Friday, March 5, 2004 | 9:24 a.m.
However, as the former general counsel of the state university who has done a lot of research into this matter, I can tell you that court cases nationwide uniformly hold that a constitutionally autonomous university, such as Nevada's, does not constitute a fourth branch of government. There are only three branches of government, and since the Board of Regents is not a legislature or a court of law (the powers of the Legislature and the judiciary are vested exclusively by the state constitution in those bodies only), it follows both legally and logically that the state university is in the only branch left -- the executive branch.
The Nevada Constitution's separation-of-powers article is too clear to be ignored. It's time some of these state-employee legislators, who have sworn to uphold that constitution, start complying with their oaths of office.
DONALD KLASIC Editor's note: Donald Klasic is a semi-retired attorney living in Reno. He was a Nevada deputy attorney general from 1972 to 1981. From 1981 to 1997 he was the general counsel for the University and Community College System of Nevada.
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