THE EIGHTY-EIGHTH DAY

THE EIGHTY-EIGHTH DAY

Carson City (Thursday), May 1, 2003

Senate called to order at 11:31 a.m.

President Hunt presiding.

Roll called.

All present.

Prayer by the Chaplain, Pastor Marvin Dennis.

Heavenly Father, on this National Day of Prayer, there are many gatherings across our land to seek You asking for Your guidance and blessings for our great Nation and all her leaders. I join with thousands of others, today, and ask Your richest blessings upon our President, Vice President, members of his Cabinet, members of Congress, state and local leaders and, especially, those who now stand in this Nevada State Senate. Please meet their professional needs and also, most important, their personal needs and concerns. Bless their families with happiness and prosperity that only comes from You. Thank You for this special day and these special men and women who serve this great State.

Amen.

Pledge of allegiance to the Flag.

Senator Raggio moved that further reading of the Journal be dispensed with, and the President and Secretary be authorized to make the necessary corrections and additions.

Motion carried.

REPORTS OF COMMITTEES

Madam President:

Your Committee on Commerce and Labor, to which was referred Assembly Bill No. 262, has had the same under consideration, and begs leave to report the same back with the recommendation: Do pass.

Randolph J. Townsend, Chairman

Madam President:

Your Committee on Finance, to which were re-referred Senate Bills Nos. 58, 100, has had the same under consideration, and begs leave to report the same back with the recommendation: Do pass.

William J. Raggio, Chairman

Madam President:

Your Committee on Human Resources and Facilities, to which were referred Assembly Bills Nos. 273, 497, has had the same under consideration, and begs leave to report the same back with the recommendation: Do pass.

Raymond D. Rawson, Chairman

MESSAGES FROM THE ASSEMBLY

Assembly Chamber, Carson City, April 30, 2003

To the Honorable the Senate:

I have the honor to inform your honorable body that the Assembly on this day concurred in the Senate Amendment No. 504 to Assembly Bill No. 133.

Also, I have the honor to inform your honorable body that the Assembly on this day respectfully refused to concur in the Senate Amendment No. 495 to Assembly Bill No. 55.

Diane Keetch

Assistant Chief Clerk of the Assembly

MOTIONS, RESOLUTIONS AND NOTICES

By Senators McGinness, Amodei, Care, Carlton, Cegavske, Coffin, Hardy, Mathews, Neal, Nolan, O'Connell, Raggio, Rawson, Rhoads, Schneider, Shaffer, Tiffany, Titus, Townsend, Washington, Wiener; Assemblymen Sherer, Anderson, Andonov, Angle, Arberry, Atkinson, Beers, Brown, Buckley, Carpenter, Chowning, Christensen, Claborn, Collins, Conklin, Geddes, Gibbons, Giunchigliani, Goicoechea, Goldwater, Grady, Griffin, Gustavson, Hardy, Hettrick, Horne, Knecht, Koivisto, Leslie, Mabey, Manendo, Marvel, McClain, McCleary, Mortenson, Oceguera, Ohrenschall, Parks, Perkins, Pierce, Weber and Williams:

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 33—Congratulating the Mineral County High School girls’ basketball team for winning the 2002 and 2003 state championships.

Whereas, The victory at the Lawlor Events Center on February 28, 2003, seemed familiar as the Lady Serpents of Mineral County High School won the AA state basketball championship for the fourth consecutive year, pushing their unprecedented total to nine championship titles in the past 10 years; and

Whereas, The team members for this year’s championship season, Sandhya Bhakta, Shasta Brown, Jamie Convis, Tana Gurulé, Jami Harris, Lindsay Hurley, Delicia Jernigan, Denise Koscinski, Jacquere Lipscomb, Sidney Orndorff and Jessica Vinson, are also academic state champions with a team grade point average of 3.85; and

Whereas, The Lady Serpents championship team of 2002, consisting of Sandhya Bhakta, Ciera Cammarata, Jamie Convis, Crystal Gilbert, Tana Gurulé, Amanda Holland, Delicia Jernigan, Denise Koscinski and Sidney Orndorff, also had the distinction of remaining undefeated in their season of play which included wins against larger AAA and AAAA schools; and

