Starting Tuesday, we will pay a little more

Monday, June 30, 2003 | 11:20 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- While the Legislature is locked in debate over an $870 million tax increase, Nevadans will start digging deeper into their pockets on Tuesday for such things as filing civil suits, getting an auto smog check or taking a taxicab ride.

Increases in those fees are just a few of the estimated 175 bills passed by the regular session of the Legislature and effective July 1. Scores more take effect in October.

Among other laws becoming effective Tuesday are ones creating a Commission on Homeland Security, a prohibition of local government enactment of ordinances that would ban the use of cell phones while driving, a moratorium on operation or building of new heliports in Clark County and protection of the land adjacent to the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.

The Legislature has until midnight tonight to approve a tax bill. And if it fails, Gov. Kenny Guinn has said he will file suit to force them to act.

Meanwhile state government is expected to operate without interruption. The Legislature has passed an appropriations act of an estimated $3.1 billion to keep the state running -- though no state money will be going to the school districts because the school funding is in separate legislation that has not won final approval.

Other new fees will go into effect, however. One of the bills that take effect Tuesday imposes a $7 court assessment on anyone who pleads guilty or is found guilty in a justice or municipal court. The bill also increases the assessment by $10 when the judge levies a fine. The money goes to the judicial system.

Another requires an extra fee on civil suit filings when more than one plaintiff and one defendant are named. A $30 fee will be charged for each additional plaintiff or defendant. Most of the money goes into the legal system, but $5 from each payment goes for programs for indigent persons.

Parents who pay child support or alimony through their employers will be assessed a $5 fee, up from the present $3. The extra money will be split between the state and the counties.

Clark and Washoe motorists will pay an additional $1 when they get their annual auto emission tests, with the receipts going to the state Department of Motor Vehicles.

The surcharge for a taxicab ride in Clark County rises from 15 to 20 cents. Taxicab drivers will have to pay $40, instead of $20, when applying for a permit. And the renewal fee goes from $5 to $10.

County commissions outside of Clark County will be permitted to boost the real property transfer tax by 5 cents for each $500 of valuation. The money would be used to fight hoards of Mormon crickets, grasshoppers now appearing across Northern Nevada and other pests and weeds.

Other bills that take effect Tuesday will spend, rather than raise, money.

Pay raises go into effect for most full-time county elective officials. In Clark County the salary of the district attorney goes from $100,800 to $155,745; the sheriff's pay rises from $84,000 to $134,263; and the county clerk, assessor, recorder, treasurer and administrator will each have salaries of $91,138 instead of $72,000 effective Tuesday. County commissioners, part-time positions that now earn $54,000, were given permission to raise their own pay but it can't be by more than 26.5 percent. The Clark County commissioners are expected to begin discussing raises for themselves at their Wednesday meeting.

A bill sponsored by Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, to prepare for attacks from terrorists, takes effect Tuesday as well. The state homeland security commission, local governments and utilities are required to write plans to guard against terrorist attacks and to handle the damage if they occur. A system is to be established for running government if the top elected officials are killed in any attack.

A new law will stop local governments from imposing restrictions on the use of cell phones while driving. Advocates say it would be too confusing if different adjacent political subdivisions passed conflicting or differing ordinances regulating this.

Another law will push Clark County to study new locations for sightseeing helicopters to land and take off that is away from neighborhoods and the flight paths over residential areas. In the meantime, the county cannot approve any heliports until it completes the study. Helicopter companies that locate at the new site, once it is chosen, will receive a tax break.

As of Tuesday, Clark County is prohibited from changing the zoning to increase the number of homes in the area adjacent to Red Rock. With some exceptions the County Commission is given the power to regulate landscaping, buffering, signs and lighting.

Students with Millennium Scholarships attending state universities or community colleges must maintain a 2.6 grade point average starting Tuesday to keep the scholarship, up from the present 2.0. The new law requires high school students to have higher grade point averages to qualify for the scholarships.

And the new law will allow home-schooled children to participate in interscholastic activities and events at the public schools.

The University and Community College System of Nevada will be studied at length under two laws becoming effective Tuesday. One calls for the legislative auditor to examine such things as the cost of athletic programs, travel, host accounts, bidding processes and construction costs. Another creates a commission to evaluate the system to see if it is meeting the needs of Nevadans.

University regents, starting Tuesday, are required to install a system for students to decide if they want their personal information supplied to commercial firms such as credit cards companies, which would then solicit students' business. A system is already in effect but this law makes it mandatory.

Some of the other new laws that become effective Tuesday include:

An employee with a standard evaluation with eight years or more now receives $150 a year. The new law provides additional longevity payment based on the years of service. Those with nine to 14 years would receive an extra $25 for each year of service; for 15 to 24 years, there would be an annual $50 payment for each year of service; and for those with 24 to 30 years, there would be a payment of $75 for each year of service.