Territorial Enterprise editor Elizabeth Thompson chatted with Senator Farley the morning after the 2015 Legislature adjourned. Here are five things Farley said about her service.
PROFILE
Nevada Sen. Patricia Farley, R-Las Vegas, talks about the session in her office at the Legislative Building in Carson City, Nev., on Tuesday, June 2, 2015.
Photo by Cathleen Allison
R-Las Vegas
Elected November 2014
Committee Service
Senate Commerce, Labor and Energy (Vice Chair)
Senate Legislative Operations and Elections (Chair)
Senate Transportation (Member)
Education
University of Arizona, B.S. in Political Science
Occupation
Construction company owner
Affiliations
Rotary Freshman Club
Aid for AIDS of Nevada
Associated General Contactors
Southern Nevada Home Builders Association
Children
Brooke, Jordan
Born
1974 – Mesa, Arizona
On serving in the Legislature
“It was a lot of knowledge to absorb in a very short time period. It was interesting meeting people that are politically on the opposite end of the spectrum and working closely together to get good things done for the state. In business, the best win is always the win-win. And it’s the same in politics. I really liked and really learned from lawmakers who have very different views from me.”
On what surprised her
“The pace. In 120 days, to try to address so many issues, it’s surprising and also concerning. I think if you look at it in total, we’re the people’s representation in the government, but we’re here less than 15 percent of the time. You look at some of the problems the state has with schools, taxes, businesses coming out of the recession, and you need smart people making decisions. You need oversight for more than a few months every other year. I think that’s an issue that I might come back next session and really focus on.”
On the budget, taxes, and funding public education
“I ran knowing that we were going to fund education. And the interesting piece is not only am I a mom with two little kids that the education funding package directly affects, I’m also a business person who hires people who were educated in our public schools, and who writes a check for the Modified Business Tax, and now also for the commerce tax. So I understand the impact, all the way around. At the start of the session, as you saw from my questions in committee, I was concerned about how a new tax would be structured, what the impacts would be to business, how much the state would be relying on a brand new tax to raise that much money. And I appreciated the Governor and the Assembly working together on what we did, so I could feel comfortable with the structure on behalf of other business owners. And I couldn’t imagine a better investment than our kids and our schools. I am a mom who is involved; I volunteer in classrooms and I can see that we do need to invest. This year I volunteered in Brooke’s classroom and there are fourth graders who can’t spell ‘where’ or ‘what.’ And then it’s amazing to me when in my business I hire adults who can’t spell, write, who can’t properly speak. We do have a big problem in education.”
On the marijuana bill she sponsored with Senator Tick Segerblom
“I’m more interested in the business side of it. I look at it as a product that’s been legalized, and the opportunities that we saw on our visit to Colorado marijuana establishments, not only from a jobs perspective but also from the standpoint of economic diversification, really interested me. In addition to SB 276 is a bill we amended to basically create thrifts that can grant private insurance and act like credit unions. Thrifts are good business models because owners can instantly get money back out in the form of home loans and small business loans.”
On a revision to overtime law and minimum wage increase (to $9.00) bill that didn’t pass
Nevada Sen. Patricia Farley, R-Las Vegas, talks with her daughters Brooke, 9, left, and Jordan, 5, in her office at the Legislative Building in Carson City, Nev., on Tuesday, June 2, 2015.
Photo by Cathleen Allison/Nevada Photo Source
“I’m very disappointed. We worked the issues pretty hard; we had come to an agreement. We had Labor and all the Democrats on board. We had a majority of the Republicans in the Senate with us, but some people didn’t live up to their side of it, and the reality is that the people who got hurt were the people who needed it the most. It really bothers me, because right now if you’re working in the food service industry, say, or even in construction, let’s say you’re working first shift and someone calls in and there’s a need for someone to work a second shift. To you it’s a lot of money, and your boss might ordinarily be willing for you to stay and work that extra shift, but she can’t afford to have you going into overtime, so she calls someone in and you lose out on that. So setting overtime to kick in after 40 hours rather than policing it day-by-day makes sense for everyone. And getting the $9.00 an hour wage would have pushed people above the poverty line, which offloads state services which are funded by taxpayer dollars.
On being a lawmaker and a single mom with two daughters at the same time
“We loved living in Carson City. The girls came up with me in December, we rented a home and they went to Fritsch Elementary, which was absolutely wonderful. The caucus was very flexible with me, with the girls. The caucus was great with me so I wasn’t working too late too many nights. So, in light of the work that had to be done, I actually saw the girls a lot.”
BILLS
SB 172
Co-sponsors: Senator Joseph Hardy and Senator Joyce Woodhouse
Committee: Health and Human Services
Related to: Public safety
What it does: Prohibits a medical facility from allowing a person who is not enrolled in good standing at an accredited medical school or school of osteopathic medicine to perform or participate in any activity for credit towards a medical degree; related prohibitions regarding medical students and the practice of medicine
SB 253
Co-sponsors: Senator Joseph Hardy and Senator James Settelmeyer
Committee: Commerce, Labor and Energy
What it does: Revises provisions relating to the sale, terms, and disclosure requirements of guaranteed asset protection waivers by lenders; waiver agreements promise to forgive a remaining loan amount after a total loss
SB 254
Co-sponsors: Senator Joseph Hardy, Senator Becky Harris, Senator James Settelmeyer
Committee: Government Affairs
What it does: Sets the required amount of retainage, or withholding of progress payments to construction contractors, on public works projects at five percent; reduces the allowed retainage for private construction projects from ten percent to five percent
SB 327
Co-sponsors: Senator Becky Harris, Senator Joseph Hardy
Committee: Health and Human Services
What it does: Revises provisions related to the minimum required staffing and qualifications of physicians, nurses, and attendants aboard air ambulances
SB 374
Co-sponsors: None
Committee: Commerce, Labor and Energy
What it does: Cleans up language related to conservation of energy requirements in public facilities; remands the power of rate-setting and credit-granting related to residential rooftop solar units and net metering to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) of Nevada; requires the PUC to conduct an analysis of appropriate costs and subsidies for solar power generation
SB 276
Co-sponsors: Senator Tick Segerblom
Committee: Finance
What it does: Provides for the reallocation of certificates for medical marijuana establishments to other counties when a county has no qualified applicants; allows the transfer of a medical marijuana establishment agent registration card if the new owner meets all requirements of such establishments under the law; allows the relocation of such establishments with local government approval. The law is intended to give medical marijuana establishment owners and investors more flexibility.