A session wrap-up, a look ahead
The 82nd Session of the Nevada State Legislature officially gaveled out on June 5. There were two special sessions after that to deal with outstanding issues, including the siting and financing for an Major League Baseball stadium in Las Vegas.
As is often the case when navigating divided government, there were some positives and negatives to take away from this year’s session. While there was all manner of awful anti-business bills that were introduced at the beginning of session, NFIB’s work, in cooperation with allies and partners, ensured that almost all bills that would have negative impacts on Nevada small businesses were either mitigated, killed, or vetoed by newly elected Gov. Joe Lombardo.
Governor Lombardo’s presence was critical in ensuring that the legislators, committee chairs, and legislative leadership either worked with us to mitigate concerns or bills were vetoed if we couldn’t come to agreement. Gov. Lombardo vetoed an astounding 75 pieces of legislation during his first session.
Some of our priorities were never seriously considered by the Legislature, such as the increase in the exemption level for the commerce tax. Governor Lombardo proposed raising that level from $4 million in gross revenue to $6 million. We look forward to working with the governor’s team and our allies in the Legislature to see meaningful tax relief for small businesses advance in 2025.
As the clock struck midnight on Monday night, June 5, some bills failed to get across the finish line in time, prompting the governor to call two special sessions to finalize the state’s business.
Now, barring any other big economic development projects or pandemics, the Legislature won’t reconvene until 2025 and Governor Lombardo will have center stage in Carson City as he works to staff-up various executive branch agencies, rebuild a culture of in-the-office constituent service, and work to implement the various bills and budget that was passed.
Here is a final recap of key bills that NFIB engaged on during this Session:
Bills NFIB helped defeat:
- AB 312 would have established an Environmental Justice Commission that could stifle future growth and development and make every public and private construction project more expensive.
- SB 427 sought to implement new heat protection standards for workers using vague definitions and a one-size-fits-all standard
- AJR 3 would have amended the Nevada Constitution to guarantee the “right” to clean air and water.
- AB 421 would have imposed a tax on businesses who collect consumer data
- SB 76 would have punished small retailers for selling common household items comprised of certain chemical compounds. Vetoed by Governor Lombardo.
Bills signed into law that NFIB supported:
- AB 50 gives the attorney general additional tools to fight organized retail crime.
- SB 24 makes permanent the Lt. Governor’s Office of Small Business Advocacy.
- SB 261 ensures better notification requirements when local governments are proposing new regulations that affect small businesses.
- AB 77 creates an Office of Entrepreneurship within the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.
Negative bills:
- SB 145 initially would have punished employers from unintentionally misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor, even on the first offense. We worked with the sponsor to re-instate protections for honest mistakes.
- AB 410 as originally drafted would have classified stress as a condition worthy of receiving workers comp benefits. The bill was amended to only apply to first responders suffering from PTSD.
- SB 305 creates a required retirement program for private sector employees, while some minor improvements were made to the final legislation, Nevada follows many other states in recent years enacting this new program. More information to come from NFIB to assist you in implementing this law.
As you can see, NFIB had a very busy, productive session, and we could not have done it without the input and insights of its members. We are looking forward to expanding our grassroots activism efforts, legislative outreach, and strengthening our relationship with the Lombardo administration, all of which is only possible through NFIB’s engaged membership that stretches across every community and every industry in Nevada.
