Behind the Bar: The legislative session cometh
Behind the Bar: The legislative session cometh
Behind the Bar is The Nevada Independent’s newsletter devoted to comprehensive and accessible coverage of the Legislature.
Welcome to this inaugural installment of the 2023 newsletter. In today’s edition: A quick note on how The Indy plans to cover the 82nd Session, a look at how split government may do the business of governing, and a shameless plug for our shiny new legislative page on the website (you should visit our legislative page on the website).
Check this link to manage your newsletter subscriptions. This newsletter is published on Tuesdays and Fridays.
We want to hear from you! Send us your questions, comments, observations, jokes, or what you think we should be covering or paying attention to. Email Jacob Solis, your humble newsletter editor, at [email protected].
Days until:
- The session begins: 3
- Sine die: 123
How we’re covering the legislative session
The wait is over. Behind the Bar has returned.
At The Nevada Independent, we pride ourselves on the breadth and depth of our legislative coverage. Indeed, in the early days of 2017, the Legislature was the crucible from which The Indy sprang forth.
In 2023, we are more committed to that coverage than ever. Three reporters — Sean Golonka, Tabitha Mueller and Jacob Solis — will take the reins as statehouse reporters, with the rest of our talented Indy team ready to explain even the thorniest political issues as they arise.
And be it a historic drought, ongoing debates over education funding and school choice, or how the state should spend hundreds of millions in surplus dollars, we’ve got you covered.
Every week, we’ll have new installments of regular features diving deep into the mechanics of how the state’s policies are crafted, debated and passed.
Our Follow the Money series will take a weekly look at which industries, which corporations and which major donors are giving to which lawmakers, painting a holistic picture of how the state’s biggest players tie themselves to policy debates. It will start on Sunday, with a breakdown of which legislators raked in the most campaign cash.
Our continuing Freshman Orientation series follows the newest lawmakers to Carson City, getting past the campaign-website boilerplate and providing a picture of who these people are.
And not to be forgotten is this very newsletter, Behind the Bar, where we will deliver not only the top legislative headlines directly to your inbox twice a week, but also an in-depth look at what happens behind the scenes as policies, legal frameworks and campaign rhetoric are massaged into bills and votes and a governor’s signature (or veto letter).
We’ll also have all the breaking news coverage and policy deep dives you’ve come to expect, as well as the most in-depth analysis of the moves coming from the statehouse and the governor’s mansion. To wit, look no further than the first State of the State address from Gov. Joe Lombardo, from which we broke down the speech (twice), the recommended budget and the Democratic response.
And new this session: We’ll increase focus on accessibility to our coverage across the internet, with more videos, instant updates to your phone via text message, quick updates via our new Field Notes page and a brand new Indy TikTok.
Until sine die,
— Jacob Solis and the rest of The Indy’s legislative team
What we’re reading and writing
IndyTalks: Lombardo wants to expand Opportunity Scholarship eligibility, reform eviction law, by Jacob Solis, Tabitha Mueller and Rocio Hernandez
Did you miss the IndyTalks with Gov. Joe Lombardo? We’ve got you covered (complete with a full video and a highlight video of the interview).
The Nevada Independent’s Freshman Orientation Series, by Carly Savageau, Jannelle Calderon and Naoka Foreman
Learn about the newest members of the Legislature.
Six states release consensus framework for Colorado River cuts — with California absent, by Daniel Rothberg
Colorado river negotiations hit a California-shaped stumbling block.
Educators turned lawmakers bringing classroom realities to the 2023 session, by Rocio Hernandez
Some Nevada students will have long-term substitutes this spring.
Nevada’s local governments seek more governing powers from Legislature, by Carly Sauvageau and Lucia Starbuck, KUNR
Among the proposals is letting county commissions fill their own vacancies.
Anti-abortion resolution may complicate Nevada GOP races, by Jessica Hill, Las Vegas Review-Journal
A national push from Republicans to limit abortions could reverberate in Nevada.
These interviews with two of Nevada’s constitutional officers, Attorney General Aaron Ford, Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar by Tabitha Mueller
A look at where the state’s Democratic executive officers fit under a Republican governor.
