A.B. 252
- *AB252*
ASSEMBLY BILL NO. 252–ASSEMBLYMEMBERS LA RUE HATCH,
ROTH, HUNT; CONSIDINE, GONZÁLEZ, GOULDING AND MOORE
FEBRUARY 18, 2025
____________
Referred to Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections
SUMMARY—Revises provisions relating to the Legislative
Department of the State Government. (BDR 17-880)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State: Yes.
~
EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to the Legislative Department of the State
Government; creating the Office of Ombudsman for
Legislative Employees in the Legislative Counsel Bureau
of the Legislative Department of the State Government;
setting forth the powers and duties of the Office; requiring
the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Legislative
Operations and Elections to conduct an interim study
concerning legislative employment; and providing other
matters properly relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Under existing law, the Legislative Counsel Bureau of the Legislative 1
Department of the State Government consists of a Legislative Commission, an 2
Interim Finance Committee and several divisions that provide professional, 3
technical and administrative support to the Nevada Legislature. (Chapter 218F of 4
NRS) Section 1 of this bill creates the Office of Ombudsman for Legislative 5
Employees in the Legislative Counsel Bureau and requires the Legislative 6
Commission to appoint an Ombudsman. Section 1 prescribes the duties of the 7
Office which include: (1) assisting legislative employees in knowing and 8
understanding their rights and responsibilities; (2) assisting legislative employees in 9
finding a satisfactory solution to conflicts in the workplace; (3) serving as a neutral 10
mediator in resolving concerns or conflicts brought by or on behalf of a legislative 11
employee; (4) providing information about available services and programs to 12
interested legislative employees; and (5) performing any other duties as directed by 13
the Legislative Commission. Section 1 also prohibits the Ombudsman from serving 14
as a Deputy Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau and prohibits the 15
Ombudsman or any staff of the Office from disclosing the identity or any 16
identifying information of a legislative employee who seeks assistance or 17
– 2 –
- *AB252*
information from the Office without the express permission of the legislative 18
employee. 19
Section 2 of this bill places the Office in the Legislative Counsel Bureau and 20
designates the Ombudsman as the head of the Office. Section 3 of this bill requires 21
the Ombudsman to perform the duties assigned by law under the administrative 22
supervision of the Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau. Section 4 of this bill 23
prohibits the Ombudsman from opposing or urging legislation except as required to 24
make recommendations to the Legislature. 25
Section 5 of this bill requires the Joint Interim Standing Committee on 26
Legislative Operations and Elections to conduct a study during the 2025-2026 27
interim concerning certain issues relating to legislative employment. 28
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Chapter 218F of NRS is hereby amended by adding 1
thereto a new section to read as follows: 2
1. The Office of Ombudsman for Legislative Employees is 3
hereby created in the Legislative Counsel Bureau, which consists 4
of the Ombudsman and such staff as the Ombudsman may 5
require. 6
2. The Legislative Commission shall appoint the Ombudsman 7
who is an employee of the Legislative Counsel Bureau. 8
3. The Office of Ombudsman for Legislative Employees 9
shall: 10
(a) Assist legislative employees in knowing and understanding 11
their rights and responsibilities as employees of the Legislative 12
Department. 13
(b) Assist legislative employees in finding a satisfactory 14
solution to conflicts in the workplace. 15
(c) Serve as a neutral mediator attempting to resolve concerns 16
or conflicts brought by or on behalf of a legislative employee 17
regarding issues in the workplace. Issues in the workplace 18
include, without limitation, concerns regarding equity in the 19
workplace and work-related conflicts amongst legislative 20
employees. 21
(d) Provide information to interested legislative employees 22
about services and programs available to legislative employees. 23
(e) Perform any other duties as directed by the Legislative 24
Commission. 25
4. The Ombudsman and any staff of the Office of 26
Ombudsman for Legislative Employees shall not disclose to a 27
member of the Legislature, the Director, a division chief or an 28
employee of the Legislative Department the identity or any 29
identifying information of a legislative employee seeking 30
assistance or information from the Office of Ombudsman for 31
– 3 –
- *AB252*
Legislative Employees without the express permission of the 1
legislative employee. 2
5. The Ombudsman may not serve as a Deputy Director of the 3
Legislative Counsel Bureau. 4
Sec. 2. NRS 218F.100 is hereby amended to read as follows: 5
218F.100 1. There is hereby created the Legislative Counsel 6
Bureau, which consists of a Legislative Commission, an Interim 7
Finance Committee, an Office of Ombudsman for Legislative 8
Employees, a Director, an Audit Division, a Fiscal Analysis 9
Division, a Legal Division, a Research Division and an 10
Administrative Division. 11
2. The Ombudsman is the head of the Office of Ombudsman 12
for Legislative Employees. 13
3. The Legislative Auditor is the chief of the Audit Division. 14
[3.] 4. The Legislative Counsel and the General Counsel are 15
the chiefs of the Legal Division. The Director shall designate from 16
time to time the Legislative Counsel or the General Counsel or an 17
employee of the Legal Division to be responsible for the 18
administration of the Legal Division. 19
[4.] 5. The Research Director is the chief of the Research 20
