Nevada Legislature

CARSON CITY – The Nevada Legislature has reached agreement with a firm hired to help analyze the state’s revenue structure to complete a portion of the project.
The agreement reached with Moody’s Analytics requires the firm to finish the Nevada Vision Stakeholder Group portion of the contract by Sept. 15. It will require more work by the firm and two more meetings of the Vision Stakeholder Group, but the payment will remain at the initial bid of just under $100,000.

CARSON CITY – Nevada failed to make the cut today in its quest to win as much as $175 million in competitive federal funds to improve student achievement, but the details of why won’t be known until next month.
The failure to make the cut occurred even though Gov. Jim Gibbons created a blue ribbon panel to oversee the application process and the state hired a consultant to help finalize Nevada’s grant application.

CARSON CITY – The major funding gaps Nevada and other states have been forced to address in their current budgets will continue in the next cycle even as tax revenues finally begin to show signs of life, a national report released today says.
Signs of “delicate” revenue improvement will be offset by the loss of federal stimulus funds, posing ongoing challenges to lawmakers in 2011 and beyond, says the report from the National Conference of State Legislatures’ (NCSL).

CARSON CITY – A firm hired by the Nevada Legislature to produce a report on the state’s revenue structure has been sent a notice of default for failing to turn in the document by a July 1 deadline.
Lorne Malkiewich, director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau, said the notice was sent Wednesday to Moody’s Analytics, the contractor hired to perform the study. The company has 10 days to respond by producing the final report or the contract will be terminated, he said.

CARSON CITY – Several Nevada lawmakers serving on a panel gearing up for the critical task of redrawing the state’s political boundaries in 2011 said today they support expanding the size of the Legislature to provide better representation.

CARSON CITY – A dozen Nevada government entities spent more than $1.7 million taxpayer dollars last year to hire lobbyists in Washington, DC and have racked up nearly $400,000 in expenses in the first quarter of this year, according to data gathered by the national group Center for Responsive Politics.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

CARSON CITY – An effort by the Nevada Legislature to undertake a fundamental review of several state agency budgets with an eye to improving efficiencies and saving money began yesterday without support from Gov. Jim Gibbons or his staff.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal is reporting tonight that Charles Harvey, Nevada's economic stimulus coordinator who Gov. Jim Gibbons hired in September amid objections from the Nevada Legislature, has resigned.
Gibbons says he plans to hire a replacement for the $125,783 annual-salaried position.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons today approved a plan to phase out operations at the Nevada State Prison in the capital. The decision by the lame duck governor comes even though the Legislature has rejected past attempts to close the facility.
“It costs taxpayers an extra $4,000 to $6,000 per inmate for prisoners at NSP because the facility is so old and poorly designed,� Gibbons said. “Additionally, NSP is not as safe for prison staff as other facilities.�

Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons approved plans today to phase-out operations at the 650-inmate Nevada State Prison in Carson City.

“It costs taxpayers an extra $4,000 to $6,000 per inmate for prisoners at NSP because the facility is so old and poorly designed,” Gibbons said. “Additionally, NSP is not as safe for prison staff as other facilities.”

CARSON CITY – In the fight for control of the Republican Party in the state Senate in the Tuesday primary it was an even split, with conservative candidates taking two of four contested seats and two others going to more moderate candidates backed by Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons has announced his initiative petition to amend state law to subject public employee union negotiations to Nevada’s open meeting law has passed a legal challenge period, allowing the signature gathering process to begin.

CARSON CITY – Both Democrat and Republican lawmakers agree the 2011 legislative session will likely see a debate about the future of Nevada’s public employee pension program, but differences remain over whether radical change is needed to protect the state from a multi-billion long-term unfunded liability.

Part 2 of a Series on Key GOP State Senate Primary Races
CARSON CITY – While Republican voters have a rare chance to chart the course of the GOP Senate caucus in the upcoming primary, the candidates described by some political observers as the establishment choice say they too are true fiscal conservatives who believe in core party values.