump tax fairness even if tax fairness was a Democratic legislative priority, which it’s not.

Lombardo and Republicans can and will find all manner of other legislative-related (or loosely related) things to campaign on in their battle to prevent Democratic supermajorities in both houses. Making macro-dramas out of micro-scandals is an old stand-by, so watch for that.

But whatever Republicans might say, this year’s campaigns for control of the assembly and senate will have nothing to do with turning the state’s upside down tax system right side up. Because neither will next year’s legislature, whatever its composition.

Correction: This column originally mischaracterized the procedural demise of the wealth tax study resolution.

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Nevada State Legislative Building in Carson City. (Photo: Alejandra Rubio/Nevada Current)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

When in doubt, just make it a study.

It’s a common narrative in Carson City: When a promising but controversial bill has no realistic path forward, the bill becomes a study, conducted in the name of gathering more data and insight that might convince future lawmakers to take action. But some lawmakers this week expressed frustration at the prospect of “yet another survey” on an issue many feel is nearing crisis levels.

The Kenny Guinn Center for Policy Priorities appeared before the Interim Finance Committee Wednesday as the lawmakers approved $150,000 for a study they want to produce on affordable housing across Nevada. The money is coming out of the state’s share of the American Rescue Plan Act.

“We keep doing studies but it doesn’t feel like we do anything about it,” said state Sen. Marilyn Dondero Loop, a Las Vegas Democrat. “I’m very hesitant to do one more study and not do anything about it.”

Dondero Loop said she wanted to ensure the study was completed in time for any policy recommendations it makes to be incorporated into the governor’s executive budget, which will be provided to the Legislature ahead of the 2025 session.

Guinn Center’s Director of Economic Policy Meredith Levine said the study has a set deadline in October 2024.

Responded Dondero Loop, “I hope so because honestly if I see one more study on housing and we don’t do anything…”

While housing has long been an issue in Nevada, problems have been exacerbated by the pandemic.

A report released Thursday by the National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates Nevada has more than 91,000 extremely low-income households, defined as those with incomes at or below the federal poverty level.

While every major U.S. metropolitan area has a shortage of affordable units, “of the 50 largest metropolitan areas, extremely low-income renters face the most severe shortages in Las Vegas.” There are only 14 affordable and available units statewide for every 100 extremely low-income renter households, according to the study.

Lawmakers on the finance committee pressed the Guinn Center for additional details on the study — how it defines affordable (broadly, not limited to just income-restricted units), who it will involve as stakeholders (“everybody … we don’t want to be too narrow”) and whether its recommendations will be duplicative of existing studies (“the piece is putting them in one place and showing maximal or optimal impact”).

Assemblywoman Daniele Monroe-Moreno (D-North Las Vegas), who chairs IFC, requested the Guinn Center return to the committee at its April meeting to provide an informational update on progress and more specifics about the scope of the study.

“What is that we are putting in this report that isn’t already being done by the universities, local governments, the Housing Authority, the federal government, the Guinn Center previously, the Legislature previously?” asked Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro, a Las Vegas Democrat.

Among those studies she referred to: a legislature-commissioned study done in 2018.

“It feels a little like we’re looking for solutions to problems we know exist and don’t like the solutions that are readily apparent before us,” Cannizzaro added.

Levine countered that the study will provide reinforcement for any “tried and true” policy recommendations that might already be pitched, but could also include “novel” ideas.

State Sen. Heidi Seevers Gansert, a Reno Republican, suggested the Guinn study look at the types of federal or grant funding sources available, some of which the state or local governments may not be attempting to secure.

State Sen. Dina Neal, a North Las Vegas Democrat, suggested the state look at the rise and effect of corporate ownership — an issue she sought to curb through another bill vetoed by the governor last year.

Similarly, Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager, a Las Vegas Democrat, suggested the state should study what impact a slew of housing bills passed by the Legislature last year could have had were they not vetoed by Gov. Joe Lombardo.

Of those bills, two aimed to address Nevada’s eviction process, including a proposal to extend a 2021 protection – albeit a modified version – that temporarily paused an eviction while rental assistance applications were pending. 

He also vetoed several measures, (SB 78, AB 218 and AB 298), that sought to apply more regulations and transparency to rental applications and fees associated with listed units. Democrats failed to pass a similar proposal in 2019. AB 298 also would have capped rents for seniors at 10% for a one-year period.

Multiple housing proposals never made it to the governor’s desk. Democrats declined to advance Democratic state Sen. Pat Spearman`s proposal to tie rent increases to the cost of living and cap it at no more than 5% for landlords who own more than five units. That bill advanced out of the Senate Commerce and Labor committee, which Spearman chairs, but died in Senate Finance.

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Automated traffic enforcement has earned criticism for generating local government revenue by disproportionately ticketing disadvantaged communities. (Photo: Ronda Churchill/Nevada Current))

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

The Nevada Advisory Committee on Traffic Safety urged state lawmakers Wednesday to consider legislation authorizing the use of speeding and red light cameras.

Critics warned automated ticketing of motorists via photos singles out populations, and can become more of a revenue model for governments and system vendors than a solution to traffic safety. 

