Assembly Committee on Government Affairs advances three bills on bargaining, rulemaking and state hiring

The Assembly Committee on Government Affairs voted unanimously in a work session on April 10, 2025, in Carson City to amend and pass three bills affecting collective bargaining, administrative rulemaking and state hiring practices.

The measures — Assembly Bill 356, Assembly Bill 444 and Assembly Bill 547 — were considered without public testimony and passed on motions to amend and do pass. Alex Drozdoff, the committee policy analyst, summarized the changes for each bill and reminded members of his nonpartisan role: “As nonpartisan legislative staff, I can neither support nor oppose any measure before the committee.”

Why it matters: The bills make procedural changes that affect negotiations between state employers and bargaining units (AB356), change notice and small-business impact procedures for state and some local rulemaking (AB444), and alter hiring qualifications and how state service counts prior federal experience (AB547). Together the measures adjust timelines, notice requirements and qualification standards that affect state employees, small businesses and local governments across Nevada.

AB356 (collective bargaining timelines) AB356 revises timing and process requirements for collective bargaining. The amendment moves the date to begin negotiations from June 1 to April 1 and requires representatives to engage in collective bargaining within 60 days after a representative is designated. It clarifies mediator and arbitrator selection and sets negotiation thresholds for requesting a mediator: a mediator may be requested after six scheduled negotiation sessions for units with an existing agreement or after eight sessions (or 90 days) for units negotiating an initial agreement. The arbitrator must begin proceedings on or before Sept. 15 of an even-numbered year and must render a decision on or before Dec. 5, instead of earlier dates previously specified. The amendment also adjusts deadlines for the economic forum to report findings to align with the new schedule and includes requirements for the governor’s final biennial proposed executive budget. The committee moved to amend and do pass AB356; Vice Chair Winn moved the motion and Assembly Member Carter seconded it. The motion carried unanimously; the floor statement was assigned to Assemblymember Monroe Moreno.

AB444 (rulemaking notice, small-business impacts and impact-fee notices) AB444 amends provisions relating to governmental administration and the Nevada Administrative Procedure Act. The bill requires state agency officers or employees preparing small-business impact statements to include specified notification information and expands which entities must be notified or make determinations about proposed regulations’ impacts. The amendment removes a provision that would have authorized the attorney general or other parties to sue over rule-adoption violations and instead provides that a voided rule would be unenforceable. The bill also eliminates a previously available local-government exemption: local governments that take actions that impose, increase or change the basis for sales and use tax must comply with the procedural requirements for adopting a rule. The amendment further requires that copies of certain impact-fee public-hearing notices be provided to chambers of commerce and trade associations whose members are likely to be affected. The committee moved to amend and do pass AB444; Vice Chair Winn moved and Assembly Member Carter seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously; the floor statement will go to Assembly Member Hafen.

AB547 (public employment experience and degree requirements) AB547 changes how state appointing authorities and the Division of Human Resource Management treat prior federal government experience and bachelor’s-degree requirements. The bill requires appointing authorities to recognize relevant federal government experience as equivalent to experience obtained in Nevada state government for recruitment, evaluation, selection, management and promotion, including pay considerations. It requires the Division of Human Resource Management administrator to allow substitution of equivalent federal experience when determining reasonable employment qualifications. The bill also generally prohibits appointing authorities, with specified exceptions, from requiring a bachelor’s degree as a condition of employment in the classified or unclassified service. The amendment added an effective-date provision making the bill effective upon passage and approval and added co-sponsors. The committee moved to amend and do pass AB547; Assembly Member Piper Sherwin moved and Assembly Member Carter seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Votes at a glance - AB356 — Motion to amend and do pass. Mover: Vice Chair Winn; Second: Assembly Member Carter. Outcome: Passed unanimously. Floor statement by Assemblymember Monroe Moreno. Topics: collective bargaining timelines; economic forum reporting deadlines. - AB444 — Motion to amend and do pass. Mover: Vice Chair Winn; Second: Assembly Member Carter. Outcome: Passed unanimously. Floor statement to Assembly Member Hafen. Topics: Nevada Administrative Procedure Act, small-business impact statements, notice requirements for impact fees, local-government rulemaking compliance. - AB547 — Motion to amend and do pass. Mover: Assembly Member Piper Sherwin; Second: Assembly Member Carter. Outcome: Passed unanimously. Topics: recognition of federal experience for state employment, restrictions on degree requirements.

Procedural notes and next steps The committee opened the work session with a roll call and confirmed a quorum. By committee practice, work sessions generally do not rehear public testimony; no public commenters spoke during the session. Committee staff listed prior hearing dates for the bills: AB356 was heard March 21, AB444 was heard April 3, and AB547 was heard April 9. The committee adjourned after handling the three bills and opened the public-comment period (no callers were on the line). The committee did not schedule its next meeting at the time of adjournment.