Whereas, The Mineral County High School girls’ basketball team was led to victory both seasons by Head Coach David Gelmstedt and Assistant Coaches Liane Filkowski and George Winters, with managers Mollie Bryant and Amanda Jackson for the 2002-2003 season and manager Jennica Trujillo for the 2001-2002 season; and

Whereas, Over the past four seasons of play, the Lady Serpents have won 93 percent of their games with a record of 115 wins and only 9 losses, and their consistent excellence has earned the respect and admiration of fans and players from teams throughout the State; and

Whereas, The decade of dominance in girls’ basketball in the State can be attributed to the hard work and dedication of the members of each succeeding team, and their determination to be the best continues to make them the pride of Mineral County; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of Nevada, the Assembly Concurring, That the members of the 72nd Session of the Nevada Legislature do hereby extend their congratulations to the Mineral County High School girls’ basketball team for winning the AA state championship in both 2002 and 2003; and be it further

Resolved, That the academic and athletic achievements of the Lady Serpents will be a role model for all young girls who strive to be their best; and be it further

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate prepare and transmit a copy of this resolution to Clyde Baker, Principal of Mineral County High School, and to Head Coach David Gelmstedt.

Senator McGinness moved the adoption of the resolution.

Remarks by Senator McGinness.

Senator McGinness requested that his remarks be entered in the Journal.

Madam President, the resolution says it all. I do not know if there is a team, a basketball team, or athletic team anywhere in the State that has accomplished such a record.

These young ladies have really done it all. Two senior girls, Delicia Jernigan and Sidney Orndorff, have been on the team for four years. They have a 115 and 8 record. They won four conference, four zone and four state titles in those four years. It is just an amazing accomplishment.

I told Delicia Jernigan, sitting with me today, if there were only two or three state titles in a row, you would have to say, “well, the team, the students, the players, did it,” but when you win nine out of ten, maybe you have to give the coaches a little bit of the credit. Coach Gelmstedt said they give him just about as little credit as possible.

Resolution adopted.

Senator McGinness moved that all rules be suspended and that Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 33 be immediately transmitted to the Assembly.

Motion carried unanimously.

Resolution ordered transmitted to the Assembly.

MESSAGES FROM THE ASSEMBLY

Assembly Chamber, Carson City, May 1, 2003

To the Honorable the Senate:

I have the honor to inform your honorable body that the Assembly on this day adopted Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 17.

Diane Keetch

Assistant Chief Clerk of the Assembly

MOTIONS, RESOLUTIONS AND NOTICES

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 17—Recognizing April 15, 2003, as Equal Pay Day in Nevada.

Whereas, When the Equal Pay Act, requiring employers to pay all employees equally for equal work, was signed in 1963, women who worked full-time, year-round made 59 cents, on average, for every dollar earned by men, and 40 years later women earn only 76 cents of that dollar as the wage gap closes at an even slower rate, resulting in a change of less than one-half penny per year; and

Whereas, According to reports by the Bureau of the Census of the Department of Commerce, the effects of the wage gap on women of color is even greater, with black women earning only 69 cents for every dollar earned by white men, and Hispanic women earning only 56 cents of that dollar; and

Whereas, “A New Look Through the Glass Ceiling: Where Are the Women?,” a report using data compiled by the General Accounting Office, states that, of the 10 industries surveyed which employ 71 percent of all employed women and 73 percent of all female managers, women who are full-time managers are paid less and advance less often than male managers and that the wage gap between female managers and their male counterparts widened between 1995 and 2000 in 7 of the 10 industries; and

Whereas, Many women are the sole support of their families and wage discrimination has a huge impact on their children and the quality of their lives, and it is estimated that America’s working families lose $200 billion annually because of wage discrimination; and

Whereas, Over a working lifetime, this wage disparity costs the average American woman and her family an estimated $250,000 in lost wages, impacting social security benefits and pensions; and

Whereas, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits wage discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, religion or national origin, and yet long after the Supreme Court made it clear that Title VII prohibits wage discrimination even when the jobs are not identical, as long as the work is comparable, wage discrimination laws are poorly enforced and cases are extremely difficult to win; and