Lawmakers during Wednesday’s interim Growth and Infrastructure Committee meeting were briefed on the increased number of traffic deaths in recent years, in particular among pedestrians, and ways to reduce fatalities and safety issues.

The traffic safety committee recommended legislative changes to allow jurisdictions to consider using automated traffic enforcement, which allows for law enforcement to issue traffic tickets by using cameras to catch motorists who are speeding or running red lights.

Leisa Moseley-Sayles, the Nevada state director of the Fines and Fees Justice Center, said there are limits that “support the claim that these cameras significantly enhance road safety.”

The use of the cameras, she said, leads to higher traffic citations that “throw more people into the criminal legal system and are known to exacerbate poverty, perpetuate racial disparities.”  

Both the traffic safety committee and the Fines and Fees Justice Center agree any policy should emphasize transparency and not become a tool for raising revenue from citations instead of a means of enhancing safety. 

Amy Davey, administrator of the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety within the Department of Public Safety, said enacting automated enforcement would be a stopgap and not intended to be “the end all be all.” 

“If you leave (cameras) there forever in one spot, people avoid that spot then you have a high crash area somewhere else because they are now taking a different route,” she said. “ It definitely shouldn’t become a prop for any type of revenue for local jurisdictions or state jurisdiction.”

Nevada state lawmakers banned the use of speed and red light cameras in 1999.

“It was a bipartisan bill that passed the Senate with two no votes and passed the Assembly unanimously,” said Nick Shepack, the Nevada deputy directory of the the Fines and Fees Justice Center. “Much of the same concerns we have today were discussed during those hearings when this bill passed.”

Nevada is among 22 states that don’t allow automated traffic enforcement, he said. 

Assembly Bill 93, a Growth and Infrastructure Committee bill introduced in the 2023 Legislative Session, proposed installing automated traffic cameras in school zones. The legislation didn’t receive a hearing.

Davey said there has been a “pretty steep increase in traffic fatalities,” in recent years, adding that in 2021 there were 385 traffic deaths, which jumped to 416 deaths in 2022. There were 91 pedestrian deaths in 2022, an increase from 84 the year prior. 

There is also an increase in people who have been hit by cars and survived, she added, with a large number of children being hit in school zones. 

“Clark County School District is reporting that 98 students have been struck this school year in school zones,” Davey said. “Washoe County is reporting that 64 school aged children have been struck in school zones this school year.”

Though past legislative attempts have failed, Andrew Bennett, the chair of the traffic safety committee, who also works at Clark County Office of Traffic Safety, said lawmakers should still consider eliminating the current Nevada law “that limits local and state agencies abilities to use road safety cameras.”

Other recommendations the traffic safety committee proposed included increasing fines in school zones or enacting a primary seat belt law, which allows law enforcement to stop drivers for not wearing a seat belt even if there aren’t other traffic violations. 

Discriminatory ‘revenue generators’

The use of automated traffic enforcement has earned criticism for disproportionately ticketing communities of color and disadvantaged populations.

Shepack said research in the District of Columbia showed drivers in “predominantly Black areas were over 17 times more likely to receive a violation.”

“We are also deeply concerned these cameras can too easily become revenue generators, because in reality they serve as significant sources of revenue for both the municipalities that employ them as well as the vendors that manufacture and install them,” Moseley-Sayles said. 

Data on automated enforcement, they added, doesn’t indicate a reduction in traffic and pedestrian deaths. 

If the answer is to eliminate or reduce traffic fatalities, “then the structure and function of Nevada’s streets and roads must be brought in line with the goal of infrastructure investments,” Moseley-Sayles said.

That could include investment  in other “traffic calming methods such as speed bumps, raised sidewalks and traffic circles,” she said.

“Having mechanisms in place that slow drivers down immediately, rather than delayed citation in the mail, it seems like that would be more effective,” she said.

If lawmakers were to move forward, Shepack said they should consider less punitive sanctions, such as warnings and driver safety classes on the first offense. Citations should also take into consideration people’s ability to pay.  

Lawmakers should also restrict vendors contracted to install traffic cameras from having any power to enforce or prosecute, he added. 

“This may seem like a no-brainer, but there are contracts that exist where terms of enforcement and right to prosecute individuals are given directly to private companies,” he said. 

While encouraging lawmakers to consider automated enforcement, Bennett, the traffic committee chair, told lawmakers that “it is vital to learn from the mistakes of others” that have used speeding and red light cameras.  

“The journey of automated traffic enforcement implementation in other communities has not been without fault,” he said. “By examining the pitfalls that others have encountered, we can navigate the implementation process more smoothly ensuring our approach is both effective and publicly acceptable.”

Shepack pointed to California as an example. The state passed legislation last year to implement a pilot program to allow certain jurisdictions with larger populations to set up speed cameras. 

The bill, he said, came with strict requirements, including only allowing for cameras to operate in school zones during hours children were present and mandating revenue collected from citations go toward “street calming infrastructure with the goal of removing cameras.”

There is also a mandatory review process and cameras must be removed if data doesn’t show a reduction in safety issues. 

Moseley-Sayles recommended at least waiting for some results of the California program before Nevada moves forward.  

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