Nevada sports commission, not exactly swamped with work, may get the ax

By Cy Ryan

Friday, April 27, 2012 | 5 p.m.

The Nevada Commission on Sports, created in 1989 to help with the Nevada Special Olympics and the Nevada Senior Games, is facing elimination.

A legislative sunset subcommittee has recommended the commission be abolished after it could not find evidence of any meetings.

After the vote, Sen. Mike Schneider, D-Las Vegas, said he was appointed to the commission after the 2011 Legislature. Schneider, a former sports writer, had said he was interested in sports.

But he was never contacted by any representative from the sports commission and has never been to a meeting. "I don't know anything about it," he said when contacted after the subcommittee vote Friday.

He is one of two nonvoting lawmakers appointed by legislative leadership.

Legislative research analyst Marjorie Paslov Thomas told the subcommittee that efforts were unsuccessful in contacting the sports commission to get information, and follow-up phone calls also were unanswered.

The law says the nine-member sports commission must develop a statewide sports competition for amateurs to be known as the Silver State Games to be patterned after the summer and winter Olympic Games.

The commission, according to the law, should promote the development of Olympic training centers and also push for physical fitness through participation in sports.

A spokeswoman for the governor's office says there is no record of appointments since 2006. The commission members are named by the governor.

The commission can appeal the recommendation by asking the subcommittee for a hearing. And it will be up to the 2013 Legislature to abolish the commission, which was created by law.

The subcommittee, created to look at eliminating unnecessary agencies, boards and committees, voted to retain the Nevada Athletic Commission that regulates boxing and other unarmed combat. Subcommittee member David Goldwater said the commission was a "model for the country."

The subcommittee also backed the retention of the state Board of Athletic Trainers and the Advisory Council on the State Program for Fitness and Wellness.

Sen. John Lee, D-North Las Vegas, said the advisory council should be continued for two years to evaluate its value. Subcommittee member Frank Partlow backed Lee, saying a recent national study showed Nevada "doesn't do well on the basic issues of health."

The subcommittee also voted to retain the boards of Veterinary Medical Examiners and Geographic Names and the Council on Mortgage Investments and Mortgage Lending.