Bill that called for more lawyers for children might be dead

By Joe Schoenmann (contact)

Wednesday, April 29, 2009 | 4:57 p.m.

The state senator who authored a bill that aimed to strengthen legal services for abused and neglected children now wants the bill shelved.

Sen. Terry Care, D-Las Vegas, said Wednesday he sent word to his colleagues that he wants his Senate Bill 292 dropped. The measure would have mandated providing more lawyers for children.

Care said the problem is he saw no movement to lessen the fiscal impact of the bill on Clark and Washoe counties, both of which would have been hit up for about $10 million as a result of the bill’s passage.

“When I spoke on the Senate floor the day the bill came out I said that I had been reassured by those interested in the bill that they would work with the affected counties to craft language to diminish the fiscal impact. However, to date I am unaware of any efforts by anyone to undertake those efforts,” he said.

Care said he was disappointed. He had sought the bill in his role as uniform law commissioner. Uniform law commissioners, according to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, are appointed by state governments “to research, draft and promote enactment of uniform state laws in areas of state law where uniformity is desirable and practical.”