Hutchison: Session is committed to real change

Citing issues ranging from construction defects and tort reform to education, tourism and economic development, Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison told a breakfast meeting of business leaders on Wednesday this legislative session is committed to making real change.

“Things we’ve been talking about for years are going to be done this session,” he said at the Northern Nevada Development Authority’s monthly meeting.

Hutchison pointed out Gov. Brian Sandoval on Tuesday signed into law a sweeping construction defects reform — just four weeks into the session.

“This session is different,” he said. “There are different leaders, different priorities. Bills are moving and moving quickly.”

At the core of the effort, he said, is economic development because, “when you increase employment, you decrease poverty.”

Hutchison said the growing prosperity of the north in the wake of the Tesla announcement was excellent for the entire state and called for an end to the north-south divide.

He said keys for Northern Nevada’s future include developing the aerospace industry and increasing the flights to and from Reno-Tahoe International Airport.

The aerospace growth, he said, is keyed by Nevada’s designation as one of six drone sites in the nation and its advantage is the huge amount of restricted air space in the state — most of it military. In that airspace, he said, entrepreneurs can — with defense cooperation — test their unmanned craft away from the potential problems of flying in space crowded with commercial aircraft.

“It’s a very big opportunity,” he said.

Hutchison said that also means developing the amount of flights in and out of Reno-Tahoe such as the recently announced direct Jet Blue route between Reno and New York.

“We’ve got to get a lot more of those flights,” he said.

Hutchison said the state is also heavily engaged in promoting rural tourism, everything from “wineries, to outdoor recreation hot springs and all of what Tahoe offers.”

On education, he said Sandoval has outlined a comprehensive path forward to improved education including the creation of achievement districts for chronically under-performing schools.

In effect, those schools would be separated from their existing school districts and managed directly by the state.

“We’re going to take these schools and turn them into charter schools,” he said.

He said Nevada has relied too long on an “antiquated system” to operate its schools.

“You can’t argue with this stark fact: something has to change,” he said in an indirect reference to the increased taxes Sandoval has proposed to pay for education reform.

“We are tackling this issue.” He said.

Hutchison made the comments at the breakfast meeting in the governor’s mansion annex.