Money requests introduced at Nevada Legislature

Bills requesting more than $88 million in supplemental and one-shot appropriations - some of them not included in the governor's proposed budget - are being introduced in the Nevada Legislature this week.

Most of the bills are being proposed by the executive branch, including the largest single appropriation, $30.1 million to buy modular housing units for the Department of Corrections.

That proposal would purchase, install and equip four modular housing units to relieve prison overcrowding. Prison officials say the units can accommodate 240 inmates apiece, providing a total of 960 beds, and can be set up quickly.

One would be placed at the Southern Nevada Women's Correctional Center, one at Northern Nevada Correctional Center, one at Southern Desert and the fourth at Southern Nevada Correctional Center.

A $10 million appropriation is being sought to integrate computing resources within the Nevada System of Higher Education. That is included in the executive budget as is the $7.6 million requested to improve and expand the 800 MHz radio system used by the Nevada Department of Transportation, the Nevada Highway Patrol and other agencies.

The radio money will pay for installation of 10 repeater sites to improve rural radio coverage.

Two major requests not included in Gov. Jim Gibbons' proposed budget are $8.4 million sought by North Las Vegas for restoration of the historic Keil Ranch and $20 million sought by Sen. Bernice Mathews, D-Sparks, to pay for renovation of the Reno-Sparks Livestock Events Center.

Several of the requests are supplementals to make up for unavoidable budget shortfalls.

Examples include $1 million sought by the NHP to cover the increased cost of gasoline to operate patrol cars; and $120,000 for the Office of the Military to cover increased utility costs at the state's armories.