Nevada legislative panels file more than 180 bills on deadline

Bills tackling issues ranging from homeland security to medical marijuana were among the 180-plus measures filed on deadline Monday in the Nevada Legislature.

Both houses held two floor sessions on the final day for committees to introduce measures without special exemptions from legislative leadership.

Lawmakers produced plans to give ex-felons the right to own and use guns, help revive Nevada's mining industry by pressing silver coins, and allow store clerks to grab and hold youths who try to buy cigarettes illegally.

AB532 asserts Nevada's right to issue money and directs the state to begin issuing $20 coins containing one ounce of silver. AB460 is the cigarette crackdown bill giving merchants new powers to prevent minors from trying to buy smokes.

Law-and-order bills considering everything from terrorism to seat belt citations hit the Legislature on Monday.

Homeland security is the focus of AB462 -- requiring any Nevadan holding documents like disaster plans or an explosives permit list to maintain a log of those who access them.

SB480 would allow Nevada police to pull over drivers solely because they're not wearing seat belts. That's currently not allowed under state law.

Senate Judiciary wants to allow former criminals access to guns. SB430 would let ex-felons who've completed jail sentences, parole or other penalties to petition courts for the right to own and use a gun.

AB503 modifies the state's medical marijuana laws, by allowing patients registered to receive the drug to grow up to 2 ounces and ensuring patients are Nevada residents.

Lawmakers also filed several new tax plans, including SB461 which nearly triples the cigarette tax but sends some of the money to a medical student scholarship fund. SB473 would allow more companies to get Economic Development Commission tax abatements.

And a big new revenue-generating proposal, AB517, would levy a 14 percent tax on the net income of banks and some other financial institutions.

The latest bills bring the total to more than 1,000 proposals now under consideration as the 2003 Legislature nears its halfway point.

The new measures include several dealing with education, such as AB506 which would limit the number of administrators large school districts could employ, and AB507 which lets students transferring from a community college to a Nevada university transfer academic credit toward a minor and a major.

AB508 would require Clark and Washoe school districts to establish pilot programs for teaching Spanish and French from kindergarten through the sixth grade.

Another proposal, AB510, would require the state Board of Education to establish a course to help high school students prepare for proficiency and college entrance exams.

AB512 would set up strict regulations for schools to enter into privatization contracts. Districts couldn't enter into privatization agreements that would result in a work force reductions or cuts in workers' salary, seniority or other benefits. Also, big privatization contracts would require legislative approval.

A number of bills asking for supplemental funding for state agencies are also before the Legislature. The largest request Monday was an immediate $9 million infusion to the state's Medicaid budget, which faces soaring caseloads.

Labor and business-related bills tackled issues from limo-taxi competition to cell phone towers. One bill renames dentists' assistants "dental hygiene professionals" while another changes "fireman" to "firefighter."

The Senate Commerce and Labor Committee introduced SB426, making it harder for cities and counties to block cell phone companies from mounting transmission towers. The bill would prohibit local governments from rejecting permits because a tower may look bad or because of environmental effects.

A bill from the Nevada Gaming Control Board would ditch county-issued work cards in favor of a statewide registration system for casino workers. SB432 also lets people to sell antique slot machines without a license.

AB518 calls for a study of limousine permits, saying too many limos are causing conflict by sucking up Las Vegas tourism dollars that would otherwise go to taxis. It would temporarily halt limo permitting.