Legislative History FAQs

What are the Legislative Journals?

From Chapter 5 of the 2019 Legislative Manual:

Each house of the Nevada Legislature publishes a daily journal of its proceedings, which is the only official record of floor activity. While the journals are not verbatim transcriptions of floor activity, they do record all official actions taken on measures pending before the chambers and frequently include the text of remarks made by legislators, especially as it relates to legislative intent on specific legislation.

Gubernatorial and congressional communications are included in the journal, as well as the text from the Governor's State of the State Address and all the speeches from Nevada's six congressional delegates, as well as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court's State of the Judiciary Message. Journals for the preceding day are distributed to the legislators in their respective chambers at the beginning of each day's session and made available to the public. The Senate and Assembly continue to publish the amendments in-line in each day's journal.

After the Legislature has adjourned sine die, the digital versions of the daily journals are compiled, formatted, edited, repeatedly checked for accuracy, indexed, and finally bound in permanent hardbound publications containing several volumes. These hardbound copies of the journals also contain certain ancillary information relating to the legislative calendar, the personnel of the Legislature, a table of contents regarding legislation, the Standing Rules, and the Joint Rules of the Senate and Assembly.