Guinn says AG will handle cabbies’ request for an investigation

Friday, June 24, 2005 | 8:46 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn said Thursday he doesn't have the authority to conduct a civil or criminal investigation into the Legislature's passage of a bill that would have stopped cab drivers from accepting tips from businesses.

So, Guinn said, he is turning a request for an investigation by Las Vegas drivers over to the state Attorney General's Office.

A petition with 895 signatures was presented to the Las Vegas office of the governor on Wednesday asking for a state law enforcement agency to "conduct a full and complete investigation" into how and why a last-minute amendment was slipped into Assembly Bill 505. The amendment banned the paying of bounties to cabbies for delivery of passengers.

Guinn wound up vetoing the bill because of the amendment.

The petition by the cab drivers said, "We are supporting Gov. Guinn and asking that he find out how it happened and to prevent this closed-door lobbying from ever happening again."

AB505 initially only dealt with the elimination of the Transportation Services Authority and the transfer of its duties to the state Public Utilities Commission. On the next to the last day of the Legislature, the amendment was inserted into the bill.

The amendment appeared at a meeting of a Senate-Assembly conference committee and it was offered by Assembly Assistant Majority Leader John Oceguera, D-Las Vegas. The committee accepted the amendment and both houses gave its approval of the bill by voice vote.

Oceguera said the amendment was backed by small business that cannot afford these payoffs and lose their customers to the bigger establishments.

Guinn complained earlier that the amendment was adopted without public hearings and it applied only to cabdrivers and not limousine drivers, doormen and others. Taxi drivers in Las Vegas make part of their money by accepting payoffs from places like adult entertainment businesses that give a tip for dropping a customer at the place.

The governor first saw the petition Thursday afternoon and he said, "I have indicated publicly that I am going to talk to the leadership about the process towards the end, once they suspend the rules." Before suspending the rules, there are usually public notices three days before when a bill will be heard by a committee.

At the end of the session, as the lawmakers are trying to close their business, notices of the conference committees are posted but there is no three-day notice.

Guinn said Assembly Majority Leader Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, "has already made a statement publicly that this is something they are going to take a good look at to change next time."

The governor said he has talked with Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, and Raggio is "fully open to hearing what happened and making sure they have a different system."