Nevada Legislature 2025

2-Minute Preview: Lawmakers hear bills to create annual legislative sessions, allow occupational licenses for DACA recipients

Riley Snyder
Riley Snyder
Michelle Rindels
Michelle Rindels
Megan Messerly
Megan Messerly
Legislature
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Photo of the Nevada Legislature building

Lawmakers will consider allowing occupational licenses for DACA recipients, having annual legislative sessions and creating a Financial Literacy Month.

They’ll also vote on three bills to increase services to children for autism and review a measure to create a “regulatory sandbox” to work on technical innovations outside of existing regulations.

For more information on the status of bills working their way through the Legislature, check out The Nevada Independent’s bill tracker. And for the bills in committee today, check out the Legislature’s website for committee times and links to watch live committee meetings and floor sessions.

Here’s what to watch for on Wednesday at the Legislature:

Budget hearings

Lawmakers on a joint budget subcommittee will hear details of the budget accounts for the Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Services.

AB381: Healthcare Decisions Day

Proposed by Republican Assemblywoman Robin Titus and co-sponsored by members of both parties, this bill would designate April 16 as “Healthcare Decisions Day” in the state. The bill’s preamble states that it’s part of a national effort to make people more aware of end-of-life decisions and planning.

The bill is scheduled to be heard in the Assembly Committee on Government Affairs at 8:30 a.m.

SB161: Regulatory “sandbox”

This bill, proposed by Republican Sen. Ben Kieckhefer, would create a new program under the Nevada attorney general’s office allowing for individuals to temporarily offer a product or service in a “technically innovative” way without necessarily complying with all state laws and regulations.

The bill sets out requirements for participation in the program and requires individuals using the program to cease offering the product or service at the end of the period of exemption. It’s based on a similar program in Arizona, and was proposed by Republican gubernatorial candidate Adam Laxalt in 2018.

The bill is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee at 1 p.m.

SB302: Data privacy and security

Proposed by Republican Sen. Heidi Gansert, this bill would require government agencies that maintain records that contain personal information of state residents meet industry standard data privacy practices.

The bill would also allow individuals required to submit documents containing personal information to the state for specific programs to turn in the documents through non-electronic means, such as by hand or through mail delivery.

The measure will be heard by the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor at 1 p.m.

SB412: Limits on amusement arcades

A bill by Republican Sen. Joe Hardy would make it a misdemeanor for an arcade or other place with “amusement devices” to allow children under the age of 18 to play or operate such a device unless accompanied by a parent or if the game is free to play.

The bill will be heard in the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor at 1 p.m.

AB275: Professional and occupational licensing for non-citizens

Proposed by Democratic Assemblywoman Selena Torres, AB275 would allow any person who is not a citizen but is authorized to work in the United States under a federal law or program to apply for a professional or occupational license.

The bill is scheduled to be heard in the Assembly Committee on Commerce and Labor at 1:30 p.m.

SB267: Social and environmental factors affecting a school

This bill would require schools to identify the social and environmental factors that affect a students’ educational experience. The school board would be required to take those factors into account for funding, disciplinary and other decisions, and a school-based team is called to find ways to mitigate those factors.

The bill is sponsored by Democratic Sen. Pat Spearman and Assemblywoman Ellen Spiegel.

SB314 + SB319: Financial Literacy Month, school counselor pay raise

Lawmakers will consider a bill creating a State Seal of Financial Literacy that students can earn at graduation if they take a certain number of credits in financial literacy classes. It would also create a financial literacy month that could include activities such as a parent summit with instruction on saving, spending and applying for financial aid.

The bill is sponsored by Democratic Sen. Joyce Woodhouse.

They’ll also discuss SB319, which would give school social workers and psychologists a 5 percent pay increase if they hold a national certification.

SB224: PERS confidentiality vote

Members of the Senate Government Affairs Committee will vote on SB224, a bill sponsored by Democratic Sen. Julia Ratti that makes many records of a public employee or retiree confidential, including their names, but would make their ID number a public record.

