An obscene epidemic.

This is what Assm. Jason Patchett (R-Henderson) calls the growing number of children being struck or killed by cars on their way to and from school — a number that has topped 200 in Clark County alone, according to Andrew Bennett, director of the Clark County Office of Traffic Safety.

Patchett is all too aware of the dangerous reality of children getting hit near school zones as his son was struck and killed in front of his school in 2022. The Legislature unanimously passed SB322 in 2023 — referred to as Rex’s Law to honor Patchett’s son — which toughened penalties for speeding that result in a fatality.

Legislators followed that bill up during the recent special session, passing AB6, which works in tandem with the prior legislation to keep school zones safe for children. Signed by Gov. Joe Lombardo on Nov. 29, the bill goes into effect July 1, before the 2026-2027 school year begins.

“This is an issue that has become so prevalent within Clark County, specifically within the Las Vegas Valley. We’re seeing fatalities in school zones, it seems, on the week, and it is an emergent issue that needs to be addressed,” said Patchett, who just announced his re-election bid. “To bring it up in a special session is highly appropriate. We need to do something. We can’t sit back and continue to allow this to happen. We got to have a voice, and we got to put forward some stuff that we will control and mitigate the risk that we are putting our children at when we send them to school.”

The new bill aims to make school zones safer by adding increased penalties for traffic violations and giving local governments the authority to manage school zone infrastructure, including cross walks and flashing crossing signs.

Sen. Michelee Cruz-Crawford (D-Las Vegas) is the principal at C.C. Ronnow Elementary School and recently lost a former student, Cristofer Suarez, in a hit-and-run inside a school zone. She said that she took a special interest in AB6 and what it could do for those in the area she teaches in. 

“If you look at the number of injuries and deaths, they’re really in some of our lower income neighborhoods,” Cruz-Crawford said. “I’m a principal in East Las Vegas and, with that, the infrastructure was built for smaller communities, and we’ve expanded. My school will be 60 years old next year and traffic looked a lot different 60 years ago in East Las Vegas than it does now.”

She said the bill asks local governments to take a closer look at what they need to do in order to expand school zones and keep up with the infrastructure needs around particular schools.

“Our poor urban communities are really the victims of this,” Cruz-Crawford said. “They haven’t had the financial support of new roads, new safety, like we have in areas that are more affluent.”

Cruz-Crawford said infrastructure updates are needed, such as new crosswalks at areas where kids naturally cross or take short cuts, more crossing guards and more local control, which AB6 could provide.

The bill allows flashing school zone lights to be turned on locally, meaning school districts and principals will have more say about when they flash. 

“Not every school zone is the same, and I think allowing local government to make those decisions, along with the Department of Transportation, to some degree, gives a little bit more tailored approach to a specific neighborhood or area that previously hasn’t been there,” Patchett said.

As an example of this, Cruz-Crawford said she can submit a service request to extend school zones hours and turn on school zone lights to signal to drivers that there will be increased foot traffic near the school during her school’s fall festival.

Patchett’s son was killed in front of his school while attending activities after school hours. Provisions outlined in AB6 could help bring awareness to after-school activities when children will be present and potentially crossing the road.

The bill also will work in conjunction with previously passed legislation to address the issue of unsafe school zones.

In July, AB527 was passed and calls for school buses to have cameras on their stop signs to catch drivers who illegally pass. Cruz-Crawford said she met with Clark County School District police, who discussed a lack of manpower to catch all drivers who violate school zone laws and said the bill will help them with enforcement.

Together, AB6 and AB527 will allow law enforcement to catch more infractions of unsafe driving in school zones or near school buses, and double penalties for reckless drivers within school zones. It’s similar to Rex’s Law, which increased the penalty for speeding that results in a death from a six-year sentence to 10 years. 

“We really need to take this opportunity … and do something good with a momentum that’s been initiated thus far,” Patchett said.