The Assembly Republican Caucus has announced three bill draft requests that have been submitted for the upcoming legislative session in an effort to limit the emergency powers Governor Sisolak has exercised during the COVID pandemic.
BDR 36-41 would limit the duration of a state of emergency or declaration of disaster declared by the Governor and was submitted by Assemblyman Jim Wheeler.
BDR 36-51 would revise provisions relating to emergency management, including requiring a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to extend the Governor’s declaration of emergency beyond 30 days and prohibit agencies and regulatory boards from adopting restrictions which exceed the restrictions imposed by the Governor. The legislative language was submitted by Senator Keith Pickard.
BRD 178 would limit the Governor's use of executive power under an emergency declaration and was submitted by Senator Ira Hansen.
In the announcement, Assembly Republicans announce that they will make it a priority to restore checks and balances to Nevada’s government, saying since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, states across the country were forced to take emergency action to try and slow the spread of the virus. Nevada was no different, as Governor Sisolak signed an emergency directive to force the closure of all non-essential businesses.
“After eight months of contradicting directives, massive budgets cuts, thousands of Nevada business closures and even more of our hard-working citizens on unemployment, far too many Nevadans head into the holiday season with a sense of hopelessness,” read the media release.
“The Assembly Republican Caucus supports the efforts of our Republican colleagues to rein in the governor’s emergency powers and restore the appropriate checks and balances designed to keep us free,” said Assembly Republican Leader Robin Titus (AD38). Titus represents Churchill County in the Assembly. “The governor’s almost unlimited power to micro-manage our state is far too restrictive and inconsistent, including his latest directives that skirt the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable search and seizure in your own home.”
In Nevada, the governor is vested with broad powers under a state of emergency that make it possible to undermine the separation of powers between the legislative and executive branches if allowed unchecked.
“The unlimited power being wielded by Governor Sisolak today exceeds his responsibility to keep citizens healthy and safe, and spills over into the realm of authority normally and appropriately reserved for legislators,” continued the release.
“Governor Sisolak’s latest directives are a clear reminder of the unconstrained power he continues to exercise over Nevada’s families,” said Assemblyman Andy Matthews (AD37). “Many, if not all, of the new directives are arbitrary, mutually contradictory, and unenforceable, and will do nothing to slow the spread of the virus — but will instead cause further irreparable damage to our already struggling economy.”
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