Giunchigliani pushes bid for annual sessions

Erin Neff

Monday, April 7, 2003 | 9:11 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Although a bill calling for annual sessions of the Legislature has died six times in the Senate, the Assembly the proposal again.

Assembly Joint Resolution 7, sponsored by Chris Giunchigliani, D-Las Vegas, would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to allow for limited annual sessions.

"We should have had annual sessions when we went to the 120-day session," Giunchigliani said.

The bill seeks several amendments to the constitution to set up annual sessions as follows: a 120-day session in odd-numbered years and a 60-day session in even-numbered years.

It also gives lawmakers the right to petition the governor to call a special session of the Legislature and establishes a 20-day limit on special sessions.

It also raises the postage allowance for lawmakers from $60 to $500.

"My grave concern is if there's at least one thing in here among these amendments that people don't like, it won't go," said Harry Mortenson, D-Las Vegas, and chairman of the Constitutional Amendments Committee.

Mortenson has sponsored Assembly Joint Resolution 13, which gives lawmakers the right to petition the governor to call a special session.

But Giunchigliani said she thought if both measures appeared on the ballot at the same time, both would fail.

Bob Price, a former assemblyman who has pushed annual sessions for years, said the Legislature should meet every year to make sure government can react to crises.

He also supported allowing the Legislature to call itself into a special session.

"We are the people's house and we should have that ability for the people," Price said.

The committee took no action on either resolution Friday.