Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo has introduced his second bill of the 2025 Nevada Legislative session.
This piece of legislation is also known as the Governor's Safe Streets and Neighborhood Act.
The bill was quickly introduced on the Senate floor Monday before being referred to the Senate Committee on Judiciary.
The 84-page bill is covering a wide range of crimes.
For stalking, the bill is trying to simplify that any electronic method can contribute to the crime.
The legislation would also charge those in possession of child pornography a separate offense for each film or photo they have.
Cracking down on retail theft also came up a lot in this bill. The act is trying to increase the punishment for those who have multiple theft offenses. If a person is caught more than two times, they could be looking at a category D felony charge.
Governor Lombardo is also trying to lower the threshold of theft from $1,200 to $750.
If someone is convicted of stealing $750 worth of stuff or less they could face a fine and/or a misdemeanor. In addition, if the stolen items range from $750 to $5,000 could be facing a category D felony.
The legislation is looking to decrease the amount of convictions that would classify someone as a habitual criminal. It would lower classifications from five convictions down to two. Those people could face a minimum of five years in prison, but not more than 20.
Also, the governor is trying to crack down on kids who commit crimes on school employees, or other child welfare workers. The bill says that if a child is taken into custody for an unlawful act, they cannot be released until a detention hearing. During the detention the child would have to be placed in a program or under supervision at home.
The bill is also looking to lower the thresholds on levels of trafficking for fentanyl.
Senate Bill 35, sponsored by Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, was centered around this same issue, in the 2023 Nevada Legislative Session. However, the Governor's legislation is cracking down on it further, making possessing four to 14 grams of fentanyl considered low level trafficking.
Right now, Nevada law has the current minimums of 28 grams and 42 grams. It also lowers the threshold for mid-level and high level trafficking.
AG Ford's bill last session initially wanted stricter regulations, but amendments bumped up the levels.
Towards the end of the bill, it addresses that if a person is found guilty of driving under the influence that results in death, a person could be charged with second degree murder.
Right now, a DUI causing death could be punishable by a minimum of two years in prison with a maximum of 20 years. If second degree murder could be charged, that prison sentence could range from five to 25 years in prison.
As of Monday night, the bill does not have a scheduled hearing.
If you would like to read the full bill, check out the Nevada Legislature website.
