CARSON CITY -- Legislators came up with a solution Tuesday to teenagers who smoke in public -- fine them.

Sen. Mike McGinness, R-Fallon, proposed fining minors $10 if they are caught smoking.

The fine would increase to $20 for the second offense and then $30 for the third offense. On the fourth offense, the youngster would be placed under supervision by the juvenile court system.

Judges would be given the option of ordering offenders to perform community service.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Mark Amodei, R-Carson City, said California fines minors $75 when they are caught smoking. They also must perform community service.

"Ten dollars, $20 or $30 is far below that," he said. "Maybe kids in O.J.'s (old) neighborhood will come here to smoke. This is hell of a deal."

No decision was taken on the bill. Amodei said at least four of the seven members of his committee are willing to change the law.

Nevada law prohibits children under 18 from buying cigarettes and other tobacco products, but it does not punish them for smoking.

McGinness introduced his Senate Bill 14 on behalf of the Churchill County School District. Just off the grounds of most high schools in the state, he said, are "smokers' corners," where teens gather to smoke.

His bill as originally written would have made any juvenile found in possession of tobacco subject to the juvenile court as a child in need of supervision.

But in a Feb 8 hearing, court officials complained they would be overwhelmed by the number of youngsters who would be affected by the law.

A recent University of Michigan study that found 8.7 percent of eighth-graders, 14.5 percent of 10th-graders and 21.6 percent of 12th-graders reported using tobacco within the previous 30 days.

In Clark County, that would equate to thousands of students, according to testimony at the earlier hearing.

But no court officials showed up Tuesday to give their views about McGinness' amendment.

That clearly irked Amodei.

"I guess everything is OK," he said. "People appeared so enthusiastic at the first hearing are so unenthusiastic now that they didn't show up for the work session."

McGinness told the committee he proposed the changes to satisfy the concerns of juvenile court officials.

Amodei he will schedule another work session at which a vote will be taken on the amendment. He said he hoped juvenile court officials would show up.

Legislative staff researchers found that in 36 states laws prohibit juveniles from smoking. Sixteen states require them to perform community service if they are cited, and nine states suspend the driver's licenses of offenders.