The committee meets at 1 p.m.

AB252: Community-based living arrangement home changes

This bill, sponsored by Assemblywoman Teresa Benitez-Thompson, makes a number of changes to community-based living arrangement (CBLA) homes in the wake of a legislative audit last year that revealed deplorable conditions in the homes. For one, the bill no longer allows people with developmental disabilities to be treated at a CBLA home and requires them to instead be treated by a provider that holds a certificate to provide supported living arrangement (SLA) services.

Other changes the bill makes to CBLA homes include requiring employees who work in the homes to be proficient in the language spoken by a majority of the people to whom they provide services, prohibiting children under the age of 18 from living in the homes and mandating that providers offer access to licensed professionals who can provide supportive and habilitative services.

The legislation also requires the Division of Public and Behavioral Health to establish an individual plan for each recipient of CBLA services and mandates an annual independent financial audit of each contract between the division and each CBLA provider. Providers will also be required to have a certain level of training and education as established in regulation by the State Board of Health.

The bill will be heard by the Assembly Health and Human Services Committee at 1:30 p.m.

SB344: Medicaid reimbursement for family planning services

This bill, sponsored by state Sen. Melanie Scheible, requires Medicaid to provide reimbursement rates for family planning services provided at a family planning clinic that are greater than or equal to the rates currently paid for such services or 105 percent of the rates of reimbursement under the current Medicare fee schedule.

The bill will be heard by Senate Health and Human Services at 4 p.m.

SB364: Preventing discrimination at medical facilities and facilities for the dependent

This bill, sponsored by state Sen. David Parks, prohibits medical facilities and facilities for the dependent from discriminating against someone based on their actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, gender, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status.

The bill also requires that facilities refer to a person using their preferred gender identity, name and pronouns and provide cultural competency and sensitivity training to staff in issues relating to the LGBT community.

The bill will be heard by Senate Health and Human Services at 4 p.m.

Votes on autism bills

Members of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee will vote on a trio of bills that would increase services to children with autism, including one to reimburse behavioral therapists more through Medicaid, one requiring an interim study on issues Nevada has serving children with autism, and one requiring closer cooperation between health and education sectors to ensure children receive treatment. The bills are SB174, SB202 and SB216.

The committee meets at 4 p.m.

AB265: Study on water treatment and recycling

Members of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee will review AB265, a bill that would require the Desert Research Institute conduct a study on water treatment and recycling. It’s sponsored by Democratic Assemblywoman Sarah Peters.

The committee meets at 4 p.m.

SB452: Absentee ballot request forms

This bill, introduced by the Senate Legislative Operations and Elections Committee, moves up certain deadlines for third-party groups that distribute absentee ballot request forms.

Under existing law, anyone who intends to distribute absentee ballot request forms to more than 500 registered voters is required to notify the local election clerk of the number of forms to be sent out and the expected mailing date. This bill extends the deadline to provide such notification from 14 to 28 days before an election.

The legislation also requires third parties to mail absentee ballot request forms to voters no later than 35 days before the election; current law requires the forms to be sent 21 days before the election.

The bill will be heard in the committee at 4 p.m.

SJR5: Annual legislative sessions

This bill, sponsored by Sen. Joyce Woodhouse, proposes to amend the Nevada Constitution to provide for shorter annual legislative sessions instead of four-month biennial ones. The change would allow the Legislature to meet for 60 legislative days every even-numbered year and for 90 legislative days in every odd-numbered year. It also would remove legislator pay requirements from the Constitution and instead require that lawmakers be paid at regular intervals set by law.

The measure must be twice approved by lawmakers — in 2019 and 2021 — and agreed to by a vote of the people in 2022 before it would take effect. The bill will also be heard in the Senate Legislative Operations and Elections Committee at 4 p.m.

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