Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce monitors several areas of policy on the local, state and federal levels of government. Below are some of the priority issues that the Chamber is currently monitoring.

Clark County Community Growth Task Force

In February of 2004, the Clark County Commission adopted the Community Growth Management Initiative to conduct an in-depth analysis of the growth issues our community is facing.

A key component of the initiative was the Community Growth Task Force. The Clark County Community Growth Task Force was formed to address the issue of growth. The Task Force included 17 individuals from various industries, and community and political organizations including: business, construction, development, environmental, non-profit, and citizens at large. Their task was to examine issues related to growth and to make recommendations to address these concerns.

Representing the Chamber and the business community was Steve Hill of Silver State Materials and a member of the Chamber’s Government Affairs Committee.

The findings of the Growth Task Force, along with the findings of the separate Yucca Mountain Monitoring Program, contributed to the current Clark County Monitoring Program Web site.

Click here to visit the site.

In 2007, the Employee Free Choice Act (HR 800) passed in the U.S. House of Representatives by a margin of 241-185. H.R. 800 was not heard in the Senate and was essentially tabled. Upon failure to invoke cloture, Senator Kennedy introduced S.B. 1041, the senate companion to H.R. 800.

Both versions of the “card check” bill contain many onerous provisions including:

Allowing unions to represent employees without first conducting a secret ballot election. Under this act, the secret ballot elections overseen by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) used by employees to vote for union representation will essentially be replaced by a public majority sign-up system the unions will oversee themselves;
Allowing unions as long as they need to collect signatures from a majority of employees at a workplace. Instead of an election date, unions would have an open-ended period of time to campaign for representation;
Imposing fines up to $20,000 against employers who make "unilateral changes" such as a wage increase during a union’s campaign, no matter how lengthy the organizing process;
Mandating that a government-appointed arbitrator impose a contract on a newly-unionized employer if the union and company representatives cannot reach agreement within 120 days of unionization; and
Requiring a secret ballot election should a workplace choose to decertify the union.

Position: OPPOSE

The bill would make organizing cheaper and easier than ever before, allowing unions to target even the smallest of businesses.
The secret ballot election system that would essentially cease to exist under this act would most likely create an environment of employee intimidation and coercion.
Because of the public nature of the system, employees could experience immense outside pressure and could likely sign cards for reasons other than wanting a union to represent them, from having a co-worker or close friend solicit them to more heavy-handed, potentially harassing tactics by union representatives.
The act undermines an employee’s ability to freely choose whether or not he or she really wants union representation and allows only the unions to compete for votes.
Because the new system would be open-ended in terms of campaign time, the odds would drastically and unfairly shift in favor a union.
The fines of up to $20,000 imposed on businesses offering any type of increase in salary or benefits during the open-ended election period creates a system where unions hold all of the cards.

The Chamber knows that providing health insurance to your employees is one of the most expensive outlays for your business, yet it’s also a benefit that most employers try to offer their valued employees. The increasingly high cost of health insurance makes providing coverage a struggle, particularly for the self-employed and small businesses. As a result, many of Nevada’s workers remain uninsured. The Chamber believes that reforming the system to ensure increased access without sacrificing quality is Nevada’s highest health care priority.

Business has a vital interest in ensuring that our schools provide students with a quality education that will prepare them to be a productive member of our workforce. The Chamber believes that improving the performance of the state’s K-12 educational system is necessary to provide a strong foundation for Nevada’s competitive business climate. As the largest customer of education system, Nevada’s business community understands firsthand the need for a strong educational system.

As Nevada's job growth rate continues to be almost four times higher than the national average, businesses are continuously challenged to find qualified employees. Immigrant guest workers can help fill jobs that are integral to growing the economy. Immigration reform is vital to our economy, business and community and the Chamber will continue to support a comprehensive solution that allows undocumented workers who reach set benchmarks to contribute to the economy in a legal manner. While the Chamber adamantly opposes the hiring of undocumented workers, we do not agree with making the business community a primary enforcer for the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) program.

Eminent Domain powers can be harmful if left unchecked and the Chamber is dedicated protecting the rights of your business to ensure that government interference is kept to a minimum. If the government chooses to invoke its eminent domain powers to take land from a private property owner, it must be for public use (i.e. roads, water, sewer etc.). The Chamber advocates for protecting property owners from onerous legislation that negatively affects the community. Business should not be at the mercy of government action.