Division. 21
[5.] 6. The Senate Fiscal Analyst and the Assembly Fiscal 22
Analyst are the chiefs of the Fiscal Analysis Division. The Director 23
shall designate from time to time one of the Fiscal Analysts or an 24
employee of the Fiscal Analysis Division to be responsible for the 25
administration of the Fiscal Analysis Division. 26
[6.] 7. The Legislative Commission shall appoint the Director. 27
The Director shall appoint the Chief of the Administrative Division 28
and the chiefs of the other divisions with the approval of the 29
Legislative Commission, and may serve as the chief of any division. 30
[7. The] 31
8. Except as otherwise provided in section 1 of this act, the 32
Director may, with the consent of the Legislative Commission, 33
designate one of the chiefs of the divisions or an employee of the 34
Legislative Counsel Bureau as the Deputy Director. 35
Sec. 3. NRS 218F.110 is hereby amended to read as follows: 36
218F.110 1. The Director serves as the executive head of the 37
Legislative Counsel Bureau and shall direct and supervise all of its 38
administrative and technical activities. The Ombudsman and chiefs 39
of the divisions of the Legislative Counsel Bureau shall perform the 40
respective duties assigned to them by law under the administrative 41
supervision of the Director. 42
2. The Director shall, consistent with the budget approved by 43
the Legislative Commission and within the limits of legislative 44
appropriations and other available funds, employ and fix the salaries 45
– 4 –
- *AB252*
of or contract for the services of such professional, technical, 1
clerical and operational personnel and consultants as the execution 2
of the Director’s duties and the operation of the Legislative Counsel 3
Bureau may require. 4
3. All of the personnel of the Legislative Counsel Bureau are: 5
(a) Exempt from the provisions of chapter 284 of NRS. 6
(b) Entitled to such leaves of absence as the Legislative 7
Commission shall prescribe. 8
Sec. 4. NRS 218F.150 is hereby amended to read as follows: 9
218F.150 1. The Director and other officers and employees 10
of the Legislative Counsel Bureau shall not: 11
(a) Oppose or urge legislation, except as the duties of the 12
Ombudsman, the Director, the Legislative Auditor, the Legislative 13
Counsel, the General Counsel, the Research Director and the Fiscal 14
Analysts require them to make recommendations to the Legislature. 15
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, NRS 218D.130, 16
218D.135, 218D.250 and 353.211, disclose to any person outside 17
the Legislative Counsel Bureau the nature or content of any matter 18
entrusted to the Legislative Counsel Bureau, and such matter is 19
confidential and privileged and is not subject to discovery or 20
subpoena, unless the person entrusting the matter to the Legislative 21
Counsel Bureau requests or consents to the disclosure. 22
2. The nature or content of any work produced by the officers 23
and employees of the Research Division may be disclosed if or to 24
the extent that the disclosure does not reveal the identity of the 25
person who requested it or include any matter submitted by the 26
requester which has not been published or publicly disclosed. 27
3. The nature and content of any work produced by the officers 28
and employees of the Legal Division and the Fiscal Analysis 29
Division and any matter entrusted to those officers and employees to 30
produce such work are confidential and privileged and are not 31
subject to discovery or subpoena. 32
4. The nature and content of any work produced or 33
performed by, or any matter entrusted to, the Ombudsman and 34
staff of the Office of Ombudsman for Legislative Employees is 35
confidential and privileged and is not subject to discovery or 36
subpoena. 37
5. The provisions of subsections 1 [, 2 and 3] to 4, inclusive, 38
apply to any matter or work in any form, including, without 39
limitation, in any oral, written, audio, visual, digital or electronic 40
form, and such matter or work includes, without limitation, any 41
communications, information, answers, advice, opinions, 42
recommendations, drafts, documents, records, questions, inquiries or 43
requests in any such form. 44
– 5 –
- *AB252*
[5.] 6. When a statute has been enacted or a resolution 1
adopted, the Legislative Counsel shall upon request disclose to any 2
person the state or other jurisdiction from whose law it appears to 3
have been adopted. 4
[6.] 7. The records of the travel expenses of Legislators and 5
officers and employees of the Legislature and the Legislative 6
Counsel Bureau are available for public inspection at such 7
reasonable hours and under such other conditions as the Legislative 8
Commission prescribes. 9
Sec. 5. 1. The Joint Interim Standing Committee on 10
Legislative Operations and Elections shall conduct a study during 11
the 2025-2026 interim concerning issues relating to legislative 12
employment. 13
2. In conducting the study, the Joint Interim Standing 14
Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections may enter into a 15
contract with a consultant. 16
3. The study must include, without limitation: 17
(a) An assessment of issues facing legislative employees in the 18
workplace, including, without limitation, workplace satisfaction and 19
challenges to work performance; and 20
(b) Input from legislative employees in the form of employee 21
surveys. 22
4. Not later than December 31, 2026, the Joint Interim 23
Standing Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections shall 24
prepare and submit a report of the findings of the study conducted 25
pursuant to subsection 1 to the Director of the Legislative Counsel 26
Bureau for transmittal to the Legislative Commission. 27
5. As used in this section, “legislative employee” means a 28
person who is employed by the Legislative Department. 29
Sec. 6. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2025. 30
H