CARSON CITY -- Lawmakers were told Tuesday they are in good shape for a quick start to the 2007 session on Feb. 5, but that the new constitutional requirement to fund public education before passing any other money bills could pose a challenge in the rush to adjournment in June.

Legislative Counsel Bureau Director Lorne Malkiewich said 224 bills have been drafted out of 768 requests as of Nov. 20, putting lawmakers on good footing for a lot of early bill introductions.

Because the Legislature is limited to 120 calendar days, getting bills drafted and introduced as early as possible is a key to finishing on time, and lawmakers have been refining the process since the limit was first instituted in 1999. Lawmakers have only made the deadline once, in 1999, without having to call a special session to complete their work.

"I think we will be able to keep the committees busy right through the first month," Malkiewich said. "We are so far ahead of where we were last interim it's not even funny. I think we're on track for a very quick start to the session."

Incoming Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, said the good progress in bill drafting will keep lawmakers busy early on. "It looks like we are in really good shape to start the session," she said.

A new wrinkle in the 120-day session is the requirement to fund public education before any other budget, a change passed by voters earlier this month.

A legal opinion provided to legislative leaders, meeting as the Committee to Consult with the Director, said the requirement means that no spending bills, regardless of the amount, can be enacted for the new biennium before education funding is approved.

Bills to spend money in the current fiscal year, such as the $18.5 million set aside to pay for the 2007 legislative session, can be enacted. But no bills appropriating money for use on July 1, 2007, or thereafter can be passed first.

This will require lawmakers to take one of two approaches. They can either pass an education funding bill early and potentially augment it later on. Or they will have to wait until the last few days of the session to seek final approval of all spending bills for the two years beginning July 1.

"One of our concerns is the backup at the end of session," Malkiewich said. "We now need to make sure we orchestrate the passage of the major bills and hold the passage of a lot of these other bills until we've got education through."

State Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, said this issue was one of the reasons he opposed the constitutional amendment, which was on the ballot as Question 1. It was sought by Gov.-elect Jim Gibbons after a legislative budget deadlock over tax hikes in 2003 held up approval of education spending.