Bobzien Looks Back On First Half Of Nevada Legislative Session

Our final look at the first 60 days of the Nevada legislative session comes from freshman Assemblyman David Bobzien.

The AD-24 Democrat reflects on his learning curve, AB-94 and "bipartisanship" in a quick interview.

Any surprises?

For all the talk about how the Democrats dominate the Assembly, it is really important to build relationships across the aisle. Whether it's working in the committee hearings to ask the questions that need to be asked, or making sure my bills are refined and make it out of committee, I've become really appreciative of what the other members bring to the process to help set good policy for the state, regardless if they're Democrats or Republicans, urban or rural, north or south. "Bipartisanship" is almost a cliche, but to experience first hand what that means and how important it is has really been enjoyable.

Disappointments?

No big disappointments yet -- all the bills important to me, personal or otherwise, are still very much alive.

Going back to my first answer, we've got split partisan control of the Legislature, and so our individual abilities to represent our constituents are based on how well we can all work together. It's clear at this point in the session that some people understand this, and some don't. Seeing that dynamic play out has been disappointing -- we all just need to get on with serving Nevadans.

Best accomplishment so far?

Being a part of AB 94, and getting that passed out of committee with such overwhelming support is a big accomplishment. The bill would fix something that should not have been put in place last session: restrictions on who can protest the government's administrative proceedings. It's a somewhat obscure rule that severely limits the ability of public interest groups and individuals to have a say in policies related to the environment, health and just about every other thing government does.

I'm also pleased that all of my bills have at this point made it out of committee by the first deadline. But, I know the toughest part is yet to come. Once we get to the Senate, it's a whole new world.

Predictions for second half?

As a freshman, it's been fascinating watching how a session unfolds. Just when I learn the skills to operate successfully in one week, the session moves forward into an entirely new phase, and I have to learn it all over again. For example, one week I was learning how to pitch my bills to potential sponsors and in another week I was learning how to negotiate between multiple groups with concerns about a piece of legislation. There's no way to know what the second half is really going to bring, but I'm definitely looking forward to it.

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Other interviews were with Ty Cobb and Sheila Leslie.