While the transportation needs of Nevada are important to all residents, road improvements and highway funding are especially critical to commerce and the economy. Good roads are vital to the transportation of goods and services, getting employees to and from their jobs, helping customers access businesses, and bringing tourists into our state. The Chamber works on behalf of the business community to make sure that every effort is made to secure the valuable transportation funds needed by our community.

The Chamber believes that Nevada’s public employee retirement program is in dire need of restructuring. With almost 40 percent of Nevada state employees eligible for retirement in the next 10 years, the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) and Public Employees’ Benefits Program (PEBP) have a combined liability of more than $10 billion. As a defined benefit program and by subsidizing health care, PERS and PEBP both offer public employees generous plans generally unheard of in the private sector.

While the Chamber believes that public employees are a vital part of the state of Nevada, we also believe taxpayers cannot afford to continue funding an overly generous system. Reforming the system to require all new state employees to contribute to a defined contribution plan and removing the retiree subsidy of PEBP could greatly relieve the further liability that is sure to incur and better fund programs in critical need.

The Chamber had a full-time advocacy team working in Carson City tracking over 1,000 bills throughout the 2007 legislative session. While the Chamber proactively engaged in three main priorities during the session — transportation, education and public employees benefits reform — we also directly worked to help pass or defeat countless bills on behalf of your business.

The 74th Nevada State Legislature came to a close in June 2007. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce was actively involved in promoting pro-business issues and protecting the rights of free enterprise in the state.

Link for the Nevada State Legislature: The Nevada State Legislature

Passed bills:

Assembly Joint Resolution 3 &
Assembly Bill 102 - Prohibits the use of eminent domain to acquire property for economic development
Both bills protect business owners from the government’s eminent domain powers. While AJR 3 is a constitutional amendment and must be approved again by the 2009 Legislature before advancing to a vote of the people in 2010, AB102 takes effect immediately and thus provides property owners protection while awaiting the constitutional amendment’s passage. These bills constitute a compromise alternative to Question 2 of the 2006 General Election, which many government officials and planners felt would severely impede the ability of local governments to accumulate land in preparation for future infrastructure development. Should Question 2 pass a second time in 2008 and consequently amend the constitution, AJR 3 would supercede it once finally approved. Under the bills, private property can only be seized for certain public uses and not for the economic development of another private enterprise. Places of business should not be at the mercy of government. This is a true victory for property owners.

Assembly Bill 14 – Strengthens penalties related to graffiti and other damage to property
Small business owners don’t have the time or resources needed to clean graffiti left behind by vandals on their place of business. AB 14 creates a new crime for unlawful possession of a graffiti implement with the intent to vandalize and enforces fines for defacing property. The law also authorizes courts to suspend the driver’s license of a minor or delay the issuance of a driver’s license if that minor is found engaging in the defacement of property.

Assembly Bill 20 – Revises the provisions pertaining to travel costs that jurors are entitled to receive
The right to a jury trial, with a fair and equitable pool of jurors, is fundamental to the American judicial system. Previously, jurors were paid 36.5 cents a mile if their home was 65 miles or more from the place of trial. This law changes that distance to 30 miles, providing equitable access to representative juries.

Senate Bill 367 – Revises regulations concerning public hearings and workshops
A more open and transparent government protects businesses from being treated unfairly by lawmakers. SB 367 requires the Legislative Commission or subcommittee to give written notice of at least three working days before holding a meeting to review regulations and prohibits an agency from holding a public hearing on a proposed regulation on the same day that it holds the workshop for that regulation. Providing more time and information on hearings and workshops allows businesses and the public to better prepare comment and testimony on issues that may directly affect their bottom lines.

Assembly Bill 383 – Enforces strict penalties on businesses that hire undocumented workers
Before final voting, AB 383 included provisions that fined all businesses for hiring undocumented workers. While the Chamber strongly opposes hiring illegal workers, we do not believe employers should be required to become an enforcement arm of government immigration laws. The Chamber worked to have this section revised, penalizing only those businesses that fail to verify social security numbers of employees.

Assembly Bill 433 – Limits public bodies to hold closed-door meetings

Currently, at the request of a taxpayer, the Tax Commission may hold closed sessions on taxpayer appeals. Deliberations and voting on such appeals, along with all testimony, may also take place privately. A closed meeting offers no immediate details or further information to the public on the decision of the Commission of whether or not to grant or deny an appeal. While the Chamber believes that confidential information should be protected, it should not come at the expense of public knowledge. The Chamber worked extensively on this bill during the session to help achieve a balance between a company’s need to protect proprietary and confidential business information while respecting the public’s right to know.

