AB252 - Revises provisions relating to the Legislative Department of the State Government. (BDR 17-880)

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