Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, D-Reno, talks Friday from the Assembly floor at the Legislature in Carson City. Leslie introduced a bill that would repeal a 2005 law that limits public involvement in many state licensing hearings. Photo by The Associated Press

CARSON CITY -- Nevada lawmakers heard arguments Friday on a move to repeal a 2005 law that limits public involvement in many state licensing hearings, including hearings on permits for some mining and farming activity.

Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, D-Reno, told the Assembly Government Affairs Committee that she introduced Assembly Bill 94 to get rid of the 2005 law that had been "sold" as a plan dealing with licensing hearings of independent insurance agents. The law prohibits participation in a licensing hearing for anyone who lacks a direct financial interest in the matter.

An environmental group found out last year that the law restricted its participation in a permit hearing conducted by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.

Great Basin Mine Watch wound up with limited involvement in a Division of Environmental Protection hearing on a permit for a closed mine in Elko County. The group is concerned about pollutants from the old mine filtering into a stream that feeds the north fork of the Humboldt River.

Lobbyist Jim Wadhams, who pushed for the 2005 law, has mines among his clients but has denied that the mining industry was involved in efforts to pass that measure. In a letter to the Assembly panel, Wadhams said he supports AB94.

Assemblyman David Bobzien, D-Reno, joined with Leslie in pushing for repeal of the 2005 law during Friday's hearing, saying that the public has a right to petition the government.

"It was a fix for something that wasn't broken to begin with, and now we have to go back and fix the fix," he said.

However, Assemblyman Pete Goicoechea, R-Eureka, said there should be some clarification of who has standing to participate in such hearings and who is just a member of the "interested public."

"When you get a 39-cent stamp from Georgia that holds up a process in Nevada, it becomes an issue," he said.

Environmental groups lined up in support of AB94.

Kyle Davis, policy director for Nevada Conservation League, pushed for public involvement in the administrative processes, rather than forcing such groups to fight through the legal system.

Attorney John Marshall also spoke in favor of the law. Marshall said he represents Bill Barrackman, the owner of a pistachio farm in Amargosa Valley who was "kicked out" of a hearing on a wastewater discharge permit for a new dairy farm, the Beverly Hills Dairy, next to his property.

Marshall asked that the law be made retroactive so Barrackman could revive his appeal, saying there were questions about the need for a "nutrient management plan" in the permit since waste from the dairy is equal to waste produced by a city of 80,000 people.

Beverly Hills Dairy is run by Assemblyman Ed Goedhart, R-Amargosa Valley, according to state Environmental Commission records. The dairy permit was issued by the Division of Environmental Protection.