Lawmakers advance many bills

With less than two weeks left in the 2009 legislative session, Nevada lawmakers voted Tuesday for bills dealing with foreclosures, energy conservation, medical ethics and elections.

The Senate unanimously voted for Gov. Jim Gibbons proposal to make Nevada energy-independent by making the state an energy exporter instead of an energy importer. SB395, routed to the Assembly, also would abate property taxes of renewable energy producers for 10 years.

The tax break also would help developers of transmission lines for such projects. Gibbons' bill would increase the percentage of electricity that NV Energy must obtain from renewable sources to 25 percent by 2025.

The Assembly passed SB339, requiring Nevada's Colorado River Commission to conduct a feasibility study to explore the use of hydrokinetic power from the Hoover Dam. The goal of the bill is to look into the widest range of renewable energy technologies possible.

Proponents have said hydropower provides a constant source of energy as long as there are flowing currents of water, in contrast to other sources of energy such as wind and solar.

Assembly members also voted for SB165, directing the state Public Utilities Commission to revise its rules to ensure that NV Energy's business planning takes into consideration future carbon emission prices that could add up to a lot of money.

Also passed by the Assembly was SB8, which would have changed the process for appointment to medical boards, but was amended to require that board members read and understand ethical standards.

The Assembly also approved SB162, which would move the date of Nevada's mid-August primary elections to early June; and for SB128, which requires that a foreclosure sale must be recorded with the county recorder in a timely manner, to help keep track of the owner of a foreclosed home.

The Senate also gave final approval to AB325, requiring that as a condition of lifetime supervision a sex offender can't have any contact with a victim of the offense or a witness who testified against the defendant.

An amendment to the bill gives such victims of sex offenses protections during court proceedings, such as the ability to use a false name, have a court-appointed advocate and not have their address published in court documents. The protections are similar to those offered to victims of domestic violence and other sex crimes.