Council plans legislative strategy

Erin Neff

Friday, Aug. 4, 2000 | 11:09 a.m.

The Las Vegas City Council will hold a special meeting Monday to determine the best way to get the Legislature to buy into its wish list of local bills.

A special legislative workshop will take place at 2 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall, 400 E. Stewart Ave.

The council will discuss which bill drafts the city should submit to the 2001 Legislature and revisit the contested topic of federal lobbying services.

"We plan on giving a presentation that covers a variety of different opportunities for the city and the things we have heard about that could impact us," said Betsy Fretwell, assistant city manager.

Both of the city's federal lobbyists, Alcade & Fay and US Strategies Corp., will make presentations.

In June, the council struggled with a decision about which of three lobbying firms -- Alcade, US Strategies or Cassidy & Assoc. -- should get the city's business.

Part of the problem in making a decision, council members said, was that they weren't sure what the city wanted to get out of its federal lobbying team.

City staffers and internal lobbyists have been evaluating the bill drafts already submitted to the state Legislature for its session next year.

Although it's difficult to tell from a one-line summary on the Internet, Fretwell says she believes there are already several bill drafts that could impact the city.

One bill draft involves air quality, one deals with the residential construction tax, and five with the dissolution of Metro Police. Another would limit torte liability for local governments.

The one bill draft that might affect Las Vegas directly is a measure that would require a special election to fill a vacant seat on a council or commission.

"That might be directed toward us," Fretwell said.

Three seats on the Las Vegas City Council have been filled by appointment in the past 14 months.

The council will likely have the most interest in discussing measures the city should include in its four available bill drafts. The council also may discuss opportunities to get the League of Cities or a legislator to sponsor other bills on the city's behalf.

Mayor Oscar Goodman's proposal to use construction impact fees from one geographic area to fund park projects citywide will likely top discussion.

"Parks and park development is such a high priority with this council," Fretwell said.