Assembly Education Committee advances package of bills on discipline, licensure, sports, board training and student data

CARSON CITY — The Nevada Assembly Committee on Education advanced six education measures and introduced a bill draft request on procedural grounds during a work session that convened in Carson City with an overflow room in Las Vegas and remote participation.

The committee voted to amend and do pass Senate Bill 177 (reprint 1), which revises school-discipline provisions and adds procedures for assigning pupils who are homeless or in foster care to temporary alternative placements and for meetings and notifications tied to those placements. The committee also passed Senate Bill 278 (reprint 1) on licensure and reading-deficiency reporting, Senate Bill 305 (reprint 2) to require the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) to add lacrosse as a sanctioned sport and report on implementation, Senate Bill 322 (reprint 1) to require Board of Regents members to complete periodic professional-development training, Senate Bill 444 (reprint 1) on district policies for electronic communication devices, and Senate Bill 445 (reprint 1) on pupil-data transfer and retention at the Nevada Department of Education. The committee also voted to introduce BDR 341035 (a bill draft request) to begin drafting a new measure; introduction is procedural and does not indicate committee support for the substance of the draft.

Why it matters: the package touches core K–12 and higher-education rules — from how schools may place and review pupils in temporary alternative settings, to statewide rules on educator licensure and the handling and retention of pupil records — and it includes a directive that could change interscholastic sports offerings starting in the 2026–27 school year.

SB 177 (discipline; pupils in foster care or homeless) The committee considered two proposed amendments to Senate Bill 177 (reprint 1). As amended, the bill replaces subsections to (1) allow a principal to assign a pupil who is a habitual disciplinary problem or who committed specified acts (weapons, controlled substances, battery) and who is homeless or in foster care to a temporary alternative placement under certain circumstances regardless of whether the behavior is related to the pupil's status; (2) require a meeting to extend an alternative placement beyond 45 days between school officials and the pupil's educational decision maker or educational surrogate, with targeted interventions and notice of the right to request a special-education evaluation; (3) require a meeting to plan a pupil's transition back from an alternative placement when the pupil has been assigned more than 21 days; (4) clarify notice and meeting requirements to determine whether a pupil in foster care or homeless is a "habitual disciplinary problem" (including three written attempts to contact guardians on separate calendar days before a meeting may proceed without them); and (5) clarify suspension and review timelines, including that a principal may suspend a pupil for more than five days in certain circumstances and must hold a review meeting as soon as practicable but not more than 10 days after such a suspension. Vice Chair DaSilva moved the amendment and do-pass recommendation; Assemblymember Mosca seconded. The motion carried unanimously. The committee assigned the floor presentation to Assemblymember Dahlia.

SB 278 (educator licensure; reading-deficiency reporting) Kelly Lower, the committee policy analyst, summarized Senate Bill 278 (reprint 1), sponsored by Senator Cruz Crawford. The bill directs the Commission on Professional Standards in Education to consider regulations to improve access to licensure and endorsement for educational personnel, eliminates local assessments in determining reading deficiency for pupils and removes the requirement that districts and charter schools report on pupils receiving related intervention services (prohibiting entities other than the State Board of Education from requiring such reporting). The bill further provides that a pupil who is no longer deficient on the statewide assessment is not required to continue receiving related services. No amendments were offered in committee. A do-pass motion (moved and seconded) carried unanimously; the committee assigned the floor statement to Assemblymember Mosca.

SB 305 (NIAA; sanction lacrosse; implementation reporting) Senate Bill 305 (reprint 2), sponsored by Senator Donate, was amended to require the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) to adopt regulations adding lacrosse for boys and girls to the list of sanctioned sports in Nevada Administrative Code and to have a program in place for the 2026–27 school year. The amendment also requires the NIAA to submit quarterly reports to the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Education on implementation progress, directs the interim committee to study the NIAA during 2026–27, authorizes the Nevada Association of School Superintendents to operate in the NIAA's stead if the NIAA fails to meet the requirements, and requires the NIAA to act on new-sport sanction requests within one year.

When committee counsel Asher Killian was asked to clarify drafting language, he explained the difference between codified provisions and transitory provisions: "That's language that still has the force and effect of law, but that does not get codified into NRS," meaning the transitory language would appear in the bill text and have legal force but not be added to the codified Nevada Revised Statutes. The committee approved the amendment and do-pass motion (moved by Assemblymember Flanagan and seconded by Assemblymember Hunt). The motion carried, with one no vote from Assemblymember Lou Hatch; the committee assigned the floor statement to the chair.

SB 322 (Board of Regents professional development) Senate Bill 322 (reprint 1), sponsored by Senator Taylor, requires each member of the Board of Regents to complete at least six hours of professional-development training in the first and third years of each term, including instruction on the Open Meeting Law and eliminating bias and discrimination in higher education; the bill permits other relevant topics, requires the board secretary to assist members with training completion and to publish notice of noncompliance if a member fails to provide evidence of training, and limits paid compensation related to training. A do-pass motion (moved by Assemblymember Hanson and seconded by Assemblymember Mosca) carried unanimously; the committee assigned the floor statement to Assemblymember Hanson.

SB 444 (electronic communication devices) Senate Bill 444 (reprint 1), sponsored by the Senate Committee on Education, requires district board-of-trustees policies on pupils' use and possession of electronic communication devices to include a progressive-scale system for policy violations, limits on use during instruction, and specified exceptions (emergency/crisis, health management, instructional purposes, and when use is part of an individualized education program). A do-pass motion (moved by Assemblymember Mosca and seconded by Vice Chair DaSilva) carried unanimously; the committee assigned the floor statement to Assemblymember Koning.

SB 445 (pupil-data transfer and retention) Senate Bill 445 (reprint 1), sponsored by the Senate Committee on Education, requires the Nevada Department of Education to transfer pupil data to its archives no later than one year after a pupil graduates or ceases enrollment in a Nevada public school. Before transfer, the department must redact all personally identifiable information except the pupil's birth date. The bill requires the Department to destroy the archived data 10 years after the pupil turns 22. Assemblymember Liberace noted in committee that the phrasing "10 years after the pupil turns 22" is potentially confusing and suggested simpler language such as "when the pupil is 32" or "10 years after transfer," but said the concern should not block the measure. A do-pass motion (moved by Assemblymember Mosca and seconded by Assemblymember Hanson) carried unanimously; the committee assigned the floor statement to Assemblymember Lou Hatch.

BDR 341035 (bill draft request) The committee voted to introduce BDR 341035 to have a draft printed and a bill number assigned; Assemblymember Dahlia moved and Vice Chair DaSilva seconded. The chair noted that introducing a BDR is not an indication of support; the motion carried unanimously.

What the committee did not do No committee votes failed. Aside from the single recorded negative vote on SB 305 by Assemblymember Lou Hatch, the committee approved all do-pass motions presented in the work session. Public comment was opened but no members of the public offered testimony.

Procedural and staff notes Kelly Lower provided policy summaries for each measure. Asher Killian, committee counsel, clarified the legislative drafting distinction between permanent codified changes to the Nevada Revised Statutes and transitory provisions that carry force but are not added to the codified statutes. The chair thanked committee staff and noted the committee may or may not reconvene before second house consideration.

Ending note All measures advanced by this committee are now eligible for floor consideration in the Assembly under the assigned floor statements; amendments and final text may change as bills move through the legislative process.