Assembly Bill 496 – Protects the interests of business owners relating to workers’ compensation insurance
Workers’ compensation insurance should serve to protect the interest of an injured employee. Fraudulent use of the system is not only unethical, but also hurtful to a business’ bottom line. This law authorizes an insurer to deny compensation to an injured employee based on his or her discharge from employment for misconduct. It also establishes a code of conduct for hearing and appeal officers, protecting both the owner and the employee. The final bill contained an overall compromise worked out by representatives of key stakeholders. While it includes several relatively technical changes in procedures and rights, this law preserves the current balance between employers and workers and does not contain a number of very expensive measures from the original bills.

Senate Bill 547 – Provides partial funding for the cost of public employees health benefits
Currently, the Public Employees’ Benefits Program, the health care subsidy portion of the public employee retirement system, faces an unfunded liability of $4.1 billion. While the Chamber believes public employees are vital to our state, it also believes taxpayers cannot afford to continue funding an overly-generous system. The law creates the State’s Retirees’ Health and Welfare Benefits Fund. The funds will be invested, offsetting a portion of the current and future costs of health care benefits of public employees. The Chamber applauds the Legislature for seeking alternate ways to fund this program.

Assembly Bill 629 – Expands health insurance eligibility for Nevada employees
Small businesses don’t always have the resources to provide qualified health care to vital, low-income workers. AB 629 provides a monthly subsidy of up to $100 towards an insurance policy to low-income employees and spouses (with household incomes of less than 200 percent of the federal poverty rate) of small businesses (between 2 and 50 employees) who are otherwise ineligible for Medicaid. Allowing Nevada employers to offer qualified health care insurance to more employees provides for a more stable workforce. The Chamber has worked on and supported this program since 2004.

Defeated bills:

Senate Bill 82 and Senate Bill 18 – Both bills imposed price controls during declared emergencies
A business owner’s ability to price products is critical to staying competitive in the market. SB 82, which died in the Senate without a vote, was amended and reintroduced as Senate Bill 18. Had these bills passed, businesses would have been required to comply with pricing regulations mandated by the government, eliminating the free market process that appropriately balances supply and demand. Because it contained a private right of action, businesses could also have been subjected to numerous frivolous lawsuits filed by trial lawyers whose interpretation of key concepts could vary widely from that of a typical business owner.

Senate Bill 353 – Made significant changes to workers’ compensation system, including raising costs, and weakening provider networks
The Chamber works to keep the cost of workers’ compensation down while still ensuring the system fairly and adequately protects injured employees. Under Senate Bill 353, should a doctor approve the return of an injured employee to work, the employee would be able to select a new doctor for a second opinion at no additional cost to the employee. For a small business owner, an absent employee collecting workers’ compensation in an unjustifiable manner could be detrimental to both productivity and your bottom line! The bill would also have enabled unions to move certain health care costs into the cost of workers’ compensation. Had this bill passed, costs of workers’ compensation coverage could have skyrocketed, potentially forcing business owners to cut pay or benefits to qualified, critical employees.

Assembly Bill 357 and Assembly Bill 248 – Both bills prohibited employers from enforcing a tip-pooling practice
Employers have the right to determine and manage gratuity practices within their own businesses. The bill would have stopped employers from controlling how tips are distributed among their employees, limiting their management roles. Had the bill passed, retaining quality employees would have also been an issue. Prohibiting employers from distributing tips at their discretion would have created an environment where there would have been little incentive for quality employees to work undesirable shifts.

Assembly Bill 494 – Raised costs to the unemployment compensation system

The Chamber works to ensure that the law protects business owners from potential abuse of the unemployment compensation system. Had this bill passed, employers would have been required to pay unemployment compensation during a union lockout. Employers have a right to negotiate during a labor dispute. Requiring unemployment pay during a lockout strips an owner of that ability.

Assembly Bill 519 – Opened the door to a vast expansion of product liability lawsuits by trial lawyers
Businesses and their reputations should be protected should they be involved in a court proceeding or legal dispute. Had AB 519 passed, district courts would have been prohibited from sealing judicial public records except under very limited, almost unattainable criteria, allowing businesses of all types and sizes to be exposed to product liability lawsuits by trial lawyers. Sealed records protect businesses from exposure to such frivolous suits.