Terrorism bills clear Legislature on last day

Tuesday, June 3, 2003 | 9:57 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Bills that create the crime of terrorism and get the state moving to prepare for any act of violence were approved by the Senate Monday on the final day of the Legislature and transmitted to the governor.

Both Assembly Bill 250 and Assembly Bill 441 were sponsored by Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, and cover many subjects.

AB250 creates the crime of terrorism and carries a penalty of up to death.

Terrorism is defined as any act involving use or attempted use of sabotage, coercion or violence that is intended to cause great bodily harm or death to the general population. Substantial destruction or contamination of any building, communications system, transportation, utility or natural resource would also be a crime of terrorism.

But it specifically does not include acts of civil disobedience.

It would be illegal to possess any weapon of mass destruction, a chemical or radioactive agent with the intent to cause harm.

The second bill, AB441, sets up a commission on homeland security to advise the governor and to oversee plans for guarding against terrorist attacks.

It must identify the buildings, facilities and other places that might be targets of an attack. The commission would assess the emergency plans needed to protect these buildings and other facilities.

The commission must also establish a communication plan so that the various systems must tie into each other.

For instance, the Nevada Highway Patrol radios are now on one frequency, but some law enforcement agencies are on another.

After July 1, 2004, a government agency in Nevada is prohibited from purchasing a communication system for use by an emergency response agency unless it complies with the state plan that requires they be able to talk to other agencies.

Plans that prepare the state for preventing or responding to terrorism are confidential.