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Nevada bill would allow unclassified state peace officers, including Gaming Control agents, to collectively bargain
Summary
A Senate bill heard by the Assembly Committee on Government Affairs would add category 1, 2 and 3 unclassified state peace officers to the definition of employees eligible for collective bargaining, supporters said, while opponents warned of higher labor costs and precedent-setting expansion.
State Senator Marilyn Dondero Loop introduced Senate Bill 301 on behalf of sponsors as a change to Nevada law that would permit certain unclassified state peace officers to engage in collective bargaining with the executive department.
The bill would add a sentence to the statutory definition of “employee” for the limited purpose of allowing category 1, 2 or 3 peace officers who are unclassified state employees to join existing collective bargaining procedures. "Placing them into collective bargaining will not make them classified employees," said Rick McCann, representing the Nevada Association of Public Safety Officers and the Nevada Law Enforcement Coalition, relaying an explanation he said he confirmed with the Gaming Control Board.
The measure, presenters said, is aimed at parity: some peace officers in the unclassified service — notably Gaming Control Board agents — currently cannot collectively bargain under NRS 288.425 and related sections because they are statutorily defined as unclassified employees under NRS 463.08. Supporters said SB301 would change only the bargaining definition and would not reclassify employees.
Senator Marilyn Dondero Loop, the bill sponsor, said the goal is to authorize collective bargaining "for category 1, 2 or 3 peace officers in the unclassified service of the state" and introduced witnesses who described the statutory history. Supporters noted Nevada enacted limited collective bargaining for state employees in 2019 and that an expansion for certain unclassified peace officers was passed by the Legislature in 2023 but vetoed by the governor.
Testimony in support came from multiple law-enforcement organizations and unions, including Dan Gordon, president of the Nevada Police Union, Arthur Emling of the Nevada Peace Officer Association, and Andrew Ragenbaum of the Nevada Association of Public Safety Officers. Kent Ervin of the Nevada Faculty Alliance also testified in favor, saying most unclassified employees are managerial and excluded under the bill but that rank-and-file unclassified peace officers have been left out and deserve the right to bargain.
Nevada Policy offered opposition testimony, arguing SB301 could set a precedent encouraging more unclassified employees to seek collective-bargaining privileges and could increase labor costs. Its representative said Nevada already has a broad public-sector collective bargaining framework and warned of potential market effects.
No committee action or votes on SB301 were recorded during the hearing. The committee chair closed the hearing after testimony and moved to the next bill.
The committee hearing record shows discussion focused on statutory definitions and parity for peace officers; no amendment or formal direction to staff was recorded on the transcript.
