Nevada attorney general’s price-fixing ban draws fierce business opposition
In today’s edition:
- Attorney general fights price fixing, industry fights back
- New committee to hear medical aid in dying measure
- Lawmaker says 80-hour work weeks build character
From the Capital Bureau Chief:
On Monday, the Assembly formed a Select Committee on End-of-Life Care.
- Assm. David Orentlicher (D-Las Vegas) will chair the committee, which includes Assemblymembers Cecelia González (D-Las Vegas), Danielle Gallant (R-Las Vegas), Cinthia Moore (D-North Las Vegas) and Rebecca Edgeworth (R-Las Vegas).
- Orentlicher and Edgeworth are doctors.
- Gallant voted against the measure in 2023, but is now listed as a bill co-sponsor this session.
- Gallant told The Nevada Independent she decided to sponsor the legislation after speaking with Republican groups and constituents.
- The legislation it has jurisdiction over, AB346, is sponsored by Assm. Joe Dalia (D-Henderson) and marks the sixth legislative effort in Nevada to legalize life-ending medication for terminally ill patients.
- Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoed a similar measure after it passed out of the Legislature in 2023, with Republicans in opposition. The measure passed out of the Senate on a narrow 11-10 vote with Sens. James Ohrenschall (D-Las Vegas) and Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas) joining Republicans in opposition, and passed out of the Assembly on a 23-19 vote (five Democrats joined Republicans in opposition).
- The why: Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas) said lawmakers established the special committee to better manage the bill.
- “[Existing committees] have a lot of bills as it is, so I thought it makes sense to create a select committee with fewer members, and they’ll probably hear the bill in the evening so we don’t take up daytime,” Yeager said.
- Yeager said he hopes the governor’s team weighs in on the legislation this go-around. Elizabeth Ray, a spokesperson for the governor, did not respond to queries about the governor’s stance on the bill.
And (please sit down/check your heart rate before reading this) don’t expect any movement on Education Savings Accounts this session.
- Sens. Carrie Buck (R-Las Vegas) and Jeff Stone (R-Las Vegas) introduced SB252 last week, which would again create an Education Savings Account program in the state.
- A person close to the Senate Democratic Caucus said the bill is functionally dead on arrival, and they can't see an appetite to funnel money away from public schools to fund private religious schools.
As always, please send us your questions, thoughts and suggestions. You can reach me at [email protected].
Ford fights price fixing, industry fights Ford
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford — a Democrat and likely gubernatorial candidate in 2026 — presented his bill Wednesday to tackle price fixing on essential goods and services, including food, medication and shelter.
It received steep opposition from business, telecommunications and housing groups; the Nevada Coalition of Legal Service Providers was the only group that testified in support.
Here’s what to know.
- AB44, heard during a meeting of the Assembly Committee on Commerce and Labor, would outlaw fraudulent manipulation that causes prices to increase beyond the “basic forces of supply and demand.” An amendment presented Wednesday also expanded the list of applicable goods or services to include clothing, internet access, telecommunication services and household utilities.
- The bill would exempt utilities regulated by the state’s Public Utilities Commission.
- Some Republican lawmakers were skeptical about how the state would ensure it would not target businesses that hike prices based on market trends.
- "There are times when we have to increase prices," said Assm. Melissa Hardy (R-Henderson), formerly the owner of a Port of Subs franchise.
- The legislation falls under the state’s Unfair Trade Practices Act, which already outlaws a host of price-fixing practices.
- Assm. Heidi Kasama (R-Las Vegas) was skeptical that the bill was necessary, but Ford, who said he was inspired largely by high housing costs, said that “we want a specific statute that addresses price fixing in essential goods and services.”
- More than a dozen organizations testified against the bill, including the Vegas Chamber, Retail Association of Nevada, AT&T, T-Mobile and several housing and rental organizations, which argued the bill could be analogous to a rent cap.
- Telecommunications providers argued they should be exempted because they are already regulated by the Federal Communications Commission — but Ford said this did not apply to pricing.
- Opponents argued that the legislation could punish businesses that increase prices because of overall market conditions, and that it is unclear what type of price increases would be allowed.
- “The manipulation of price provision — while it mentions fraudulent and deceptive conduct — really will make normal, everyday market activity legally suspect,” said Miranda Hoover, a lobbyist for the Energy and Convenience Association of Nevada.
- Ford said “there was a bit of hyperbole” after about 20 minutes of public opposition.
- “This bill does not cap, in any kind of way, how much someone can charge for something as long as they are not knowingly, fraudulently or deceptively engaging in conduct,” Ford said.
- Ford added that he is willing to amend the bill further, and is open to removing a provision that gives private citizens the right to pursue legal action related to price hikes.
— Eric Neugeboren
What we’re reading and writing
Amid huge growth in Southern Nevada’s hospice industry, lawmaker pushes for more oversight by Tabitha Mueller
As new providers surge in Southern Nevada, Assm. Rebecca Edgeworth (R-Las Vegas) wants to “raise the bar” for those providing hospice care.
