Lawmakers act on dozens of measures

CARSON CITY (AP) " Bills on subjects ranging from child prostitution to workplace safety won approval Monday as Nevada lawmakers processed dozens of measures in the rush to complete their work by their June 1 adjournment date.

AB148, approved in the Assembly and routed to the Senate, calls for more safety training for construction workers and their supervisors. The measure stems from the deaths of 12 construction workers during an 18-month period on the Las Vegas Strip.

Also approved by the Assembly was SB288, which requires the state Division of Industrial Relations to attempt to meet with and assist families of workers killed on the job.

The state Senate voted unanimously for an Assembly-approved plan imposing fines that could add up to $1 million, besides any criminal penalties, on sex traffickers who lure or force children into prostitution.

AB380 would allow for a $100,000 fine if offenders are convicted of trafficking prostitutes 14 to 17 years old, and a $500,000 fine if the child is less than 14. If a criminal conspiracy is involved, another $500,000 fine could be imposed on those involved, in addition to the other fines.

Senators also approved AB116, which revises a law requiring consideration of any "contributory conduct" by domestic violence or rape victims in determining whether they get benefits under Nevada's Victims of Crime Program.

Senators also voted unanimously for AB20, an Assembly-approved plan that would require criminal background checks for residential care facility owners and staff members who provide services for two people or less. Group home owners and staff already are required to pass such checks.

Assembly members voted unanimously for SB238, which streamlines the process for restoring civil rights of criminal offenders after they have paid their debts to society.

Currently, certain ex-offenders can have their civil rights restored after they apply to the state Pardons Board. But the board only meets twice every year and receives up to 100 applications that are reviewed in a short period of time.

SB238 would allow civil rights to be restored to ex-felons more quickly provided there are no objections from a sentencing judge or from the prosecutor in the case.

Also approved by the Senate was SB382, which attempts to fix hospital funding problems by changing the way funds are distributed to hospitals that care for a "disproportionate share" of people who can't pay for their care.

At stake are tens of millions of dollars, distributed through a complicated funding formula involving county dollars and federal matching funds.

The Senate also passed AB528, an Assembly-approved plan that would eliminate the requirement that the state Library and Archives be open to the public for eight hours a day, five days per week.

AB528 was introduced because under Gov. Jim Gibbons' budget proposal, library hours would be slashed from eight to four hours per day, and funding would be cut by 35 percent. The public still could access state archives, but only by appointment.

The Senate also passed AB393, requiring charter schools to provide services to at-risk students; and AB327, requiring state university-college regents to report on participation of women, ethnic and racial minorities and other members of protected classes in higher education.

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Associated Press Writer Cathy Bussewitz contributed to this report.