Whereas, Wage discrimination for any reason is detrimental to our sense of justice and fairness and our belief in the American way; and

Whereas, While many people claim that the wage gap is the result of differences in education, the Bureau of the Census reports that a white male with a master’s degree earns $67,818 per year and a black man with the same education earns only $51,336, with the lowest paid being a similarly educated black woman, who earns only $43,884; and

Whereas, The National Committee on Pay Equity, founded in 1979, is a national coalition of over 80 organizations and thousands of men and women from all walks of life who are working to eliminate wage discrimination and to achieve pay equity that will benefit society as a whole when all workers have jobs that pay a fair and equitable wage, enabling them and their families to lead healthy, fulfilling and productive lives; and

Whereas, While the costs are minimal to employers, only 3 to 4 percent of payroll costs, pay equity wage adjustments can make a substantial difference in the lives of the persons who are being discriminated against; and

Whereas, Every year, Equal Pay Day is marked on a Tuesday in April because, on average, it takes women 7 workdays to earn the same amount that men earn in 5 workdays and 15 months to match the average man’s 12-month income; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of Nevada, the Senate Concurring, That April 15, 2003, be recognized as Equal Pay Day; and be it further

Resolved, That the public and private employers in Nevada are to be congratulated for lighting the way for other states to follow, with the employers in our State ranking among the highest in the nation in paying their employees equal pay for equal work; and be it further

Resolved, That all employers in Nevada, whether public or private, are encouraged to compensate all employees fairly, based on an objective evaluation of their jobs, considering factors such as the skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions required for each job; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly prepare and transmit a copy of this resolution to Governor Kenny Guinn, to each member of the Nevada Congressional Delegation and to Linda Chavez-Thompson, the Chair of the National Committee on Pay Equity.

Senator Carlton moved the adoption of the resolution.

Remarks by Senator Carlton.

Senator Carlton requested that her remarks be entered in the Journal.

The resolution states that we normally acknowledge Equal Pay Day on April 15, but because of our hectic legislative schedule, we did not get to do that. We are attempting to recognize it today.

The resolution speaks proudly that the State of Nevada needs to be congratulated for lighting the way for other states to follow. The employers of our State rank among the highest in the Nation in paying their employees equal pay for equal work. We are here, today, to recognize a number of those entities and companies and to recognize that these businesses have a stake in equal-pay issues. The wage gap and the glass ceiling reflect the under valuation of an important sector of our workforce.

As the resolution states, we are here to congratulate them, and I am proud to recognize several Nevada employers who have instituted policies to insure a fair and equitable system of compensation for their employees. We have with us, today, representatives from the cities of Henderson and North Las Vegas, Washoe County, SBC Nevada Bell, Sierra Health Services, Southwest Gas Corporation, AAA and Sprint.

Resolution adopted.

Resolution ordered transmitted to the Assembly.

INTRODUCTION, FIRST READING AND REFERENCE

By Senators Townsend, Washington and Mathews:

Senate Bill No. 495—AN ACT relating to local improvements; authorizing under certain circumstances the acquisition of art and tourism and entertainment projects pursuant to the Consolidated Local Improvements Law; authorizing under certain circumstances the pledge of certain sales and use tax proceeds and state funding for the acquisition of projects pursuant to the Consolidated Local Improvements Law; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

Senator Townsend moved that the bill be referred to the Committee on Taxation.

Motion carried.

WAIVERS AND EXEMPTIONS

Waiver of Joint Standing Rule(s)

A Waiver requested by Senator Randolph J. Townsend

For: Senate Bill No. 495.

To Waive:

Subsections 1 and 2 of Joint Standing Rule No. 14 and Joint Standing Rule Nos. 14.2 and 14.3.

With the following conditions:

Must be introduced within 10 days after delivery.

Has been granted effective: May 1, 2003.

William J. Raggio	Richard D. Perkins
Senate Majority Leader	Speaker of the Assembly

MOTIONS, RESOLUTIONS AND NOTICES

Senator Titus moved that Assembly Bill No. 226 be taken from the Secretary's desk and placed on the bottom of the General File.

Remarks by Senator Titus.

Motion carried.

SECOND READING AND AMENDMENT

Senate Bill No. 406.