Nevada Legislative briefly 4-25

Illegal dumping would be fined under proposed law

Assemblyman David Bobzien, D-Reno, Friday asked for Senate support for legislation increasing penalties for illegal dumping.

Bobzien told the Senate Government Affairs Committee the problem is statewide but particularly acute in his district, which surrounds the Nevada side of Peavine Mountain northwest of Reno.

Dumping on Peavine's public lands has included everything from kitchen garbage to refrigerators and old cars.

AB353 creates a civil penalty of up to $5,000 for those convicted of illegal dumping and supports creation of programs in Nevada counties to combat dumping. He said the money collected through penalties will help pay for cleaning up illegal dumpsites.

Reno officials proposed an amendment that would also create a registry of bad buildings so they could track the owners and get them either fixed or torn down, but Sen. Randolph Townsend, R-Reno, objected strongly.

He said he got a law passed 12 years ago which "gave you all the tools you need to get rid of every bad building in Reno."

"Now you want a registry to show you where the bad buildings are? I'll drive you around Reno and point them out to you."

Chairman John Lee, D-Las Vegas, said the committee would process Bobzien's bill without that amendment.

Assembly passes mortgage fraud bill

The Assembly Thursday approved legislation designed to help homeowners who have been defrauded by mortgage brokers and others involved in the financial industry.

The plan will be funded by the Mortgage Lending Reserve, which currently has $300,000.

Sponsor Marcus Conklin, D-Las Vegas, said the legislation was passed after testimony from homeowners who said they were deliberately misled about their loans and lost their houses because of it.

"Those mortgage brokers and bankers should be held accountable," he said.

Reid gets $18 million for Nevada parks

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Friday the stimulus legislation contains more than $18 million for projects at Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada and the Lake Mead Recreation Area in Southern Nevada.

The lion's share of the money goes to Lake Mead " $18.2 million for projects including preservation and rehabilitation of roads and shoreline. The work is needed because of increasing difficulties in access to the shore due to falling water levels at Lake Mead.

Great Basin will get $85,000 to repair damage to TimberCreek Trail and the Wheeler Peak Trail to improve accessibility.

Domestic violence program funds sought

Wedding chapel lobbyists and advocates for programs to stop domestic violence clashed Friday over a bill to help fund those programs by adding $5 to the cost of a Nevada marriage license.

The chapel lobbyists, backed by Sen. Maurice Washington, R-Sparks, a minister who performs weddings, want to scrap the fee and retain a second $5 fee increase in SB14 for official copies of marriage certificates " a levy that would provide more funding for the programs.

While the Assembly Judiciary Committee didn't vote on the bill, some panel members said they favored both the increase in license fees, which would generate about $600,000 a year, and the increase for marriage certificate copies, which would raise about $1 million a year.

Assembly Judiciary Chairman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, added that he didn't think the extra $5 on marriage license fees was that big a deal.

SB14 would add $5 to the $20 fee which the state adds to marriage license fees. The total cost of licenses in Nevada now is $55, although some counties add a few dollars to that.

" Nevada Appeal

Staff and Wire reports

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