Why is a former Nevada legislator foisting her views upon us and costing taxpayers money when she is no more an assemblywoman than young Skip the burger-flipper at McSomebody's?

I'm not weighing the merits of Assemblywoman Sharron Angle's proposal to make English the state's official language. My question is, when does your legislator quit?

My sources for this research are Nevada Revised Statutes, former Assembly Speaker Joe Dini, former central Nevada Sen. Rick Blakemore and David Guinan, former deputy counsel of the Legislative Counsel Bureau.

Since Aug. 4, 2005, Angle has sent nine bills to the Legislative Counsel Bureau for drafting. All my sources agree there is nothing illegal in this. Her bills seek access to complementary and alternative services for health care, revised provisions for voting at polling places and changes in the regulation of transportation. Also, five other matters, including the English-only issue.

However, if a member of the Assembly chooses to run for Congress and announced that intent on June 8, 2005, has she not given up her Assembly seat in reality? Her successor was selected in the general election, when Republican Ty Cobb defeated Richard J. Hardenbrook, 64 percent to 36 percent, in the Reno district.

All my sources agree that Angle was the district's assemblywoman until the general election. But, as Dini said of her bill requests, "She is blowing taxpayer money on bills that may never see daylight."

Contrary to news reports that indicated another legislator might pick up her bills, Dini says they will be under the control of the new Assembly speaker, Barbara Buckley, who will either assign them to committee or "pocket" them.

"The speaker apportions those bills out," Dini explains. "If he doesn't want it, they die. The question is, why should a person who declares her candidacy for another office have authority to seek bills for the Legislature at which she will not serve?"

Dini points out that after the 2005 legislative session, Angle could only appear in the lower house at a special session called by the governor. None of her bill proposals could come to the floor, as only the governor's stated reason for the special session could be considered.

After the Nov. 7 general election, Angle was relegated to the sideline. Should a special session be called, her post would be filled by appointment -- and reason tells me it would be filled by Cobb.

Was Angle of greater status than you and me while running for Congress, as opposed to being a legislator? I guess so, because NRS 218.420-218.55 makes clear that the legal division of the LCB will "assist any legislator in the preparation of bills" but it is prohibited from honoring requests for bills "directly submitted or requested by a natural person."

You and I are natural persons -- apparently, Angle was a legislator.

NRS 218.2423 limits her to five proposals before Sept. 1 (she had six) and five more between Sept. 1 and Dec. 15 (she had three). But if you believe Dini's reasoning, she was cut off on Nov. 7. According to the Nevada Legislative Bill Draft Request List, her English proposal was registered on Nov. 6 (the day before Election Day).

"I doubt that the Legislature intended to afford that privilege to a 'lame duck' legislator, but the statute doesn't make that distinction," Guinan said. "Arguably, Sharron Angle's request was a waste of resources of the Legislative Counsel Bureau, but she had a right to do so."

I wonder, could this be politics? Dini suggests as much: "I think she is going to be back in the congressional race."

Angle's Web site promises a weekly online "subscription" newsletter and promotes her need for donations "to defray litigation costs" of fighting various issues that she obviously will direct, as well as the continuation of her campaign headquarters in Reno "for your convenience."

She sounds like a candidate, espouses like a candidate and appears headed for another election run in 2008.

Blakemore estimated that bill draft requests cost about $7,500 when he left the Senate in 1984. And Dini said it was not unreasonable to estimate the cost at $10,000 per bill when he retired in 2002 service.

So, is it worth $10,000 for Angle to run a bill through the Legislative Counsel Bureau and therefore to keep her name before the public? You tell me.

Bill Roberts is a veteran journalist in Tonopah. His column appears Wednesday. Contact him at broberts@reviewjournal.com.