Assembly Education committee amends and passes multiple bills in work session

The Assembly Committee on Education voted to amend and pass five measures during a work session, approving changes to bills that cover a new racial equity commission, high-impact tutoring rules, mental and behavioral health provisions for schools, athletic emergency plans and liability protections tied to schools’ harassment policies.

Committee action matters because the measures set policy direction and interim duties that will affect school accountability, student support services and district-level operations across Nevada. Several of the bills include follow-up tasks for state agencies or temporary procedural changes that will carry into the 2025–27 interim.

The committee considered the measures in the order of a planned work session. Assembly policy staff introduced each amendment and the sponsoring lawmakers described their changes before the committee voted. Highlights:

- Assembly Bill 328: The committee approved amendments renaming the proposed body and converting it to a subcommittee of the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Education. The amendment also added Senator Neal as a primary cosponsor, permitted university presidents to submit candidate lists for non‑legislative appointments and removed a prohibition on commission members holding public office. The motion to amend and do pass carried, with recorded nays from Assemblymembers DeLong, Konig, Hardy and Hanson; the floor statement was assigned to Assemblymember Da Silva.

- Assembly Bill 383: The committee agreed to an amendment that shifts responsibility for rulemaking on high‑impact tutoring programs from the Department of Education to the State Board of Education. The motion to amend and do pass carried unanimously; the floor statement was assigned to Assemblymember Hanson.

- Assembly Bill 406: Sponsors removed sections relating to excused school absences for mental and behavioral health and clarified permissible uses of artificial intelligence for school mental‑health staff (AI may be used for administrative tasks but not for counseling functions). The amendment and do‑pass motion carried; the floor statement was assigned to Assemblymember Jackson, with one recorded nay by Assemblymember Ortlicker.

- Assembly Bill 454 ("smart heart" bill): The committee amended the bill to clarify the definition of school athletic activity, narrowed the affected personnel to coaches and designated athletic staff (not teachers attending games), and added language authorizing emergency plan development committees to consult medical professionals on cardiovascular emergency responses. The motion to amend and do pass carried unanimously; the floor statement was assigned to Assemblymember Nadim.

- Assembly Bill 465: The committee approved an amendment replacing the bill’s language to create civil‑liability immunity for school districts, charter schools and institutions of higher education that develop, implement and enforce comprehensive harassment‑response policies meeting specific procedural and supportive‑service requirements. The amendment sets timelines for supportive measures, grievance procedures and other corrective actions. The motion to amend and do pass carried unanimously; the floor statement was assigned to Assemblymember Miller.

What’s next: Committee members signed floor statements for the measures and the bills will proceed in the legislative process as amended. Several measures also include interim work or requirements that state boards and agencies must implement or staff for the next legislative session.

Provenance: The committee’s roll call, amendment descriptions and recorded votes appear in the committee work‑session portion of the transcript where staff introduced AB 328, AB 383, AB 406, AB 454 and AB 465 and the committee took recorded votes.