Friday, May 26, 2017 | 12:59 p.m.
CARSON CITY — Gov. Brian Sandoval has vetoed a number of bills, including one on the prevailing wage and another on the early release of elderly prisoners.
The governor, in his veto messages Thursday, said all the bills have some merit but some reverse bipartisan policies set two years ago.
The governor nixed Assembly Bill 154, which would have repealed a law allowing schools to pay construction workers 90 percent of the prevailing wage. The governor said the 90 percent rule was to stretch scarce school construction dollars as far as possible. He said taxpayers have seen the benefits of the law and there is no need to change it.
Sandoval vetoed Senate Bill 140, which would have allowed prison inmates 65 years and older who have served more than half their sentences to be released to residential confinement.
“Age alone is not a compelling reason to extend benefits to some inmates which are not afforded to others, especially when older inmates may, in certain cases, present a greater risk than other younger inmates,” he said his veto message.
A bill that revises and, in some cases, reduces the penalty for drug offenses was killed by the governor.
Sandoval said Assembly Bill 438 “threatens to endanger the safety of Nevada’s communities by significantly modifying penalties for criminal drug offenses.”
He said the bill sets up the likelihood “of reduced or suspended sentences” for criminal offenders who deal in such drugs as heroin, LSD and ecstasy.
The governor rejected Assembly Bill 445 on grounds it would lower the insurance protection required by ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft. Drivers must now maintain $1.5 million in coverage, compared to $1 million in the bill.
“Such a reduction would have serious consequences for public safety and victim compensation,” the veto message said.
Also vetoed was Assembly Bill 384, which would have directed the state Department of Transportation to join with Clark County, Las Vegas and Henderson to conduct a study of road traffic and safety in eastern Clark County.
The governor said the Transportation Department has already conducted a study and this proposal “is duplicative and unnecessary.”
Assembly Bill 101, which would have required the state Board of Wildlife Commission to use fees to conduct research of predatory wildlife, was vetoed by the governor. He said a 2015 law serves the same purpose.
The governor also rejected Assembly Bill 271, which would have changed the collective bargaining system for local governments.
These bills are returned to their respective houses in the Legislature, which need to muster a two-thirds majority to override the governor’s veto.
