Panel OKs redistricting bill: Democrats ignore new Republican proposal

Erin Neff

Wednesday, May 16, 2001 | 11:07 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Democrats quietly rushed their reapportionment plan out of committee Tuesday evening, moments after Assembly Republicans presented an alternative they said is more fair to incumbents and Hispanics.

The Elections, Procedures and Ethics Committee passed the Democrats-sponsored Assembly Bill 665, which would keep the Legislature at 63 seats, without any notation on the agenda that a vote was scheduled.

"We just think 42 (Assembly seats) and 21 (Senate seats) is better for Southern Nevada," Committee Chairwoman Chris Giunchigliani, D-Las Vegas, said.

The Democratic bill cleared the committee with the panel's four Republicans voting against it. The vote came just minutes after a quick presentation of the Republican plan by Minority Leader Lynn Hettrick, R-Gardnerville, and Bob Beers, R-Reno.

The Republican plan, hashed out over the weekend and in a caucus Tuesday, would increase the Assembly from 42 to 46 seats. It would shift two Northern Nevada seats to Southern Nevada.

The GOP proposal, which was not voted on, creates five Hispanic seats while maintaining two black seats. Republicans said Hispanics would be better served by their plan because the populations in those districts could grow to 75 percent Hispanic in the years before the next census.

This latest plan comes one week after Assembly Democrats unveiled their reapportionment proposal, which keeps the size of Assembly at 42 seats but forces 12 incumbents to face each other in future elections.

The Republican plan has four incumbents squaring off -- Vivian Freeman, D-Reno, against Debbie Smith, D-Sparks and Joe Dini, D-Yerington, and Roy Neighbors, D-Tonopah.

In the Republican plan, six open seats were drawn in Clark County, three for each party.

"We drew that to allow each incumbent to have a district," Hettrick said. "We tried to make it as fair as we could."

Freeman, who spent last week discounting an erroneous press report that stated she would not seek re-election, did not warmly greet the new plan.

"You said incumbents are protected," Freeman, 73, said. "I don't see any evidence of that in this."

The Republican plan gives Democrats a 24-22 edge in district voter registration. The Democrat plan gave Democrats a 26-16 edge, despite nearly even voter registration statewide, Hettrick said.

In the Democrats' plan that passed committee Tuesday night, the following Republicans would have to face each other: Merle Berman and Barbara Cegavske, both of Las Vegas; Greg Brower and David Humke, both of Reno; Sharron Angle and Dawn Gibbons, both of Reno, and John Carpenter, of Elko against John Marvel, of Battle Mountain.

Don Gustavson, R-Sun Valley, would run against Smith in a district with an 8-percentage point edge in Democratic voters. Kathy Von Tobel, R-Las Vegas, would face Democrat David Parks in a 46 percent Democratic district.

Democrats Morse Arberry and Bob Price would have to face each other in a district with roughly a one-third black, one-third Hispanic and one-third white population.

Brower said he was surprised by Tuesday night's rapid vote, because the bill wasn't posted on the committee's work session document. However, Brower and others admitted that because the Democrats had the votes, there was little point in delaying the action.

AB665 heads to the full Assembly -- just seven days after it was unveiled -- with no accepted amendments from either Republicans or Hispanic residents. The bill deals with state Assembly, Senate and congressional seats.

Hispanics planned to hold a press conference in Las Vegas this morning to unveil their maps and ideas for reapportionment, likely without the knowledge that the Democrat plan had already passed committee.

The Senate, with a Republican majority, has not presented its reapportionment bills. Some maps have been circulating throughout the Legislative Building, though none has been presented in bill form.

The Legislature has a self-imposed May 25 deadline to finish reapportionment.