Ahead of the session, power dynamics take shape
For the first time in over four years, Nevada’s state government will be helmed by competing partisan arms: Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo to the right, Democratic majorities in the Assembly and Senate to the left.
It’s something of a return to form for Carson City — a Republican governor has had to negotiate with Democratic Legislatures for what is now nine out of the past 15 years and a fifth biennial session in as much time.
Ahead of the start of the session Monday, the policy fights are already taking shape on all of the most important Nevada issues, from education, elections and state budgeting to health care and public safety.
Despite promising an investment in Education Savings Accounts on the campaign trail, Lombardo is not seeking to fund the voucher-style school choice program this session. Instead, he’s looking to expand the state’s Opportunity Scholarships, a tax credit-funded scholarship program designed to allow students to attend private K-12 institutions.
But even if Lombardo gets his wish — a record $50 million for Opportunity Scholarships — that would be a mere drop of school choice in the vast ocean of state K-12 education funding, which is set to increase to $5 billion over the next two years.
Even if Democrats are not keen on the idea of more money for Opportunity Scholarships, Lombardo enters the session with a key bargaining chip in his pocket — the power of the veto. Though Democrats have a supermajority in the Assembly (28 Democrats to 14 Republicans), they fall one short in the Senate (13 Democrats to 8 Republicans), meaning they’d need to rely on at least one Republican defector to override a gubernatorial veto.
Still, with majorities in both chambers, Democrats hold the power of the purse. They’ll have the ability to approve key budget bills. Already, Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas) has pushed back on Lombardo’s proposal to put a record $2.2 billion state funds into savings.
Aside from the budget, those majorities also mean Lombardo will need Democrats on board for any policy goals he hopes to achieve through legislation. For example, Democratic leaders have shut down Lombardo’s hopes of enacting major election reforms, including an end to universal mail-in voting approved by Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak in 2021.
But don’t expect the session to be defined solely by partisan friction. Both sides have expressed support for record-setting investments in education, as well as raises for state employees and increased funding for mental health services.
Lombardo also has made clear his desire to be bipartisan. He hired Ben Kieckhefer, a former Republican state senator known for working across the aisle, as his chief of staff.
— Sean Golonka, Tabitha Mueller and Jacob Solis
A one-stop (legislative) shop
Have you ever wanted to find every piece of legislation, every legislator, every major issue and a tracker of every promise the governor’s made, all in one place?
Do we have the link for you: The Nevada Independent legislative page, newly redesigned and updated for the 82nd Session of the Legislature.
What can you find on this new page?
A newly designed home page replete with a timeline of the session (or a looming countdown, whichever you prefer), a fresh roundup of our top legislative stories, and a link to our brand new Legislative Glossary, where anyone can brush up on their Carson City jargon, and our new resources page, where you can find out how to participate in the legislative process.
A new legislators page, now with a find-my-legislator feature built in. Enter an address, hit the button that says “legislators,” and they’ll rocket to the top. If you prefer a holistic package, you can also browse every legislator all in one place. Contacting your lawmakers by phone or by email has never been easier.
A brand new Policy Tracker, an update to the old Issues Tracker you may be used to. Want to know what the top bills circulating through the building are? We’ve got them highlighted here. Want to know what the major sticking points on the biggest issues will be? We’ve got them all laid out, courtesy of the entire Indy team.
The Promise Tracker: Joe Lombardo Edition. Our stalwart tracker of the promises made by former Gov. Steve Sisolak has been updated for his Republican successor, now featuring more than 40 promises Lombardo made on the campaign trail, in interviews and in his inaugural State of the State.
Finally, enter into a circular newsletter loop by signing up for this newsletter after you’ve read it on our newsletter page. Or, more likely, read through back issues of Behind the Bar and relive the experience (or find that old story of ours without hunting through your inbox).
The legislative page will be updated as the session continues, especially through features on the Policy Tracker, where the most hotly debated bills will be highlighted as developments unfold.
— Jacob Solis
And to ease you into the weekend, a few tweets that came across our radar:
Is the session really real if the donuts are yet to arrive?
UNR rolls out the marching band for Lombardo.
Lawmakers are back on TikTok!
We’ll be back on Tuesday with a recap of the first-day festivities.