Trump’s DOGE-led cuts target Nevada’s Native American services by Jessica Hill and Alan Halaly, Las Vegas Review-Journal
A tribal chair said eliminating federal health care services at the Elko office would constitute a treaty breach.
Proposed state fund could help rural counties replace dilapidated school buildings by April Corbin Girnus, Nevada Current
AB224 would dedicate $100 million in state general obligation bonds for high-needs school construction projects in rural counties.
Keeping Tabs
😵 Working 80 hours a week “builds character” — Assm. Danielle Gallant (R-Las Vegas) said juggling multiple classes and working 80 hours a week are all “part of the journey” and “builds character.” She made the comments during a hearing on AB191 Tuesday, which would allow faculty and graduate assistants (GAs) to have bargaining rights with the Nevada System of Higher Education. Assm. Natha Anderson (D-Reno) is spearheading the measure.
- In a follow-up interview, Gallant said she, too, was a graduate research assistant and is “fully aware of the power imbalance.” She added that she and her husband worked more than 80 hours a week while in college and in their current roles and even though her comments drew a “collective groan,” she made them out of a sense of solidarity and doesn’t expect others to choose that lifestyle. She said she’d be open to voting in favor of a collective bargaining statute if it governed just working conditions and not compensation.
- The Board of Regents’ stance is that it cannot recognize a graduate student union without the Legislature’s go-ahead.
- Graduate assistant Clay Renshaw said GAs are expected to work no more than 20 hours per week, but many of them work three to four times as many hours a week to teach labs, meet with undergraduate students, conduct research and attend classes.
- Context: Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoed a similar bill in 2023.
🤝 Bipartisan effort to tackle AI generated porn — In an often polarized Legislature, one issue Republicans and Democrats agree on is a need for addressing AI-generated child pornography. Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro (D-Las Vegas), Assm. Joe Dalia (D-Henderson) and Assm. Melissa Hardy (R-Henderson) announced a joint effort to pass legislation aimed at the “emerging threat.”
- The measure, SB263, was introduced Tuesday and expands the definition of child pornography to include computer-generated images of actual minors or the creation of such images where the subject is indistinguishable from a minor.
- “This type of material victimizes children, it exploits them for sexual purposes and absolutely should be against the law,” Cannizzaro said in a social media post.
🧤 No latex gloves— Sen. Robin Titus (R-Wellington), a doctor, defended latex gloves during a hearing on Thursday from SB184, a bill sponsored by Sen. Jeff Stone (R-Henderson) that would ban the use of latex gloves in food establishments and health care facilities to reduce allergic reactions. Titus noted people are allergic to peanuts and cucumbers, but those foods aren’t banned.
- This bill is limited to latex gloves. Health care professionals can be exempt if they think latex gloves are the best option for a certain patient or procedure. If there’s a glove shortage, latex gloves can be used for 120 days.
🐦 🐝 The return of perennial opt-out sex ed bill — Another session, another attempt to enact a law that would essentially allow schools to offer sex education curriculum to all students unless a parent explicitly states they don’t give their consent, also known as an opt-out system. Currently, Nevada has an opt-in system that requires affirmative consent from parents.
- Assm. Heather Goulding (D-Reno) said during a Tuesday hearing for AB205 that statewide, 93 percent of parents opt in, 2 percent of parents opt out and 5 percent of parents don’t respond. In the Clark County School District, 1 percent of parents opt out and 8 percent of parents are unresponsive.
- In 2017, former Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval vetoed a similar bill. Other sex ed bills were proposed and also failed in 2019 and 2023.
🎂 Youngest senator gets ribbed on his birthday — Sen. Fabian Doñate (D-Las Vegas), the youngest state senator in Nevada’s history, turned 29 on Tuesday — and Sen. Edgar Flores (D-Las Vegas) made sure he didn’t forget.
- On the Senate floor, Flores listed off things that are older than Doñate, including some of the Harry Potter books and Apple.
- Fear not, though — two members of The Indy’s legislative team are younger than Doñate.
❌❌❌Nevada identity caucuses condemn Trump admin — After rollbacks of transgender protections and looming federal budget cuts, the Nevada Latino Legislative Caucus, Nevada Black Legislative Caucus, Nevada AANHPI Legislative Caucus and the Nevada LGBTQ+ Legislative Caucus called out the federal government on Monday.
- “These attacks are part of a broader strategy to roll back civil rights and target marginalized communities,” Assm. Howard Watts (D-Las Vegas), vice chair of the Black Caucus, said in a statement.
— Rocio Hernandez, Lizzie Ramirez, Isabella Aldrete, Eric Neugeboren and Tabitha Mueller
Looking Ahead
- Thursday, March 6, at 3:30 p.m.: The Senate Committee on Natural Resources is hearing SB36, a bill to establish an initiative to purchase and retire water rights. A similar bill in the 2023 legislative session stalled in committee.
Days until:
- Last day for bill introductions: 19
- First house passage deadline: 48
- Sine die: 89
And to ease you into the weekend, a few social media posts that caught our eye:
- X: Journalists asking the vital questions.
- Instagram: The eaglets hatched!!
- BSky: So you’re saying we can print more money?
We’ll see you next week.