On Jan. 19, Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak gave his second State of the State address since taking office in 2018. The address came one day after Sisolak announced a budget of $8.68 billion over for the biennium. Revenues for the state are about $500 million less than was allocated during the last two-year budget cycle.
In his address, the governor stressed the myriad ways the global COVID-19 pandemic has affected Nevadans in every job sector across the state, from education to construction to gambling. He also emphasized his intention to work with the Nevada Legislature and various state and local agencies to implement plans for the future of the state.
Nevada’s first documented COVID-19 case came on March 5, 2020, and the number of cases multiplied quickly thereafter. As of Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021, Nevada has had over 265,000 confirmed cases of the virus and nearly 3,900 people have lost their lives as a result.
The Silver State remains under a state of emergency.
During his address, Sisolak focused on COVID-19 vaccine distribution efforts, plans for getting kids back into their physical classrooms and designs for recouping the state’s economy—with discussion of forthcoming small business assistance programs and a look ahead to future economic agendas, including the creation of green energy jobs, jobs in emerging markets and jobs created as a result of infrastructure improvement projects.
The governor took time throughout his speech to also give accolades to Nevadans who’ve fulfilled various professional roles throughout the pandemic to include front line workers like educators, the National Guard, health care professionals and workers in businesses deemed essential, like grocery stores and pharmacies, among others.
Additionally, Sisolak praised agencies like the Nevada Department of Agriculture, which with the help of local organizations distributed more than 16 million pounds of food during the pandemic—amounting to more than 250,000 meals per month. School Districts across the state and the country have been able to distribute free food to children 0 to 18 years old as a result of a waiver from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The waiver allows them to provide both breakfast and lunch through the end of the school year in June.
Education a continuing priority and struggle
Sisolak said during his address that issues with device availability and internet connectivity for K-12 students across the state is something that’s been addressed with help of the Nevada Connecting Kids initiative, which he said has resulted in all kids having devices and internet connectivity to do their schoolwork.
“In August, approximately 80% of students didn’t have the device or connectivity they needed to participate in distance learning. As of the start of this month, every student participating in online learning has at home access to the internet and a computer to do their work,” Sisolak said.
This Is Reno followed up with both the school district and governor’s office to verify this information. The governor’s office said it had forwarded our request to the Nevada Department of Education to seek answers. The Washoe County School District’s public relations teams said it was seeking to find out if all of its students have devices and connectivity now. However, during the Jan. 12 school board meeting, it was noted by trustees that efforts were still underway to process and distribute devices to students.
Sisolak also said during his address that in light of the pandemic’s disruption to school attendance and funding, he will be recommending a phased approach to the implementation of the often criticized per pupil funding plan that will change how schools across the state receive money to operate.
Testing and vaccination continue
Sisolak said during his address that the Nevada National Guard had stepped up to initiate its longest activation in history in order to facilitate COVID-19 testing. He also acknowledged the efforts of Nevada State Public Health Laboratory Director Mark Pandori of the University of Nevada, Reno, for his work to ramp up COVID-19 testing into the thousands per day—adding that “we, as Nevadans, are the only ones who have control of how many of those tests come back negative.”
Sisolak has stuck to COVID-19 mitigation efforts, including unpopular ones like limiting businesses’ operating capacities and enforcing mask mandates. Now that President Joe Biden has taken office, he is expected to also take action to enforce mitigation efforts, including the mandating of masks by people visiting federal buildings. But COVID-19 vaccination has and continues to be the focus of local, state and federal government agencies.
In Nevada, Sisolak said, more than 100,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.
According to the Washoe County COVID-19 website, some of the organizations in Northern Nevada that have distributed vaccines as of Jan. 18 include Renown Health, the Washoe County Health District, Saint Mary’s, Northern Nevada Medical Center, the cities of Reno and Sparks, REMSA, Community Health Alliance and others. Still, many times more vaccinations will need to be distributed to slow the spread of the virus in Nevada.
“Every part of government is focused on vaccinating Nevadans,” Sisolak said.
