‘99 Legislature’s main role: Saying ‘no’

Monday, Nov. 9, 1998 | 10:54 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Nevada's voters have crafted a 1999 Legislature that will feature much more experience than usual, along with more of a feminine element.

The Legislature will have more veteran politicians than at any time since 1989 -- and a record 23 women.

But analysts say lawmakers probably will have few choices available to them when it comes time to act.

That's because the state is in a bind financially. Gov. Bob Miller last month declared a hiring freeze, and tax revenue projections are grim.

Despite state agencies clamoring for more millions, the Legislature may be forced into the repetitive role of a naysayer.

Eric Herzik, chairman of the political science department at the University of Nevada, Reno, said there will be nothing new from the new Legislature.

"I would not look for any major shifts because of the budget constraints, and the new governor (Kenny Guinn) is not a radical change from Bob Miller," Herzik said. "With Proposition 5 in California (Indian gambling), I don't see anybody taking on bold initiatives."

This is because no one can yet predict the economic impact on Nevada of the proposition, which opens the door for California's 107 Indian tribes to set up casinos with Nevada-style slot machines.

Assembly Speaker Joe Dini, D-Yerington, predicts the tone of the Legislature "will be very conservative." Tax revenues are off and the surplus that allowed many pork-barrel projects two years ago has vanished, he said.

Furthermore, the Legislature will have to do its work in 120 days, not the 169 days it took both in 1995 and 1997.

The average age in the 21-member Senate is 54. Sen. Mark James, 39, R-Las Vegas, is the youngest member and Sen. Lawrence Jacobsen, R-Minden, 77, is the oldest.

The 42-member Assembly is slightly younger, with an average age of 50, ranging from 29-year-old Assemblyman David Goldwater, D-Las Vegas, to 78-year-old Gene Segerblom, D-Boulder City.

The 23 women, five in the Senate and 18 in the Assembly, surpass the old mark of 22 in 1995.

The leadership probably will be the same as it was in 1995 and 1997. Dini is expected to be elected speaker when Assembly Democrats caucus in Las Vegas in the next week. Richard Perkins, a Henderson police officer, will be majority leader again.

Democrats raised their majority in the House from 25 in 1997 to 28 for the coming session.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, apparently will lead the upper House again with Sen. Ray Rawson, R-Las Vegas, as his assistant. The GOP retained its 12-9 majority in the Senate. Raggio said the Republicans will meet in a week or two to elect its leadership and decide committee assignments.

"Most issues are the same and the players are the same," Raggio said.

The breakdown shows 29 of the 63 lawmakers are in private business, 16 are in government work, six are attorneys, eight are retired and four are in other occupations -- a university student, a union official, a consultant and a casino restaurant employee.

Three significant changes occurred in this election. Maggie Carlton, a waitress at Treasure Island in Las Vegas, won in Senate District 2 and succeeds Jack Regan, whom she defeated in the Democratic primary election. Carlton had strong union support and says she's going to be the voice of the common people. Regan was a conservative who didn't like Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus. And he sided with Republicans on key issues.

In Senate District 7 in Clark County, Democrat Terry Care was elected and will replace Republican Kathy Augustine, a loyal supporter of Raggio. Augustine was elected state controller.

In Reno, Democrat Sheila Leslie, a social activist, won the seat in Assembly District 27, succeeding conservative Republican Pat Hickey, who did not seek re-election.

Guinn, during his campaign for governor, did not suggest any major spending programs. He arrives in office confronting a freeze on government hiring imposed by Miller after tax revenues failed to materialize at the predicted level.

Despite the conservative talk, the slowdown in tax collections hasn't stopped lawmakers from asking for bills for their favorite projects. Dini wants money for expansion of the Lyon County Museum and restoration of the Thompson School House, and Assemblywoman Geni Ohrenschall, D-Las Vegas, is proposing that the state pay for a community library center in her district. It won't break the bank, she says.

Sen. Mike Schneider, D-Las Vegas, seeks construction of a new state building in Clark County to house the offices of the State Department of Business and Industry, and the Legislature wants money for more work in its Carson City building and to add computer systems.

Crime issues may not play a major role for this Legislature as they have in the past. Sen. Mark James, R-Las Vegas, who heads the Judiciary Committee, said the three previous sessions enacted significant laws on "truth in sentencing," sex-offender notification and stalking.

Lawmakers are still evaluating these programs, and there may be some minor tinkering. The 1999 Legislature will likely focus on:

* The juvenile criminal system.

* Legislation to keep sex offenders who complete their prison term confined until they are judged not to be a threat to society.

* The so-called "good Samaritan" bill, named after Jeremy Strohmeyer, convicted of killing 7-year-old Sherrice Iverson at a Primm casino in 1997. Stohmeyer was with a friend who walked away when Strohmeyer began assaulting the girl. This bill would allow charges to be brought against a person who witnesses a crime but does not notify authorities or otherwise try to prevent it.

This Legislature also will set the stage for reapportionment in 2001. Lawmakers are expected to allocate money to set up computer programs to receive the year 2000 census data. It's aimed at drawing new districts along population lines. It will mean Clark County will get more senators and assemblymen in the 2002 election.

While the Democrats have a huge majority in the Assembly, Dini said he doesn't foresee any problem in getting along with the new Republican governor. He said Democrats worked with Republican Govs. Paul Laxalt and Bob List, "and we never had any trouble. We will be the loyal opposition, but I don't see our caucuses giving him (Guinn) a bad time."

Voters last week approved a pet proposal of Raggio for a 120-day limit on the session. The last two sessions continued for 169 days, and there hasn't been a session of less than 120 days since 1977.

Leadership has agreed on a timetable to get lawmakers under the deadline. Instead of starting on the third Monday in January, the session begins Feb. 1. Legislators will have until Feb. 8 to make requests for individual bills and they must be introduced by March 15. By April 19, the 78th day of the session, all bills must have been passed out of the house in which they originated. Bills must clear the other house on day 110, which is May 21.

Budget bills are exempt from this timetable because they must wait for final revenue estimates from the Economic Forum. Those estimates aren't due until May 1.

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