Economic support and future growth discussed
“As I said before, it’s not enough to just aim for a full reopening of our current economy,” Sisolak said. “We must look forward to the kind of economy that will let our state prosper in the future and create opportunity for all Nevadans.”
He stressed that while the beleaguered hospitality industry needs to be reopened, he believes the state must also focus on attracting and creating new job industries to include blockchain ventures, superconductivity research and lithium mining.
Sisolak spoke about the creation of a “Nevada Job Force,” a private-sector job training program for workers who’ve lost jobs to automation or as a result of the pandemic. He also called for the creation of a “Remote Work Resource Center” to help workers find remote work opportunities with companies around the globe.
Some $50 million has already been put into small business assistance in the state. Sisolak said during his speech that another $50 million will be added to that pot and noted that Nevada Lieutenant Governor Kate Marshall is working on the creation of small business advocacy center.
An attention-grabbing part of the governor’s speech was his proposal to work with the Nevada System of Higher Education to create an independent authority to oversee Nevada’s community colleges, removing them from NSHE control. Sisolak has stressed multiple times in the past that he does not believe all Nevadans need or want to gain a traditional college experience and believes community colleges can provide access to trades training in high paying fields.
State budget smaller than expected but not dire
Prior to the pandemic, Nevada’s budget for the biennium was projected to be $9 billion. The $8.68 billion Sisolak recommended is only a few hundred million dollars short of that.
By eliminating 152 vacant state positions and sweeping $100 million out of the state’s rainy-day fund, the governor hopes to make up for some of that $400 million difference.
Sisolak also called on the Nevada Legislature, when it returns to session Feb. 1, to restore Medicaid protections that were eliminated during the 2020 special legislative sessions and said that he is looking forward to the new presidential administration and the arrival of more federal support, the lack of which he called “outrageous.”
Republican response to governor’s address
The Republican response to Sisolak’s State of the State was delivered by Assembly Republican Leader Robin Titus, who spoke about education, health care and the economy.
Titus applauded the efforts of doctors across the state but said that we “simply do not have enough” of them, citing a recent study by the University of Nevada, Reno, and the American Association of Medical Colleges shows Nevada ranks 48th in the country for the number of primary care physicians per 100,000 people.
Titus said, “We must expand our health care workforce to provide efficient and affordable healthcare to all communities. That’s why Republicans will continue to bring forth solutions that keep our doctors in Nevada by removing burdensome regulations and creating incentives for new doctors.”
Titus’ comments concerning education in the state seem to have suggested the Republicans in the Nevada Legislature may once again bring forth proposed legislation surrounding the controversial idea of school choice vouchers to allow parents to remove their children from public school in favor of private school options—framing her statements around the disruptions to learning that have resulted from the pandemic.
“The lack of continuity and uncertainty has led parents to explore options that better fit their kids’ learning experience,” Titus said. “We strongly believe that zip code should not determine life outcomes and a one size fits all policy is hurtful.
“Our education system can rise to the occasion and give families options, so they can find an education that best fits their needs. Kids should not be trapped in failing schools. The pandemic has demonstrated just how valuable good teachers are to society and we need to have incentives and compensation to reward them.”
Titus called the state’s COVID-19 mitigation efforts “draconian policies” and emphasized that she and other Republicans believe there is a need to expand public-private partnerships and protect existing industries such as mining and tourism.
“Any blanket government shutdown is not sustainable and threatens the livelihood of many Nevadans still trying to recover from the first mandatory shutdown,” she said. “We need to continue focusing resources in growing business and creating jobs without overbearing government interference, in a safe and responsible manner.”
While Titus did not directly speak to the validity of the presidential election, she said that work needed to be done to improve voter confidence in the election system—calling voting a “pressure relief valve that maintains stability and peace” and keeps politicians accountable.
“Every Nevadan who casts a ballot deserves assurance that their vote will not be nullified by a fraudulently cast vote,” Titus said. “That’s why Republicans are pushing a slate of new bills to restore electoral confidence in the Silver State’s democratic process.”
The Nevada Legislature will convene for its 2021 session on Feb. 1.
